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Denim Blunders, Reflections and General Nonsense.


cmboland

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46 minutes ago, Maynard Friedman said:

I can’t believe Esquire spilled the beans on all our favourite brands too - Tom Ford, Casablanca, The Kooples, Celine, Brunello Cucinelli and Jacob Cohen!

lol. Jacob Cohen is BAD. Ykes. They emobdy everything I dislike about denim brands, fit fabric details. Of course they're tremendously popular here in Italy. The parvenu jeans brand.

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Like many people on this forum, I have a lot of jeans - too many - but I make sure all my bills are paid, spending/saving is prioritised, I don’t really have expensive vices, hobbies, yada yada, so that’s not a problem.

I tend to buy jeans when there’s a pair I really want or I see something I like in a sale or there’s a limited opportunity (e.g buying from someone else). My issue is that it means I have a hoard of unworn jeans that I’m slowly working my way through. I can’t wash them all and bring them all into use so I limit my rotation to about 5-6 pairs, usually 2 or 3 for the summer and about 3 for the winter. When one pair gets worn out, I replacement it with another from the pile. 

I notice some people like freaky, metallico and Broark seem to rotate about 20 pairs, often including contest pairs! How do you do that? For me, that would mean too much choice every day and slow progress (I’m a slow fader anyway - except in the knees!). Different strokes for different folks I guess but it’s interesting to hear the perspectives of others...
 

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Same 2x pairs of jeans every single day for me.. when they're fucked i'll throw them away and buy another pair/take from the pile, usually every 2yrs.

I get up in the morning and cycle to work in track pants, get changed into my work jeans which i wear for 11hrs/day, at 4.30pm i change back into my track pants, ride home and change into my 'home jeans'  which i'll wear for 5hrs/day...rinse repeat.

When the work pair is fucked i'll bin them and take another pair off the pile... when the home pair i fucked i'll buy a new pair to replace them which means my stock pile is ever decreasing :) no rotation/no deciding what to wear.

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My approach isn't too much different, I usually focus on one or two pairs for a period of time and then I'll move to something else.
Or if my opinion on how I feel about the fit changes, I'll move on (like the Denimba contest jeans unfortunately :unsure:).
Now I've mostly sold everything that I don't like the fit of, so that isn't much of an issue anymore.

My buying habits have slowed down a bit, however I'm still not as disciplined as you two. I still get tempted and buy new pairs, but I think about it more than I used to.
Basically anything from OA and Roy I'll get as long as the fit is right and Warehouse always catches my eye.
And I scour Yahoo Auctions for good deals regularly, haven't found much lately in my size.

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I usually rotate one loose pair, one smart pair and keep one faded pair to wear when I want to wear something lighter colour.
I guess those who have a bigger collection they just wear them? Not everyone is interested in fades.

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I don’t have as many jeans as some folk here and I don’t consciously rotate my jeans - I just wear whatever takes my fancy, or whatever matches anything else I’ve decided to wear. That means much of what I own doesn’t get (aggressively?) faded - just worn out ... slowly. However, there are spells I wear the same jeans for a longer period - that’s down to laziness as much as anything else, not being at all bothered about looking out an alternative. There’s no plan that’s for sure.

I’m more interested in how other folk’s jeans fade than my own I guess.

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@Maynard Friedman 
I do have quite a big collection (although slimmed down). I think I'm around 22-24 pairs right now. I do like fades but I also like the denim when it's new and crisp. I sold quite a lot of jeans (some worn a bit, some worn even less and some not really worn) but simultaneously I also stocked up on models/brands I like.
The problem with a big collection and the urge to kinda wear all of them, you end up with many dark blue jeans (especially if you sell jeans you already wore). 

Then I take part in a contest from time to time and those result usually in my most worn jeans (Samurai S0510XX66-2, UES 400T, Denimbridge GBG001) but I rarely finish and I get easily distracted...

In the end, I chose the pairs I wear according to my mood, weather and what other stuff I want to wear. So I have roughly a handful of pairs I wear in a given period until my taste shifts again a bit and new pairs enter the rotation and others leave it.

Kinda like that

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I try not to break in a raw pair in the summer time for practical reasons. I got 6 pairs on rotation at any given time, that covers different fits.

I’ve tried the [cut] spectrum through the years.  I am a denimhead that does not have particular brand, denim, or cut loyalty.  IMO, trying new stuff to keep my denim experience fresh & interesting, is top of my priority.  I still keep a short denim wish list.

edit:   I’ve gone to quite a few pairs through the years ... ones that are bleh & ones that I felt, dint fit right, were dropped ... but, come to think of it, I don’t wear them down to a pulp & replace.   ‘Ones I liked, I kept ... that’s why I got a bigger pile of worn&faded pairs, which goes to the rotation every now & then, especially in the summertime ... & I have a short stack that I’m confident I’ll be able to fade, in my lifetime.

