Work Jeans

[Cali]

So, I am going to be doing a lot of work around my parents' house/yard this summer and I was thinking it would be a good opportunity for a cheap denim project. As serious labor could equal some good fade I want to get some raw jeans to beat the hell out of, only problem is that I will have to wash them somewhat frequently.

Is this even worth the effort? And which jeans to pick? Has to be relatively cheap, thinking 514, H&M, Uniqlo or some ebay junk.

[__Nicholas]

pick up some levi 501 STF and beat the fuck out of them ... thats the cheapest denim i could think of..

[__Nicholas]

or at walmart the other day i saw some pretty decent fitting rustlers that were raw and pretty heavy, for 8 dollars ... didnt have my size though

[Cali]

I thought about stf but I would like something I might actually wear somewhere else should they turn out nice i.e with a decent fit. I would lean towards the 514 over the STF as long as they can get over my Redwings

[Heartworm]

Wrangler 13mwz.... They're impossible to destroy.

[meader]

I think you shall use your "premium" denim.

[Chicken]

on the contrary, you might want to go with premium denim especially if you're going to put a lot of work into it. check out cheep's contest sammies with all the skating or headtowall's pbj's after caving.

cheap denim will lose a lot of indigo with many washes and could fall apart easier with wear, too. just a food for thought.

EDIT: funny, meader beat me to it.

[Charlie Delta]

^ exactly my thought, didn't Tony Hige also have these amazing jeans that he had worked in? Paint splatters and repaired rips only add personality to the jeans in the long run.

Give those premiums some wear they deserve!

[tweeds]

but make sure you know how to do repairs though...cheep and tony have plenty of repair jobs on their pants.

[Brienneoftarth]

my advice. Go on Ebay and try and locate some Earnest Sewn Filson selvedge jeans. Theyre a dark, one wash selvedge jean that's real good qaulity. You can find em on there for 30-50 bucks which is a great deal. They'll look great after a few months of labor.

[cheep]

true... i have taken a needle and thread to mine a bit... but they have held up in the important areas.... only the bocket stitching and back pockets have had to be repaired.

[Cali]

My only reason for not going premium is that I might have to wash them once a week, although I remember seeing Gordon's Sams that he washed pretty frequently and they looked nice.

As to the ES I heard they are not sturdy at all. If ebay is my way wouldn't I be better off with APC or RRL for durability?

Or if Zipangu Treasures would come back I might score some 47 Canes for a decent price.

[hollaforadolla]

get a pair of samurai s5000s. they are 17 ounce, really tough, baggy enough to do work in, slim enough to look sleek.

i have all slim denim except for s5000bks, which i wear when i do projects around the house that might be too tough for my diors.

[fallen angels]

I thought about stf but I would like something I might actually wear somewhere else should they turn out nice i.e with a decent fit. I would lean towards the 514 over the STF as long as they can get over my Redwings

i agree, if you're going with cheap Levi's, def get the 514 over the stf, the 514 fit is so much better than the crappy STF fit. There is a dark rigid wash, its not raw but very close and capable of good fading. it's a nice light weight too which is more suitable for outdoor yardwork in the sun (compared to heavy japanese denim)

[Cali]

I have a pair of S5000 that I wear daily but I am holding out on washing them, and thus want something else for working. Also the backyard can turn into a burning hell in the middle of the day so the 17oz might not be the best plan.

[destructodisk]

I could be wrong, but I believe the whole idea behind not washing your jeans is to allow time for some significant wear. It takes a while for people to accrue wear on their jeans due to relatively inactive lifestyles, but if you're doing work that is as hard as you say it is, washing frequently shouldn't be a problem since you're just speeding up the wear process through your yardwork.

Wear your Sams. If they get ridiculously dirty or smelly, wash them. It's pretty simple.

[deadpan]

I wore these to lay a patio, fix an oily Brit bike, gardening et. etc. etc. I'm not totally happy with them but I would say go somewhat premium...my experience of standard Levi's etc. is that they rip to shit after a few weeks of rough. I'd say abuse your sams but I understand if you don't wanna. The sams are built more like 'work wear' than any levi's are today though. Out of interest, why do you have to wash so often? I left concrete on these for a few weeks once before washing them. I can't see why you'd need to unless it's something corrosive (like concrete), or literally shit that's gonna be on them?

[drapygo]

I've been wanting to purchase Sugarcane's for just work, but they'd smell after one day of work, don't know if I can handle it.

[Cali]

I just anticipate sweat, dirt, mud, paint, oil, chemicals etc. The smell factor is certainly one component.

Here are Gordon's sams that he washed every two weeks,

They look nice but not going to risk getting paint on my best jeans (plus the heat). Gives me hope for hard wear and semi-regular washing

[Charlie Delta]

Thought I'd throw these in here.

Was helping my dad preparing marble tiles to be placed in a hallway.

This is wat my LVC's looked like after 3 days:

And this is only after three days.

Note that it's mainly dirt and dust but imagine these being worn for 2 weeks straight doing that kind of work and then handwashing them.

[soonami]

I would think that you'd get what you put in. If you wear premium jeans they will in all likelihood fade better and be more resilient to the abuse you put them through. If you get cheaper jeans then the results might not be as good. But the thing is you don't want to have to worry about your $300 jeans while your doing work, and it'll be hard to repair these jeans well when you rip and tear them.

Also, why do you need to wash them anyway if their work clothes? I've worn a pair to saw down two 50 foot trees, hiked 5 miles through a swampy forest, done all of my gardening... all without washing yet. They'll get caked in mud, sweat, blood, w/e but once it dries, it all just brushes off and just air them out. You're doing work in them not trying to get laid

[Chipper]

Some mighty fine ankle creases there.

[beatle]

What size are you..I'll send you my Pace to break them in...

[Chicken]

Thought I'd throw these in here.

Was helping my dad preparing marble tiles to be placed in a hallway.

This is wat my LVC's looked like after 3 days:

And this is only after three days.

Note that it's mainly dirt and dust but imagine these being worn for 2 weeks straight doing that kind of work and then handwashing them.

now isn't this what a pair of jeans is supposed to look like in the first place?

[Chipper]

Send them in to LEVIS, 3 day extreme wear.

[Cali]

Wow Cotton you give me even more hope, guess its premium all the way. I didn't really want to spend any money on crap jeans anyway. How sad is it that when faced with a huge project the first thing I think is 'Oh shit I could get some good fading!'

Guess it isn't called workwear for nothing.

Now I just gotta figure out which jeans to buy. I am trolling ebay for some RRLs, but Canes or Johnbulls from Japan are also on the list. I want a pair of KMW 2010s but not sure if I want to outlay that much for my work project.

[deadpan]

I'd say go for some LVC just like cotton-there's lots of models to choose from (new and used), they're easily avialable, come up often on ebay, and won't quite break the bank...but whatever you choose, be sure to post before and after AND DURING pics:cool:

[Chipper]

Cali, im somewhat interested in seeing how Crate denim will stand up to daily work wear. James IV selvedge. With the first time buyer discount they should be reasonably priced. Contextclothing.com

[Cali]

That was one of my first thoughts too because the numbers look like a good fit and the price is about right but everything I hear is that their quality is not up to snuff and even at a discount might not be worth it. Since this will put a serious strain on any jeans I am afraid I would have to repair them a lot = not fun.

[Chipper]

Some love it, some hate... wont hurt to experiment in the process, you never know if it will bust or stay solid.