Tutorial background washed denim

By definition raw (or dry) means the denim has not been washed after the being woven, i.e. no dye has been applied or washing performed since the thread was originally dyed pre-weaving. By leaving the denim in this natural state the further development of how the denim will look is left up to the wearer. The fabric is also uniform in strength, so it will last as long as it possibly can.

There is a lot of mystery attached to this raw state, and how one should best take care of ones new jeans. I’ll be looking at this more closely in a later instalment (and yes, I can see this series stretching to at least 5 parts, so get dug in, we’re here for the duration).

Over time the raw denim will wear, or fade as denimspeak has it (and this wear has it’s own vocabulary as well, which we’ll also get back to later). s is part of the process of making the jeans reflect the wearer. Wear will show on the surfaces where the fabric experiences friction. I cycle to work, and sit for much of the day, so no prizes for guessing where my jeans fade the most. Others will find the jeans will wear around the knees, ankles and upper thighs, in addition to their butt.

And this wear is partly what the makers of jeans try to emulate when they pre-wash jeans. this by pre-fading jeans, or more accurately by adding wear. This can be done by mechanical means, i.e. an abrasive disc on a power tool, or by using chemicals. In either case, the result is a garment that the new owner can proudly show off, fake fades and all. Or you could consider it basically a second-hand piece of clothing, although one that hasn’t been worn by a human.

Really I should stop talking about washes right now. In my opinion, raw and unwashed denim is the only way to go for the discerning adult male and the other options are best left to those of lesser taste.