Denim Care Thread (for denim FAQ) - Page 37

July 1, 2011 @ 03:36 AM

butters

Post: 326

Join Date: Aug 2009

Location: Vancouver

okay i currently have a paif of naked & famous skinny guys, this is my first pair of denim so these are dumb questions, i just need straight answers.

1. whats the difference between washing the jeans and just soaking them?
2. do i turn the jeans inside out for both the soak and wash? and a wash i just throw in soap?

and then for both of these i just air dry?

sorry for the lame questions.

Don't be so hard on yourself!! Hahaha

1. Soaking: Cold/warm/hot water in tub (temperature dependant on how much shrinkage you're looking for), let jeans sit in the tub for 30-45ish mins.

Washing: Same thing as soaking but with detergent and minimal agitation.

2. Inside out = less indigo loss
Not inside out = more indigo loss

Personal preference really.

Wash = "throw in soap"

Yes to air dry

July 1, 2011 @ 12:28 PM

caleb91

Post: 313

Join Date: Dec 2010

Don't be so hard on yourself!! Hahaha

1. Soaking: Cold/warm/hot water in tub (temperature dependant on how much shrinkage you're looking for), let jeans sit in the tub for 30-45ish mins.

Washing: Same thing as soaking but with detergent and minimal agitation.

2. Inside out = less indigo loss
Not inside out = more indigo loss

Personal preference really.

Wash = "throw in soap"

Yes to air dry

haha thanks for the response.
so if i soak it in cold water then it wont shrink that much correct?
and if i want to wash the jeans in the washer is it best to just put it on gentle cycle?

July 1, 2011 @ 01:11 PM

butters

Post: 326

Join Date: Aug 2009

Location: Vancouver

haha thanks for the response.
so if i soak it in cold water then it wont shrink that much correct?
and if i want to wash the jeans in the washer is it best to just put it on gentle cycle?

yup, thats the best way for the least shrinking. And gentle cycle with cold water too for the washing machine. Any time you wash your jeans there will be a little shrinking, it will be really minimal though, and after you wear it a couple times again it will fit the same as before you washed them! good luck!

July 2, 2011 @ 10:43 AM

infiniteme

Post: 575

Join Date: Sep 2010

Location: Anaheim, CA, USA

okay i currently have a paif of naked & famous skinny guys, this is my first pair of denim so these are dumb questions, i just need straight answers.

1. whats the difference between washing the jeans and just soaking them?
2. do i turn the jeans inside out for both the soak and wash? and a wash i just throw in soap?

and then for both of these i just air dry?

sorry for the lame questions.

1. The difference between washing and soaking is that washing causes some indigo loss from the agitation, while soaking doesn't, other than the excess indigo that would bleed off anyway.

2. With soaking, IME, it doesn't really seem to make a difference at all whether you soak inside out or not. With washing, I would recommend turning the jeans inside out to minimize indigo loss. You can just throw in soap for a wash or even a soak, but I would recommend one of those all natural organic soaps like Dr. Bronner's or something colorfast like Woolite Dark in order to minimize indigo loss.

For both, I would recommend air drying. Tumble drying seems to soften denim a lot, which makes it more difficult to achieve contrast in your fades.

July 2, 2011 @ 10:45 AM

infiniteme

Post: 575

Join Date: Sep 2010

Location: Anaheim, CA, USA

haha thanks for the response.
so if i soak it in cold water then it wont shrink that much correct?
and if i want to wash the jeans in the washer is it best to just put it on gentle cycle?

Cold soaks tend to cause very minimal shrinkage, certainly less than hot soaks. Gentle cycle is good for the washer if you want to minimize indigo loss.

July 7, 2011 @ 08:43 AM

localguy

Post: 31

Join Date: Dec 2010

If all else fails, do it by hand.

