Jeans by Levi's Vintage Clothing, Photo: Haven
How do you break in your raw denim? Is there anything you can do to speed up the process?
**Matt Baldwin: **For me, it starts with the fabric. I love finding something new about the break-in process each season. Then comes fit. I try on jeans and find the size that fits perfectly, and then I purchase one size smaller. Dry, 100% cotton denim expands anywhere between one inch to 1.5 inches over a three month period of daily wear. From there I machine washing a few times before my usual first daring repair, and then continue to cold wash and hang dry throughout the denim's life.
Paul O'Neill: I tend to approach it a little differently than other people. First, I buy my jeans correct size in the waist (rather than size down) and a little longer in length (one or two inches). Then, I'll wear them for a few days before climbing into a warm bath in them and soak for 20 minutes. Once soaking is over, I slip out of the jeans and let them dry in the sun. This shrinks the jeans to your body shape. Because you were wearing them while shrinking them, they should not shrink smaller than your waist. I tend to check them when nearly dry and put them back on and stretch the waist out by squatting in them if needed.
What's the deal with washing raw denim? Never? Only after a certain amount of wears?
Andrew Chen: I think the number one thing I can suggest is to not be afraid to wash them. A lot of people went from washing jeans every week along with their socks and underwear to never, ever washing them (and subsequently losing friends and associates in the process). What we've found is that washing jeans every few months extends the life of your jeans significantly, because you're actively getting out the sweat, dirt and bacteria that will break the fabric down. And if the denim itself is beautiful, then it will not be adversely affected by consistent washes at all.
Paul O'Neill: Some people never wash their denim, but I do like to wash my jeans every so often—roughly every six months depending how often I've been wearing them. When I do wash them, I turn them inside out and wash separately (to avoid crease marks) on a cold wash and dry them flat.
Matt Baldwin: Super simple. Cold wash, hang dry. Go as long as you can between washes. Repair for character. That's it.
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Jeans by Baldwin Denim, Photo: Baldwin
