BiG's new one wash service

[Valgar]

Is there any specific reason to hang your jeans dry instead of tumble dry?

[mikesduc]

Can you get the jeans back damp?

That's too good man! I was LMAO. Great way to start my day.

[the wit of the staircase]

i'm sure he would have. he has been nothing but nice. and i'll probably send them back. i have another pair that i need to send in for repairs anyway. i was being a contrary bastard. it's unnoticeable unless you examine the hem. and since i know it's there it kind of glares at me. but it's much easier to be bitchy than get off my ass and send them back.

that's really odd. I've had 3 jeans hemmed by gordon and he also redid my pocket stitching on my contest samurai's and they all look great. You should have taken them back to him, I swear he would have redone it for free.

[mizanation]

the wit of the staircase--gordon is very concerned about customer satisfaction, if you email him and tell him that you weren't satisfied with your chainstitch, i'm sure he'd redo it for you for free. it's weird that your stitch was crooked, i've seen him stich dozens of hems and they were all great. he's a perfectionist so he redoes it if it doesn't turn out right.

Miles--why don't you ask gordon what he does with his jeans? i do know that he washes more frequently than most. also, he tumble dries. he gets great results, but i've also seen great results from people who don't wash at all. it's all about personal preference/hygeine.

[swisloc]

he gets great results, but i've also seen great results from people who don't wash at all. it's all about personal preference/hygeine.

i think the only way you WON'T get great results is by not wearing your jeans enough...

the misconception that tumble drying/frequent washing will somehow ruin everything might go back to the initial APC/Nudie craze when everyone was buying sanfordized denim as tight as possible and worrying about any shrinkage at all and massive indigo loss. now that most have pushed beyond that to better quality denim with better dyes that REQUIRE initial shrinking anyway, the point seems moot...just do what you like!

On my 5EP's (raws, not resin) i tried washing more frequently and tumble drying after each wash cause i knew i was dealing with a high quality dye that wouldn't wash out. it's been eleven months and they are looking great...

it's great that he's offering this service. one wash is the way to go.

[mizanation]

well put swisloc...

[ang_kangkong]

Being able to shrink pre-chainstich I do not think is that great of advantage, as then you lose the "roping."

Just soak the hems for 10 mins in boiling water. You can even use a blowdryer and dry them. The pucker will come right back. Got that tip from Gordon after I got a pair hemmed.

Also, as to how often Gordon washes, don't the Onis he has for reference on how they look washed say they were washed monthly?

[coleslawyum]

Gordon washes his jeans quite often, at least once a month. He also wears the shit out of them.

[ktouran6923]

I dryed my jeans in the drying machine after my first wash.....nothing terrible happened.

It really goes back to whats already been said about not worrying to baby your jeans

[ahsu7]

BIG claims that the one wash service will make the jeans darker because the indigo that runs off is re-absorbed in the wash......this is kind of counter-intuitive to me.....do the jeans actually get darker after one wash?

[Tarmac]

BIG claims that the one wash service will make the jeans darker because the indigo that runs off is re-absorbed in the wash......this is kind of counter-intuitive to me.....do the jeans actually get darker after one wash?

The indigo from the top threads bleeds out onto the white threads. Overall it evens out so it looks darker. check the oni 19oz pics.

[ringring]

BIG claims that the one wash service will make the jeans darker because the indigo that runs off is re-absorbed in the wash......this is kind of counter-intuitive to me.....do the jeans actually get darker after one wash?

I agree with you, it does seem strange that jeans would get loaded with more indigo than they had to start with after washing.

Here's how I believe it works.

If you look at a piece of dry, never-washed, shrink-to-fit denim, you will notice a lot of the white weft showing through the diagonal lines of indigo twill. After washing, the denim shrinks and becomes more dense.

This can be proved by weighing a standard size of dry denim (eg 10cm x 10cm) and then weighing the same size in the same denim after washing (ie cutting another 10 x 10cm piece from the washed sample). The washed sample will weigh more.

So the denim becomes more 'dense', with often less show-through of the white weft. Hence darker jeans.

[tweeds]

would it follow that on the reverse side, more weft shows through?

although no longer really white, since it would have been stained by any indigo coming off during the wash.

[ringring]

would it follow that on the reverse side, more weft shows through?

although no longer really white, since it would have been stained by any indigo coming off during the wash.

Well there may be a little staining of the white threads by indigo, but not that much.

Have a look at the underside of your jeans, I guess is that most of the white threads have remained white - and where they have turned blue is where there's been some compression+abrasion from the top side (eg the weft threads will be more stained on the underside of the knee, at the hem where you may have trodden on it).

Also you would see the white lines on the selvedge edge would have been turned blue. Which, I think in most cases, doesn't happen.

[tweeds]

what's odd is my one-wash skulls have the patch discoloured (slightly blue) and generally defaced. a good pair of jeans doesn't usually lose that much colour, and a leather patch is pretty hardy material.

regarding the reverse white side, what i meant was shouldn't it follow logically that since the front side becomes "denser" and hence gives the illusion of being darker, therefore the reverse side would see the same illusion, only with the white weft threads?

but i'm looking at my jeans now and i'm not sure the same illusion works both ways...would have to compare to a raw pair to really tell though.

[GregNYC]

Here's how I believe it works.

If you look at a piece of dry, never-washed, shrink-to-fit denim, you will notice a lot of the white weft showing through the diagonal lines of indigo twill. After washing, the denim shrinks and becomes more dense.

This conforms to my experience of washing and soaking my raw jeans. Washing makes the fabric darker and denser.