July 7, 2011 @ 08:39 PM

yung swole

Post: 1243

Join Date: Jul 2010

i've had my pair of tapered unbranded for a good 3 months now and i've just noticed that my left leg stacks are getting me really weird fades... it's stacked so that there's this one big fold at the bottom and the shoes i usually wear have the tongue out so it loses indigo at the front of my stacks.... now there's a big white line going across my stacks! HOW DO I FIX MY LEFT LEGGG~!!!!

machetes 2 ur chest

July 13, 2011 @ 02:36 AM

butters

Post: 326

Join Date: Aug 2009

Location: Vancouver

haha, it's up to you man! personally, I throw the pair I wear the most right now (tellason) on the floor, cuz I know I'm going to just put them on in the morning. As for the rest of my pairs, and what most people do is to hang them up. I've seen some pretty cool ways to hang up your jeans; using those hangers with the clips are pretty useful and allows you to hang up your jeans pretty much anywhere, or the coat hanger type that sticks on the back of the door are pretty useful too if you just hook the belt hoops on it. I've also seen some people use a towel rack, and just lay the jeans on there like a towel. It really depends on how much space you have, how lazy you are, and how organized you are. Here's a couple pics of some examples. Don't recommend folding since it's kind of a hassle and leaves your possibly smelly jeans in an enclosed area which could lead to other clothes smelling too.

July 13, 2011 @ 11:13 AM

infiniteme

Post: 575

Join Date: Sep 2010

Location: Anaheim, CA, USA

What's the best way to put away your jeans? I heard it isn't advisable to fold them up... That's what I've been doing all this time lol. Should I be putting them on a hanger and sticking them in my closet or something?

Most people recommend hanging over folding, but personally, I just fold them up if I'm not going to wear them for a while. Anything that I do plan on wearing within the next day or two, I just leave in a pile on the floor.

July 14, 2011 @ 01:37 PM

zeezyo

Post: 2428

Join Date: Mar 2008

Location: san francisco

these must be a bitch to get down. theyre pretty much at the ceiling lol

X

July 21, 2011 @ 11:46 AM

yung swole

Post: 1243

Join Date: Jul 2010

oh my LORD i have spilled yogurt on my jeans and there's a patch of white shit on there now... it's tried and cleaned up as well as i could but there's still that white blob on my right thigh... helpp hypebeast how do i remove this yogurt stain?

machetes 2 ur chest

July 21, 2011 @ 10:41 PM

butters

Post: 326

Join Date: Aug 2009

Location: Vancouver

Truflke, how old are they? Old enough to wash?? You will wash them eventually and a wash can speed up the fading process if they're already aged. It's probably a better trade-off to wash than have the yogourt rot on your thigh.

You can try a spot clean too:
- Lay the jeans flat
- Get the coldest water you can get and soak a cloth towel
- Pat the stain until the maximum amount is removed. Don't scrub it!
- If it's still there, use a very, very, very small amount of detergent or a stain remover pen.

If that's not sufficient, just wash :p

July 23, 2011 @ 02:29 AM

yung swole

Post: 1243

Join Date: Jul 2010

Truflke, how old are they? Old enough to wash?? You will wash them eventually and a wash can speed up the fading process if they're already aged. It's probably a better trade-off to wash than have the yogourt rot on your thigh.

You can try a spot clean too:
- Lay the jeans flat
- Get the coldest water you can get and soak a cloth towel
- Pat the stain until the maximum amount is removed. Don't scrub it!
- If it's still there, use a very, very, very small amount of detergent or a stain remover pen.

If that's not sufficient, just wash :p

arggh... it's only been 4 months and i wanted to go for 6!! when the yogurt stain was fresh, i was rubbing it with toilet paper and water cause i was at work when i spilled it. some indigo rubbed off onto the toilet paper, but the stain eventually still stayed... should i wash it and if so how should i do it? Woolite black into washing machine cold water no spin cycle?

edit: would i be able to put some woolite black on a cloth of some sort and dab it out? would that be effective at all?

machetes 2 ur chest

July 23, 2011 @ 03:30 AM

butters

Post: 326

Join Date: Aug 2009

Location: Vancouver

arggh... it's only been 4 months and i wanted to go for 6!! when the yogurt stain was fresh, i was rubbing it with toilet paper and water cause i was at work when i spilled it. some indigo rubbed off onto the toilet paper, but the stain eventually still stayed... should i wash it and if so how should i do it? Woolite black into washing machine cold water no spin cycle?

edit: would i be able to put some woolite black on a cloth of some sort and dab it out? would that be effective at all?

