The New Classic Jeans

[denimdestroyedmylife]

i agree with you, but evisu is so much the harder to navigate because of their long-ish convoluted history, their naming system and the ubiquity of fakes; plus you just don't see that many up in here

i would definitely add DENIME 66

[Dick Danger]

Since I've been stuck in an airport for three hours and I've been awake for 30+ hours I've decided to give this more thought.

Classic to me, means something that I could imagine my grandfather wearing while he worked the fields, or that my father might have worn when he was chasing oil around the globe. I can't picture my grandfather running mules wearing jeans with a rise so low you need to shave your pubes, just like I can't picture my father drilling for oil in jeans so tight from a distance someone might think you have leggings on.

I dunno.

[mizanation]

hmm. admittedly, this list is very american centric. which could explain the lack of some models/brands.. japan would have a very different list. as an example, not many in japan own the pbj xx-005, but it's a very popular jean in the states. denime is huge in japan, but not many people rock it too hard over here.

the majority of the people here got into denim after evisu made their classic offerings (coleslaw, i know you have a pair that you got way back in the day). still, their impact is still very apparent. you're right we shouldn't forget about them since they went into mass-production, but many people don't have the original evisu in the states...

[Tisswat]

Sidenote: I have never understood why most people go for RRs instead of Straight Svens. Although Ralphs are probably sold a lot more, Svens are IMO a true (modern) classic cut.

[mizanation]

dickdanger, i agree that "classic" means what you described. that's why i'm calling these "new classics". i guess our activities are somewhat less heroic than our forefathers. but oh well.

[swisloc]

i would say there could almost be two (or perhaps three) categories of "new classics", for instance:

Category 1 (non-japanese, non repro)

Diesel Kratt (circa late 90's) - I'm sure there will be some hate for this, but this jean was essential in getting consumers back into denim. The quality (at that time, not now) was very high, and the cut is very similar to a 501 cut (maybe slightly fuller). It made people realize it was OK to pay over $100 for denim as it was clearly of a higher quality than what Levis was offering.

Helmut Lang Classic Cut - Similar reason as above, but it also pushed towards a more modern, fashion-foward fit (miz already mentioned it above as well)

APC New Standards/Standards/English - really took the helmut lang cut to the next level of modern/slim, and added unwashed selvage denim

Nudies - like deisel and apc combined

(i wouldn't call Dior classic as it is essentially a cross between the APC and helmut langs, i.e. the fit/denim of APC with the fashion brand sense of HL)

Category 2 (japanese repro-style)

already been covered pretty well, but my take for actual classics is:

Evisu

Sugarcane 47

Eternal

Edwin Nashville - hasn't been mentioned yet, but these are extremely popular and were accesible sooner (perhaps meaning greater impact) outside of Japan...

Category 3 (here is where i'd put the japanese companies creating classics that combine essential qualities of both categories)

SDA

PBJ

45 rpm

etc...

rereading this it sounds pretty half-baked, but i just wanted to distinguish those first four as seperate...

[Dick Danger]

turn up the oven

woohoo

[poly800rock]

leicalad - thanks for clarifying what i meant. i too wanted to put a lee repro, but i couldn't decide on a definitive model.

good hustle - yeah, i purposely left out a samurai cuz i couldn't pick one. the closest thing to a classic is the 5000BK or the 5000VX. problem is, the 5000BK is a limited edition and not a production model. the 5000VX just might not be popular enough to be a classic. i don't think the imperial dukes have had enough impact, even though they are a great jean.

also, as fndmybetterhalf said, i would add the diors. however, i wouldn't discriminate between the different leg openings on the diors, though.

i thought the 5000bk is now a production model...that's how they're making them again...maybe i'm wrong though, but there are differences in the limited ones most of us got with the newer ones at BIG and elsewhere...ie. rightside up "A".

classic jeans - miz you always ask the difficult questions

nudie RRDS - the pocket designs are themselves an institution. along with the APC new standard this was probably the introduction to the world of dry denim for many of us, 1.5 years ago. today of course the same is not true...hype and money have come into the picture and japanese denim is much more accessible.

sugar cane SC41947 - i think this was probably the pair of jeans that introduced most of us to the 1947 levi's cut, being the closest thing to a 47 repro, closer than even the LVC version of it.

i'm not sure about the SDA SD-103 - imo this was really just a phase of discovery, but certainly it had a crucial place in spreading the word about the "piggy" to the board. i remember ringring posted about it once, and it disappeared for a bit; when it resurfaced it spawned pages and pages of discussion. more than sugar cane, SDA probably contributed to a good deal of interest about dyestuffs, construction, etc. the SC 47 was classic for its cut, but SDA was the brand to start discussions about LHT/RHT, natural/pure indigo, chainstitching...

the eternal 811 - if for nothing else, then for denim-gallery-heavy's holy grail.

i think evisus have to go in there somewhere, since they were talked about way before any of the classics above. of course, they were also the "original" repro jean.

i'm not sure about the XX-005, 1000XX, sorahiko, and the rest - they seem to me to have been on the sidelines. 45rpm was always the mecca for denimheads (the older members talked about it, that i know) but it never got as huge an interest as the others.

i think SDA 103's are GROSSLY underrated on this forum....i don't think the fruitation has come yet, not enough people have worn them into the ground yet....the fit is amazing and the denim quality is fantastic as well.

[mizanation]

swisloc - makes sense to me.

poly - i agree, the SD-103 is definitely a classic. if the 5000BK becomes a production model, then, it definitely deserves it's place as a modern classic.

maybe we should have superfuture denim awards? we could vote for winners in different categories. best new jean. best black jean. best slim fit. best slubby jean. best natural indigo.... etc...

i know it's corny, but do you think i really give a fuck?

[mr fluffernutter]

maybe we should have superfuture denim awards? we could vote for winners in different categories. best new jean. best black jean. best slim fit. best slubby jean. best natural indigo.... etc...

i know it's corny, but do you think i really give a fuck?

Red tried something similar and I don't remember it working... But I think it's a great idea.

[denimdestroyedmylife]

which jeans won?

that shit was insane

hjj had to steady his pimp hand

[mizanation]

haha, "steady his pimp hand." i love pimp-speak!

for a denim awards, i think it's gonna take a separate website, which i am willing to set up.

maybe we can figure out the categories first?

[mr fluffernutter]

Well you could start with fits...

skinny

slim

classic / regular

bootleg

loose

something like that would be a good start... then maybe best indigo (the actual dye), best black, most versatile.... the list goes on

[docdoom]

nashville standard

[viv1984viv]

PBJs are great, the 005 cut is wonderful, my dream jean would be a 005 with maybe an inch taper to the hem, then it would be perfect. This is becoming more and more apparent as I buy jeans firstly for the fabric, id like my satokibis to be in a 005 cut, my s5000bks, as much as I like the new standard cut I prefer the 005 shape by a long way.

Ive often thought a database would be great, people voting wouldnt be so great because its subjective opinions ( which SF already offers ) but a clear database could offer the slimmest, the most tapered, the closest to dior on an empirical basis. Obviously I think cuts are good to compare because its hard numerical facts, but comparing fabric isnt so good. How do you compare the oni shoai to the natural hawaiis, y'know?

[Contingency Plan]

How do you compare the oni shoai to the natural hawaiis, y'know?

Buy both?