Edited by BrownMetallic
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I try to only wear one pair at a time. Right now it's Full Count 1108 in the warmer months and Flat Head 3005 in the colder months. And one, sometimes two, days a week I'll mix things up with 3Sixteen chinos. 

I have some Eternal 811s to wear eventually but thankfully not a huge "backlog" of jeans to work through. I find this system works really well. I don't have much decision fatigue (basically choosing between jeans, olive chinos, or beige chinos) on any given day and wearing the same jeans almost every day means they fade nicer, faster. There are a couple of pairs I want to wear (Warehouse 800xx, TCB 50s) but I'm not likely to start wearing anything new until maybe next fall.

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Martin, now l've whittled my stash down to a reasonable amount, l dont think l can get rid of any more, or purchase any more. I'm in a stalemate situation. Each pair is an individual now, not swamped in with the masses to be forgotten. So to answer your question better l copied and pasted this from the HMPOJDYO thread, and given a simple explanation after each pair :)

 

" Lvc 1963 551ZXX (555) from 1996 - they are a weird fit on me but l love every detail on 'em.  Just cant part with. Worn for a short period after purchase then shelved.

Lvc 1955 501XX (555) from 1996 - fairly worn in and if there's a mucky job to do in the garden/around house, these are for that.

Lvc 1955 501XX (554) from 2003 - Occasionally worn when l am doing a smart/casual pub meet (rare).

Lvc 1880 XX waist overall  from 2007 - never worn out of the house as l dont trust the lvc sew on buttons/dont really want to look like a miner. So an old timey keepsake.

Lvc 1944 S501XX from 2010 - worn. Great fit, dislike some of the details.

Conners sewing factory M-41 s409xxx - just started to wear.

Conners sewing factory M-44 (WW2) s409xxx - just started to wear.

Conners sewing factory M-47 s409xxx - too small atm (B_Fs old pair) 

SC47's with arcs - Love these. Worn. In and out of rotation 

Freewheelers/Bootleggers 1947 601xx - Again, love these (..as above)

Freewheelers 1947 601xx - (^ ^) but to small atm.

Freewheelers 1951 601xx - not worn for quite a while. 

Lee Japan 1930 101 lee cowboy (x2) - one pair too small atm, the other pair almost retired.

Roy originals from 2010 - semi retired, but lower rise for me - 11.5" (yikes).

Bartack 1955's (old Japanese model from 1994) - London house yard/garden jeans. 

Obviously the stuff below is unused:

 

"And the following raw/bnwot, NOS/DS -

Lvc 1929 201 (555) from 2000

Lvc 1937 501XX (643M) from 2003

Levis 501 redlines from 1978

 

Edited by Dr_Heech
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I wore 2 pairs of jeans for nearly 4 years, for each of the Denim World Champ contests. The 1st I bailed on after about 18 months cuz the cut was too tight and couldn't take it anymore. The 2nd I wore even though they were too big just 'cuz I said I would. I have several unworn pairs, and a few that have 6-8 months that I don't wear regularly. There're at least 10-15 pairs I'd like to buy right now, just to have and experience them, but won't and time soon. I guess I'm on the search for a nearly perfect pair that has the right denim, cut and details that appeal to me. There are so many brands and cuts that I see fellas here posting that I haven't tried yet. I bought and sold several pairs over the years that the I sized wrong on or the cut didn't work. I'm nervous now about getting new pairs. 

Shirts, on the other hand, I rotate regularly and try to wear most of them frequently, weather permitting. 

There are a few other pieces I need in my wardrobe, particularly a good winter coat. 

And then there are my other hobbies, interests, work, expenses atc. that all vie for time and limited funds... B)

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that's hard... entered GBG contest year ago and wear only them (except for when it's too cold/hot or they are in wash, so 95% of the time I am in them), during this period bought 5 new pairs to wear after contest is over....and now joined TCB contest :ph34r:and that's without saying about couple of dozens of pairs I settled with (<-- not sure if this one is the right expression) before GBG contest that are waiting to get back to rotation 

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I have a personal rule to commit to no more than 2 pairs at a time, usually staggered so one is much lighter and one is darker. I have a strict policy of only keeping jeans I wear, selling off those that don't fit, and enjoying everyone else's jeans from afar lol. It's also easy when you're ballin' on a budget and choose to wait for big sales, or the rare LA rich boy drop off at the thrift store. I definitely wouldn't call myself a minimalist or anything, but it's nice to not have so much stuff to worry about.

