Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

How jeans conquered the world (2012)

bbc.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

81–90 of 155 posts

Re: How jeans conquered the world (2012)

#81

Post by djtriptych »

pitaj wrote: post #52
character0 wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wash my jeans every 6-12 months, with occasional febreezing after I wear them. This is way more convenient than having to wash and iron my other pants. My other alternative are my Outlier pants https://outlier.nyc/

Do you never sweat? Are the jeans antimicrobial or something?

I've done basically the same thing. Definitely passes the sniff test - somehow there's not much of a difference. Not sure if oil from the skin ends up becoming a antimicrobial agent over time?

Re: How jeans conquered the world (2012)

#82

Post by dualogy »

icc97 wrote: post #44

When 90% of the people around you are all wearing some shade of blue jeans, its a bit the same as everybody driving around in cars in some shade of grey (which they do at least in Belgium). That is, it's just really boring. Colour is one of the few things we've got to express ourselves, so it's a shame we don't use it more.

> Colour is one of the few things we've got to express ourselves

Oh people find all other sorts of mildly yawnworthy ways "to express themselves", from oddly-placed piercings to full-face tattoos to half-baldshaved-half-manbun hairdos to oh-so-snowflake band t-shirts to rainbow-colored socks... among all the noise and clutter, "more colorful pants" wouldn't particularly stand out to me as expressive, whereas by now an unadulterated unmutilated well-nourished clear-eyed non-screen-zombified come-as-you-are face, nowadays, would. In fact, the blander and minimal the clothes and peripherals, the more one's face and head will stand out on its own! That's today's ultimate self-expression, allowing your natural self to shine through in full glory absent all the countless "customization options" people go through to carve out their "unique" avatars =)

Re: How jeans conquered the world (2012)

#83

Post by RUG3Y »

baus wrote: post #8

Japan is at the pinnacle of denim these days (although the US is catching up again). If you want to go off the deep end, take a look at SF based Self Edge [ http://www.selfedge.com ] or NY based Blue in Green [ https://blueingreensoho.com/ ]

Japanese companies bought most of the US denim weaving equipment after the US textile industry collapsed. Now Japan seems to produce the highest quality denim the way we used to do.

Re: How jeans conquered the world (2012)

#84

Post by ilamont »

The thing that bothers me about buying jeans in the U.S. is the near-universal product segmentation based on 2-inch intervals for waist and inseam (32", 34", 36", etc.). It's rare to find jeans with a 33-, 35-, or 37-inch waist, or a 31" inseam. Because my measurements don't fit what's available in the stores, I often restock when traveling overseas.

Re: How jeans conquered the world (2012)

#85

Post by ashark »

bubblethink wrote: post #33
nightski wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The quality difference would have to be substantial. I bring in a very high income for my area, and the thought of spending $300-$400 on a single pair of jeans is pretty out there. An $80 pair of jeans, which will often be on sale for $40-$50 will last me for 2-3 years and are of average quality. It seems to me like one would have to justify these jeans on the fashion/novelty aspect, and not quality/value as it just…

A huge chunk of that price is because these guys are importing them from Japan, and selling in brick and mortar stores in the US. You are paying a significant sum for the convenience of ordering them. If you know what you want, you can order them from rakuten with a bit of google translate directly. Also, the law of diminishing returns and all that. The sweet spot is generally $75-$150, even for fancy raw denim jeans…

How does one nail down sizing on stuff like this? I imagine returns to a Japanese-only store from a US address, for someone who doesn't speak Japanese, and crossing a cultural barrier for how sales/service should work, are nightmarish, so you'd want to get it right the first time.

Re: How jeans conquered the world (2012)

#86

Post by mmagin »

DaggerDagger wrote: post #73
huac wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Blue Owl in Seattle is good too. These denim stores are mostly focused on raw denim, which is generally a much higher quality garment than available normally.

INb4 people talk about $300 jeans. These are jeans you only have one pair of, that you wear EVERY DAY. They are worth it but it's like buying a nice sports car or nice purse. It's the same thing. Invest in what you use all the time.

Do you wash them every night or what? Don't tell me about ridiculous things like not washing them or freezing them or something.

Re: How jeans conquered the world (2012)

#87

Post by mmagin »

Nav_Panel wrote: post #75
pitaj wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you never sweat? Are the jeans antimicrobial or something?

This was addressed in the original article: > Last year a microbiology student at the University of Alberta, Josh Le, wore the same pair of raw denim jeans for 15 months without washing them and then tested their bacterial content. He tested them again two weeks after washing them and found the bacterial content to be much the same. > "This shows that, in this case at least, the bacteria growth is no higher if the je…

Who cares about bacterial content? I care about how I smell.

Re: How jeans conquered the world (2012)

#88

Post by ridiculous_fish »

chris_7 wrote: post #48
nightski wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The quality difference would have to be substantial. I bring in a very high income for my area, and the thought of spending $300-$400 on a single pair of jeans is pretty out there. An $80 pair of jeans, which will often be on sale for $40-$50 will last me for 2-3 years and are of average quality. It seems to me like one would have to justify these jeans on the fashion/novelty aspect, and not quality/value as it just…

At $200 you can buy Outlier pants (or Mission Workshop, no experience with those though). At $400 you can buy freaking Arc'teryx Veilance pants. That's way too much for something that is just cotton (and not even etaProof or anything interesting).

The main appeal of high-end raw denim is not its utility or technical performance. In fact, denimheads cherish flaws in their jeans. For example, fabric with yarn unevenness and imperfections is prized as "slubby", and the objectively weak chain-stitched hem is highly sought after. These flaws add character and uniqueness.

What is exciting about raw denim is that it develops highly personal wear patterns that reflect your life over a long period of time. Picture a beat-up pickup truck, or a pair of boots. You've had it for years, taken it everywhere, it's full of stories. That's the idea.

Re: How jeans conquered the world (2012)

#89

Post by ashark »

silviogutierrez wrote: post #58

On jeans as an aesthetic choice, I have no strong opinion. Like everything else, they can look good or bad depending on fit/color/etc. But jeans for comfort? Maybe I'm the only one, but I find pants infinitely more comfortable. Even wool dress pants. And in the summer, jeans barely breath at all.

I felt that way as a kid (wait, can I please just wear my "dress clothes" all the time? These jeans suck!) through my early 20s, but I'm back on jeans now and they're not uncomfortable. Might be a body shape thing (that certainly changed—I got much skinnier) or maybe a body type/brand mismatch; I know I had the cheapest thing readily available as a kid—usually Lee or Wrangler—and now I wear mid-range ordinary Levis, not their cheaper department-store targeted sub-labels.

Re: How jeans conquered the world (2012)

#90

Post by Nav_Panel »

mmagin wrote: post #87
Nav_Panel wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This was addressed in the original article: > Last year a microbiology student at the University of Alberta, Josh Le, wore the same pair of raw denim jeans for 15 months without washing them and then tested their bacterial content. He tested them again two weeks after washing them and found the bacterial content to be much the same. > "This shows that, in this case at least, the bacteria growth is no higher if the je…

Who cares about bacterial content? I care about how I smell.

The person who asked the question I was responding to:

> Do you never sweat? Are the jeans antimicrobial or something?

apparently cares.

I also am in the smell + "does it look bad" camp in terms of "will I wear it."

Post reply on HN