I sit here today feeling quite fulfilled. I'm tuned into ESPN3.com having just viewed the opening match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, starring hosts South Africa versus Mexico, and currently have the Uruguay vs. France game playing in the background. It's finally here. After four years of waiting, the greatest sporting event on the planet has returned, and the next month is going to be crammed with 64 games to watch.
As if the World Cup wasn't enough, last night I placed my order to pick up
a pair of Levi's denim, coming from Germany. On a recent trip to Vegas, I picked up an amazing pair of denim in the Levi's store there, more or less on a whim. I'd been recently getting into the brand, especially for the sense of history it conveys and the quality that I'd subconsciously noted over the course of my days - Bro. Bonn and his classic pairs of jeans (almost undoubtedly broken in since the 1970's) with the red tab on the back pocket and the strange sizing (he's positively not a 34 waist...). The fit of the 514 Slim Straight had been enchanting me, and I found my favorite pair of denim yet on sale for 60 bucks. As seen here -
a pair of Levi's denim, coming from Germany. On a recent trip to Vegas, I picked up an amazing pair of denim in the Levi's store there, more or less on a whim. I'd been recently getting into the brand, especially for the sense of history it conveys and the quality that I'd subconsciously noted over the course of my days - Bro. Bonn and his classic pairs of jeans (almost undoubtedly broken in since the 1970's) with the red tab on the back pocket and the strange sizing (he's positively not a 34 waist...). The fit of the 514 Slim Straight had been enchanting me, and I found my favorite pair of denim yet on sale for 60 bucks. As seen here -The jeans offer the slim stying that's really on trend right now, while not being overly "skinny" to put it frankly. The denim is a great dark indigo color, and what's more it's selvedge denim.
As per research that I've been doing as of late, "selvedge" refers to the way the denim fabric is constructed into the finished product. Quoting from the all-knowing source, Wikipedia,
"is a type of denim which forms a clean natural edge that does not unravel. It is commonly presented in the unwashed or raw state. Typically, the selvage edges will be located along the out-seam of the pants, making it visible when cuffs are worn. 
The word "selvage" comes from the phrase "self-edge", the natural edge of a roll of fabric. As applied to denim, it means that which is made on old-style shuttle looms. These looms weave fabric with one continuous cross thread (the weft) that is passed back and forth all the way down the length of the bolt. As the weft loops back into the edge of the denim it creates this “self-edge” or selvage. Selvage is desirable because the edge cannot fray like lower grade denims that have separate wefts which leave an open edge that must be stitched.
Shuttle looms weave a narrower piece of fabric, and thus a longer piece of fabric is required to make a pair of jeans (approximately 3 yards). To maximize yield, traditional jean makers use the fabric all the way to the selvage edge. When the cuff is turned up the two selvage edges, where the denim is sewn together, can be seen. The selvage edge is usually stitched with colored thread: green, white, brown, yellow, and red (red is the most common). Fabric mills used these colors to differentiate between fabrics.
Most selvage jeans today are dyed with synthetic indigo, but natural indigo dye is available in some denim labels. Though they are supposed to have the same chemical makeup, there are more impurities in the natural indigo dye. Loop dying machines feed a rope of cotton yarn through vats of indigo dye and then back out. The dye is allowed to oxidize before the next dip. Multiple dips create a deep dark indigo blue.
In response to increased demand for jeans in the 1950s, American denim manufacturers replaced the old shuttle style looms with modern projectile looms. The new looms produced fabric faster and wider (60-inches or wider). Synthetic dyeing techniques along with post-dye treatments were introduced to control shrink and twist."
The word "selvage" comes from the phrase "self-edge", the natural edge of a roll of fabric. As applied to denim, it means that which is made on old-style shuttle looms. These looms weave fabric with one continuous cross thread (the weft) that is passed back and forth all the way down the length of the bolt. As the weft loops back into the edge of the denim it creates this “self-edge” or selvage. Selvage is desirable because the edge cannot fray like lower grade denims that have separate wefts which leave an open edge that must be stitched.