On one pair, 2006 LVC 1933s, I soaked for 3 hours, then hang-dried for 24 hrs. On another, I washed and tumble-dried inside out mom-style. Both pairs became darker (bluer weft) and denser in the weave. But the most amazing thing was the dark rich indigo color that emerged on both pair. Much preferable to the color they came with raw. Maybe I'll try some photos in sunlight to compare the color against some raw 1937s I have.

[shinobi2000]

all this talk about how beautiful the jeans are after the one wash -- is it really getting darker and "richer" or just darker and duller? I for one, like the sheen that a lot of raw denim comes in and it's kinda sad to see them lose it after a pre-wear wash or soak.

[mizanation]

on raw jeans, there is still some oxidation yet to take place. water catalyzes this process. that's why washing/soaking produces a darker denim (the first time around).

as for richness, washing tends to bring out more of the nuances of the indigo. also tumble drying brightens up the color as well.

but it's really up to personal preference whether you like the look of washed/soaked jeans or not...

[GregNYC]

all this talk about how beautiful the jeans are after the one wash -- is it really getting darker and "richer" or just darker and duller? I for one, like the sheen that a lot of raw denim comes in and it's kinda sad to see them lose it after a pre-wear wash or soak.

There is a shine or surface gloss to raw denim that doesn't really survive the wetting. The gloss can be from the starch and the callender process. A little remains but not much. But it is certainly there in raw denim. I am still working on a few pairs of raw over months, and I imagine that the shine will turn into something a bit different as the fabric picks up oil from the body.....

[ringring]

on raw jeans, there is still some oxidation yet to take place. water catalyzes this process. that's why washing/soaking produces a darker denim (the first time around).

as for richness, washing tends to bring out more of the nuances of the indigo. also tumble drying brightens up the color as well.

but it's really up to personal preference whether you like the look of washed/soaked jeans or not...

My chemistry is poor, so I'll go on logic. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

I think if water somehow facilitated the oxidation of indigo to produce darker jeans then it would make more commercial sense to subject yarn to many dips in water after the initial dips in an indigo vat, in order to achieve that much sort after and expensive darkness.

Instead, what is practised is repeated dips in indigo solution and oxidation times (in air) in order to achieve a dark hue. Expensive.

As far as I know, it's exposure to air that oxidises 'indigo white' to the blue we all know. Water isn't a major factor.

Indigo, being a 'living colour' will continue to darken with exposure to air. Although I would say that it's not really noticeable on dry or one-wash jeans, as they are so dark anyway. It's easier to see this on commercially washed jeans - left to air, out of direct sunlight, they will darken a little over time.

Nevertheless, I agree that plenty of wash and wear will bring out the most interesting hues in denim.

[mizanation]

that's what i meant ringring. exposure to air after exposure to water. sorry for the misleading comment!

[knucks]

this thread is making me go wash my freebee denim + tumble dry it. I'll report in a few hours!

[swisloc]

Nevertheless, I agree that plenty of wash and wear will bring out the most interesting hues in denim.

this thread is making me go wash my freebee denim + tumble dry it. I'll report in a few hours!

absolutely, the pairs that i wash most often definitely have more color depth. The 5EP's i posted in the "evolution" thread i wash and dry probably a lot more than is considered "kosher" in this forum, and, lately, have been using the dryer. so i'd say, even with high end pairs, less "babying" is in order, for me at least.

[knucks]

washed them for about 30mins in warm water, they are now in the dryer on regular dry. I was considering damp dry but as long as these don't shrink crazy in length it's all good

[naturaljax]

has anyone used this service yet?

personally I have about a 36" (at least) inseam so I would want them to minimize shrinkage as much as possible in terms of the length, so is there anyway you can indicate to them that you dont want it to shrink a whole lot?

[GregNYC]

I've seen some of the stuff Gordon can do with denim. He's like a magician. If you tell him how much shrinking you want, I'm pretty sure he can comply.

[knucks]

just took them out of the dryer. they shrank well, color looks good. i'm happy.

[naturaljax]

I've seen some of the stuff Gordon can do with denim. He's like a magician. If you tell him how much shrinking you want, I'm pretty sure he can comply.

haha unfortunately for me, I'd want next to no shrinking.

I can't hardly get any stacking on my Diors which are tagged 36" so I'm gonna want as long as possible.

[PG2G]

haha unfortunately for me, I'd want next to no shrinking.

I can't hardly get any stacking on my Diors which are tagged 36" so I'm gonna want as long as possible.

I don't think this service is of any use to you then. Samurai shrink to a 36, but otherwise, you're pretty much stuck with the "never let them touch water" deal.

Even if you could specify how much you want them to shrink, the point is to get them shrunk enough so that it doesn't become a problem later on, which it will if you ask for less than max shrinking.

[naturaljax]

I don't think this service is of any use to you then. Samurai shrink to a 36, but otherwise, you're pretty much stuck with the "never let them touch water" deal.

Even if you could specify how much you want them to shrink, the point is to get them shrunk enough so that it doesn't become a problem later on, which it will if you ask for less than max shrinking.

true.

I've heard that pulling the denim while it's wet keept the length to a certain degree though, so I may want to try that.

Another reason I think I'm having a problem with my stacking is my Diors are 21cm but need to be tapered down to about a 20" or 20.5"

I have a pair of Evisu that are 36" inseam and they stack wonderfully, though they are a somewhat baggier fit.

So I think that once I fix the opening on the Diors I'll be good to go with those and other 36" jeans should be good for me.

We'll see how it goes though, one step at a time.