Spot dabbing with some woolite and a little bit of water should work for smaller stains, not too sure how big of a spill you have there though haha. If it is pretty big, then definitely give it a wash. Washing a little bit early won't do too much in terms of aesthetics and stuff, for a lot of denim washing after a couple months can actually accelerate some fading, since it brings out contrast in the certain areas. You could also wash it a couple ways, the easiest ime is just a cold soak with some detergent, with a hang dry. Machine washing is pretty common too, just make sure they're inside out and washed in cold water. Machine washing does have a few minor downfalls tho, if you're set on minimizing indigo loss then remember that the washing machine causes a lot more agitation than a soak would which would lead to more indigo loss. Also since its tumbling around in there and stuff it's been said that a couple people have had some blotchy spots where indigo bled more in some places than in did in others. It's pretty rare mind you, but it's just a couple things to think about. Check out this video if you wanna know a little bit more about washing jeans! www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGdNrDT3peY

July 27, 2011 @ 12:59 AM

swings.

Post: 49

Join Date: Jun 2011

Location: San Gabriel Valley

Excuse my noobiness. Got a brand new pair of raw denim as a gift (they're obey's you elitists) and I suppose I'll keep em. They fit OK but they could be a little smaller. Is this when I should give them a hot soak? and for how long? And by hot, is it literally like HOT, or medium hot? And finally, seeing how they're obeys and not some APC's or some expensive shits, should I expect to lose a lot of indigo in a hot soak.? Thanks.

July 27, 2011 @ 04:34 AM

infiniteme

Post: 575

Join Date: Sep 2010

Location: Anaheim, CA, USA

Excuse my noobiness. Got a brand new pair of raw denim as a gift (they're obey's you elitists) and I suppose I'll keep em. They fit OK but they could be a little smaller. Is this when I should give them a hot soak? and for how long? And by hot, is it literally like HOT, or medium hot? And finally, seeing how they're obeys and not some APC's or some expensive shits, should I expect to lose a lot of indigo in a hot soak.? Thanks.

When I do hot soaks, I do them using the hottest water possible that comes out of the tap. Some people add boiling water to their soaks, but I don't do it anymore because I find that it sometimes messes up the leather patch when the water is that hot. I usually hot soak for about an hour.

I don't have any direct experience with Obey jeans, but I would expect that they would lose about the same amount of indigo in a soak as any other brand of raw jeans, which wouldn't be much.

All that being said, I'm pretty sure that Obey uses sanforized (pre-shrunk) denim in their raw jeans, so even if you hot soak, you really won't get much shrinkage at all.

July 27, 2011 @ 04:24 PM

swings.

Post: 49

Join Date: Jun 2011

Location: San Gabriel Valley

When I do hot soaks, I do them using the hottest water possible that comes out of the tap. Some people add boiling water to their soaks, but I don't do it anymore because I find that it sometimes messes up the leather patch when the water is that hot. I usually hot soak for about an hour.

I don't have any direct experience with Obey jeans, but I would expect that they would lose about the same amount of indigo in a soak as any other brand of raw jeans, which wouldn't be much.

All that being said, I'm pretty sure that Obey uses sanforized (pre-shrunk) denim in their raw jeans, so even if you hot soak, you really won't get much shrinkage at all.

Thanks! Guess I gotta wear them a little looser then I'd like.

July 29, 2011 @ 10:08 PM

FCKNsteez

Post: 434

Join Date: Jul 2010

Location: Bay Area

I spilled hella juice on the bottom portion of my pants leg on my unbranded indigo jeans after wearing it once. What should I do just soak the part that is dirty on the tub with some detergent? I don't want it to fade yet like I said it was only my first time wearing em. Or should I not even wash em it's not even noticeable.