Shuttle looms weave a narrower piece of fabric, and thus a longer piece of fabric is required to make a pair of jeans (approximately 3 yards). To maximize yield, traditional jean makers use the fabric all the way to the selvage edge. When the cuff is turned up the two selvage edges, where the denim is sewn together, can be seen. The selvage edge is usually stitched with colored thread: green, white, brown, yellow, and red (red is the most common). Fabric mills used these colors to differentiate between fabrics.
Most selvage jeans today are dyed with synthetic indigo, but natural indigo dye is available in some denim labels. Though they are supposed to have the same chemical makeup, there are more impurities in the natural indigo dye. Loop dying machines feed a rope of cotton yarn through vats of indigo dye and then back out. The dye is allowed to oxidize before the next dip. Multiple dips create a deep dark indigo blue.
In response to increased demand for jeans in the 1950s, American denim manufacturers replaced the old shuttle style looms with modern projectile looms. The new looms produced fabric faster and wider (60-inches or wider). Synthetic dyeing techniques along with post-dye treatments were introduced to control shrink and twist."
So, essentially it's something overly fashion-geek-ish, but fun to know that certain character goes into some garments and not others.
Continuing with the story, I've been wearing these jeans almost everyday for 2-3 months now, and have continued to learn more and more about classic Levi's construction and history. A good friend of mine, we'll call him Andrew, turned me on more and more to the classic of the classics - the 501 jean. The claim to fame of the 501 is the fact that it's the jean of jeans. Classic straight cut, button fly, etc. All jeans stem from the fact that the 501 was so successful with the likes of Marlon Brando and such in the post WWII years, and from there cuts of denim have gone thinner or looser depending on the decade and styling.
Long story short, Levi's has been producing vintage reproductions of their most famous cuts of denim, including the 1947 501xx. It's essentially the gold-standard of jeans, fresh out of the war-era, cut slim and straight, and the perfect garment for a generation to cling to. As read above, all the denim from the era was of this "selvedge" quality, but another intriguing fact was that all jeans were "shrink-to-fit." They weren't purchased pre-washed, with all the fades and distressing so popular among today's pop culture, and having not previously touched water would shrink down an amazing amount when washed for the first time. Hence, one had to buy a significant size above where your normal measurements were. This is why skinny Bro. Bonn's jeans were always 34/34's and whatnot (he's not tall enough for that either - and this is the explanation).
Anyways, these reproductions have gained HUGE following throughout the world over the last 10+ years especially for their wear-properties (ala - how they develop as worn). T
he grade of denim and indigo used are especially condusive to creating "custom fades" to the wearer's body. When bought, they're a solid-indigo, but as worn, the creases one makes while living in them begin to fade appropriately to the stress on them (faster than non-stressed areas) and that fading that's so popular amongst jean fanatics becomes a part of the wearer - not artificially created in a factory.
he grade of denim and indigo used are especially condusive to creating "custom fades" to the wearer's body. When bought, they're a solid-indigo, but as worn, the creases one makes while living in them begin to fade appropriately to the stress on them (faster than non-stressed areas) and that fading that's so popular amongst jean fanatics becomes a part of the wearer - not artificially created in a factory.Features of the 501xx 1947 include 12.5oz Cone Mills red selvage denim some of the cream of denim production. It's the narrowest-cut of the years of 501 production, leading to that classic fitted look while setting itself apart from the "overly skinny" trend.
Well, the point of all this is that last night I ordered myself a pair, and look forward immensely to breaking them in and creating a custom pair of jeans. I'm working on my 514's now, and will have this on my plate for the rest of the year. I'll be posting pictures as these two pairs of jeans progress and become expressive statements of who I am. It may sound corny, but I think it's freaking amazing that a garment can tell a story about who wears it.
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