Anyone here collects/are into denims--rare, vintage denims, to be exact. I got hooked recently and can't seem to have enough of these things.

Nerd

I know my fair share of denim as if I "collected" but I have yet to buy a nice pair because money is going to school, girlfriend, and toys. Eventually i'll probably get a pair of Sugar Canes or APC's.

The best I got right now is GAP's Japanese Raw Selvege jeans which are actually pretty good!

a couple of relevant threads:
What is more expensive than Japanese vinyl?
Vinyl and denim.

Bread Denim is nowhere near the popularity of Japanese Denim Brands such as Flat Head, Iron Heart, Skull Jeans, etc. What they lack in terms of what is "trendy" now is raw denim. Now these days, people love to purchase unwashed denim at it's original state, only to break them in and fade the shit out of the jeans themselves- I know someone on this board who hasn't washed their jeans for about two years now.

What a unique concept! That’s never before happened in the history of clothing!

Yeah, raw denim has been around for quite a while obviously, but it's only been blowing up for the past years- this whole thing where you wear work wear while not doing any hard work whatsoever.

Although these premium denims have become popular and have been making noise for the past few years via some trendier brands and to name a few brands, Evisu of Japan or France's APC or the Italy's Pace Jeans, etc., my interest in denims have been mainly focused on its origin, historical background and the very high quality in the workmanship that goes into each pair.

I am very much, in all sense of the word, a "newbie" on selvedge, but its quickly growing on me and my hunger for a good pair, like in toys, have been satisfied very well by YJA as well.

My fascination to selvedge jeans started when I was introduced by a friend, who have been collecting selvedge by all brands and years.

For example, it is interesting to note that "selvedge" denims, which was pretty much how things were done back then, have become scarce or hard to find in America, where it was used by pioneers like Levi's and Lee.

In my last visit to SF and LA, I found myself hunting for "re-issues" of some classic pair of Levi's 501s in selvedge, not even the vintage originals.

And to no avail, selvedge has become harder and harder to find in the US. Even from the Levi's flagship store in SF.

It is easier to track them down in Japan where, allegedly, because based from what I heard, most of the looming machines use to weave selvedge were all bought from the US by mostly by the Japanese.

I've actually been getting tired of my jeans. Maybe it's just because it's the summer and they feel too heavy and restricting. But I've been on a khaki kick. Is Banana Republic considered street?

Working from home I've found pants too restricting . . . I'm just waiting for all the hipsters to start rockin' the mumu so I can jump on the bandwagon!

Haha! I went to see The SPITS a few weeks ago up in Cleveland. I'm pretty sure I was the only person there wearing linen cargo pants...but it was hot as balls inside the club... I was comfy, everybody else was sweaty and angry

toddland chinos all day , best pants EVER

and they look like vintage LEEs but softer and better fit.

joe bunny convinced me to buy a pair of iron hearts last time i was in sf. i've worn them everyday since i got them (about 5 weeks now) and everyday they become more and more comfortable and broken in.

I haven't taken a shower in at least two years

Not a classic pair or anything... but I've been debating buying the Alexei Selvage denims by Mishka for a while. Really feeling those. But between working the office life and skateboarding, I don't know if I can justify buying nice jeans. I think for now I'll stick to $9.99 501's from Marshall's and Dickies.

I will say one thing: Regular cheap-o jeans stink nowadays because cotton is not single-sourced unless it's a designer brand. Used to be jeans made in the U.S. would be made with cotton gotten from local crops. Now it's all mixed together from whatever cheap source they can find and the end result is mushy cotton.

So I rag on (no pun intended) folks into designer jeans, but I understand the quality issues as well.

Weird global materials world we live in.

nice, a friend of mine has iron hearts as well. i've been wearing apc's for almost 2 years now, looking to get a new pair of jeans soon.

My friend's advice: Shape and fit is important as well as the preservation of the pari's handsome look. Best way to break-in jeans includes...

1. Wearing them for 6 months, without washing.
2. Taking a warm shower for a looooong time, while wearing the pair. Or, my friend strongly suggest, trooping to the nearest beach and soaking yourself in seawater.
3. Some actually dry clean their pair to achieve non shrinkage, if you want to make them look very closely when you got them.
4. Some jean junkie doesn't actually wash them at all, so, almost zero fade, and the desired deep dark shade of indigo is maintained.
5. If you have to wash, always hang dry.

So far, the selvedge denims I have are:

1. Levis 501s(50s) - buckle back style/plain, both dry and never washed
2. Lee-101B Cowboy, Rider Jacket, both 120st Anniv re-issues, dry jeans
3. Ben Shermans-medium soft
4. Penguin-dry
5. Naked and Famous (Canada-based)

I will post pictures one of these days.

Planning to score more.

I've been breaking in my Naked and Famous 32oz selvage Japanese denim for the last year plus.

Just went through it's third washing yesterday - 30+ days per each wash.....still tough as nails (very tough and heavy denim) but ink is starting to wear in some areas.

Bought a pair of Levi's selvage denim as well and wore them in about 30+ days as well before washing them........sad....since they shrunk even though I air dried them.....now I use them for bouldering

I hope you guys realize that it is never wise to freeball in jeans you dont intend to wash.

Haven't seen a 32 oz Naked and Famous pair yet. Must be really tough.

ANyways, my LVC 501s do shrink, so it is wise to score one size bigger than your actual size.

Im stubborn, so I just buy my size and punish myself to death by losing weight and maintain my waistline for the sake of not losing so much money invested on these denims.

The Flat Head is the Japanese company that has been bringing me over to Japan for my last couple of trips - I'm doing some clothing stuff with them. They gave me a pair of their jeans - they are so stiff that I think they would stop a bullet. still breaking 'em in.

Show off your dope fades yo.