July 30, 2011 @ 01:35 AM

butters

Post: 326

Join Date: Aug 2009

Location: Vancouver

I would just give them a soak in some cold water without detergent or anything, just to make sure its not sticky or hard after it dries up. If its not noticeable, smelly, or sticky after you spilt then I don't really see a need to wash it hahaha

but it's up to you. If you do a short cold soak it will get the juice out, you won't lose a lot of indigo, and they won't shrink alot. Nothing really has set since you've worn it once anyways, so you could look at it like you were just trying to get the jeans mold to your body sort of like shrink to fits. A lot of people HAVE to soak their jeans before wearing since they have unsanforized denim (not preshrunk) but unbranded is sanforized so there is no need, but it won't really do anything to your jeans in terms of look and stuff. Everything just sets a little more, not necessarily a bad thing tho. If you think it's gross and needs to be cleaned, do a cold soak. If you're cool with some juice... then keep rockin them!

July 30, 2011 @ 01:53 AM

FCKNsteez

Post: 434

Join Date: Jul 2010

Location: Bay Area

It's not sticky at all just kinda has a funny smell .. I think I'm gonna just keep wearing em and not wash em . Thanks tho man!

August 2, 2011 @ 04:18 PM

plantaXmagica

Post: 71

Join Date: May 2011

rocks the jeans never wash them

August 2, 2011 @ 10:36 PM

modernART

Post: 2584

Join Date: Feb 2006

Location: Anywhere, LTD

need to repair this.

www.withoutwash.com/2011/07/week-30-review/

August 4, 2011 @ 11:09 PM

Technique

Post: 2900

Join Date: Oct 2007

Location: SF,U.S.A.

Do a temporary cuff, it'll take of the stress from opening that cut even more.

Take 'em to a trusted tailor.

catalystcollective.us // @theconsciousone

August 8, 2011 @ 03:18 AM

Justiin

Post: 145

Join Date: Nov 2010

Location: California

my nudies are feeling like leather and they used to feel very raw
what should i do ?

BUY MY SHIT BITCH http://hypebeast.com/forums/apparel/163077/

August 8, 2011 @ 03:19 PM

infiniteme

Post: 575

Join Date: Sep 2010

Location: Anaheim, CA, USA

my nudies are feeling like leather and they used to feel very raw
what should i do ?

Having denim soften up as it wears is normal. If you want them to be stiff again, you'll probably have to starch them.

August 8, 2011 @ 10:32 PM

ryun

Post: 267

Join Date: Dec 2010

Location: 604

With summer my denim smells like ass so i ziploc'd it and now its in my fridge. The thing is that i dont thimknits completely air tight i only habe ome that barely fits my denim and i tried to tape holes. Theres like one or two minor holes. Is this a problem? Leaving them overnight

August 8, 2011 @ 10:34 PM

Technique

Post: 2900

Join Date: Oct 2007

Location: SF,U.S.A.

Don't even need to do that; find a hanger and hang your jeans in the shade(so the sun won't discolor your garment) and let them air out for a couple of hours, or the entire day. Imo, I just think this way is better and feels more natural to do.

catalystcollective.us // @theconsciousone

August 8, 2011 @ 10:54 PM

Justiin

Post: 145

Join Date: Nov 2010

Location: California

Having denim soften up as it wears is normal. If you want them to be stiff again, you'll probably have to starch them.

thankss

BUY MY SHIT BITCH http://hypebeast.com/forums/apparel/163077/

August 10, 2011 @ 04:56 PM

plantaXmagica

Post: 71

Join Date: May 2011

their your jeans care for them how you want lol

August 15, 2011 @ 03:58 AM

TH9

Post: 472

Join Date: Feb 2010

So two of my Sams were accidentally dryer-washed on maximum settings, resulting in the white stripe down the pants leg where they folded. I know the white stripe is pretty permanent sadly, but is there any way to get rid of the crease? Logically I'd iron it for any fabric other than denim, but something tells me that ironing would make it worse. Thanks.