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I had quite a few pairs stashed away in my current size. As the weight seems to slowly pile on as I get older, I realized that It’s not likely that I’ll stay the same weight long enough to wear all of these jeans. Started selling many off, only to buy some more in slightly larger sizes “for later” :wacko2:
 

 

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Like others, I'm a 'one pair at a time type'. It's helped that my denim purchases halted completely the past 3 years, but I've now settled on what I like and what's most important to me: comfort.

Because of this, I stick with Ooe as the sizing is goldilocks for me. Looking forward to the TCB contest though, which means my current pair of Ooe's will be on the back burner for a while...

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Denim parallels my other hobbies (film photog, folding knives, mech. watches, fountain pens) in that I start innocently and end up going too far.  I used to buy cheap Levi's 505s from JC Penney.  Thinking the fit too relaxed, I went into the Levi's store in San Francisco years ago and met a tailor (Melissa Vu) who made them fit perfectly.

So then I started looking for the 'perfect' pair off the rack, which led me on a circuitous path, starting locally (Self Edge), nationally (BIG), to Japan (Ooe and Kaizoku), and back (Standard & Strange and back to Self Edge for the annual Roy fix).  Curiosity and impatience drive me more than perfect fades, so I'll never have the latter.  I've bought a bunch and sold a bunch.  But even now, there might be a pair sitting on the to-sell stack that all of sudden gets my attention.  Maybe I should try that pair of Samurai 500-OG, IH-555-UHR, or B01 Beatle Buster again.  Like an old joke told to an Alzheimer's patient, they look new again to my old eyes.

Bottom line, I have no rotation at all, other than to pick a pair from the rack based on the urge to try something I haven't worn for a while.  Usually there are 5-7 pairs that I've already worn over the course of the month, but that won't stop me from grabbing something that's been in hiding for over a year.

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I usually wear 2 pairs at a time, 1 for weekdays, the other for weekend.

Keeping on that schedule until I am satisfied with the worn state of the weekdays pair or got somewhat tired of the fit.

Quite content with what I have now, only thing missing might be something from Warehouse to complete the Osaka 5 collection...the recent 46 anniversary model is very tempting...

 

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I actually haven't rotated much at all in quite some time. For the most part, I've been wear my CSF 37s for nearly 3 years now. I do wear a couple of my other CSF jeans as well every once in a while, but that isn't very often. I don't even have all that many pairs of jeans. The big reason my jeans don't fade much is that I don't wear jeans while sitting around at home, I wear a lot of other chinos/trousers instead of jeans quite often, and I also cannot wear jeans to work. Hence, my jeans have probably 8 months of actual wear even though they've pretty much been the only jeans I've worn for nearly 3 years. 

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This was never a planned approach but... now I think about it... the pattern is buy new crispy jeans, wear them most of the time I can (not physically in work) and vary what I wear on the weekend. 

I reach a point where I get bored of them and park them... returning later so it's like meeting an old friend and get going again.

I always stop frequent wear when they've developed a bit of character.  I like a little stash of faded jeans to wear now and again (notwithstanding fit preferences move on too).

So the jeans don't get forgotten or lonely (bless their little turn ups), they're all on hooks hanging on the wall in chronological order of purchase.

Edited by MJF9
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I have got about 9 pairs in total, not even half will get regular wear though. I wear 1 or 2 pairs until first/second wash and have a nice bit of wear in them then wear them less and go back to darker pairs. I wear jeans often and can do so at work but feel darker ones are more acceptable for work.

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6 hours ago, MJF9 said:

So the jeans don't get forgotten or lonely (bless their little turn ups), they're all on hooks hanging on the wall in chronological order of purchase.

Well, I’m not anal retentive that way ... as in, arranging my jeans chronologically :D:biggrin::ph34r: ... but, seriously,  isn’t that what jeans rotations are for, in the 1st place?!

Who cares if it takes 3-4-5yrs to get them worn in.  If u believe that the [denim] journey is the destination itself,  why even ponder of the “moment”.  

Besides,  from my POV,  I don’t see the logic of abstaining from a harmless hobby that gives me pleasure.  It’s a victimless addiction ... when done in moderation:smile:

 

Edited by BrownMetallic
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On 7/15/2020 at 4:11 PM, mlwdp said:

https://inazuma-onlinefes.stores.jp/

https://inazumaonlinefes.com/overseas-customers/

 

Anybody going to buy tickets for this?  It looks like Clutch and Lightning are moving the festival online according to the translation.  Is it worth looking into?

i've already bought my tickets, but looking at the pre-festival information they have on their site it seems it's really going to be a hit or miss.  the only juicy release (imo) they have are the heavily discounted RMC jackets, most likely due to them being samples etc.

potential customs (if you're out of jp) will increase the risk factor

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