do you use a dryer?

[Chicken]

our beloved denimhead poly has become a machine dryer advocate. he believes his denim fit better after machine drying and that there's no reason to baby his jeans.

the famous takashi (of the holy grail 811s) often machine dries his new denim once. he then soaks the denim again and air dries it. this is because he likes the shrinkage he gets from the machine, but he doesn't like how soft the denim feels afterwards. therefore, he soaks the denim again and air dries it to get that stiffness back.

are there other denimheads around here who use dryers?

[Charlie Delta]

Funny that this is the first post I see now, since I just chucked a pair of mine in the dryer. Already soaked them twice. Last resort to try to make them fit since I had the feeling the hot soaks weren't shrinking them at all. If it doesn't work a friend of mine will probably take them of my hands, otherwise I'll probably Supermarket them.

We'll see........

[justinbaily21]

I think that using a dryer too much gives the indigo a 'fuzzy' fade. I'm not a fan of what I have seen. I have no problem with jeans that come in a one-wash state like Canes, 45 RPMs or Eternals, though.

[RAISED BY WOLVES]

are there other denimheads around here who use dryers?

Yes.

Sometimes the feel of a hot pair of well-fitting jeans right out the dryer is perfect. I washed my APC rescues about a month back and air dried them. The fading is really nice, perfectly subtle whiskering and solid thigh and knee fade.

In the future, I plan to hot dry them, and maybe even hot wash them to see how that affects their contrast and continuing wear.

I just dried and washed a pair of Grey Stray Boys jeans for the first time earlier this week. I warm gentle cycled 'em, and followed that with a medium dry for thirty (so as not to cook them too much) and then a hot dry for 10 to get their shape crispy again. it worked very well, and I will probably continue that in the future for those.

It's about time to wash my sammies for the first time (not including pre-soak) and im thinking maybe machine all the way, wash&dry, or maybe same style as APC's above. I can use all the shrinkage I can get though, so I think hot all around in the machines might be the move.

Black Dior's are gonna go for their first soon, and I think I might just cold wash air dry, or dry clean. I'd like to keep them looking crisp and new, with little fading and few creases for as long as possible.

So that's me...

(shit, this is the most relevant post I've made in months)

[Chicken]

hmm, so cotton duck, you use the dryer as a last resort method to shrink your jeans.

justin, do you think there has to be something different about the dryer or the process they use to make those jeans in one-wash state, compared to if we did it ourselves?

[Chicken]

wolves, that's interesting. so i guess you're willing to try different methods for different occasions.

[Charlie Delta]

yep, but it's the first time though. And I did find it a bit scary to actually turn the dryer on, and then I did it anyway!

If this doesn't work I'll just have to face that I should've sized down...

Oh well...

[jayrock]

I need to dry a hot wash hot dryer combo on my Cheap Mondays in an attempt to shrink them.

If I ever want to wear them again that is...

Hmm, decision, decisions.

[ang_kangkong]

I did a Takashi with my LVC Type 1. Haven't washed it yet.

Don't usually use the dryer with denim.

[Tarmac]

I dont use the machine. But I air dry almost everything except underwear and towels. saves electricity

[RAISED BY WOLVES]

wolves, that's interesting. so i guess you're willing to try different methods for different occasions.

Definitley...

I think part of it also comes from this sort of internal backlash I've been having.

It actually started mid-way between my "discovery" of The Raw and that Blog post Miz made about wabi-sabi (which is a concept I have always been interested in without knowing it existed as such until last summer).

I'm real interested in fashion, but as my interest grows, I NEVER want to see it head in a direction where it gets in the way of living. Unlike a lot of people on here, The people and activities that keep me busy in life have little to do with fashion, shopping, meet-ups, Etc...

I think it's healthy to have a lot of people in my life who will laugh at me and keep me in check...

So basically, I want to treat my clothing well, but I don't want it to make my life difficult. And bath tub washing a pair of jeans that cost me a little less than a month's rent in a two-bedroom split three ways in queens qualifies as more difficult then I'd like...

[cheep]

if i wash my jeans in a machine, which involves going to the laudrymat and paying money, then ill throw them in with the rest of my dark clothes and put them in the dryer.

thats happened once.

usually, since im cheap, and i wash my jeans MORE than i do normal laundry, i take them in the shower with me and wash them with bar soap(kirks castile... good stuff) then i hang dry them.

[denimdestroyedmylife]

i am becoming a luddite i think

i enjoy the "hands-on"ness of handwashing and drip drying (massaging out moisture, flipping the jeans at intervals, etc) and would not give up the pleasure to a machine

i like seeing the water change colors

i like the feel of wet denim under my fingers

i like the wait for the jeans to dry

whenever i use the machines i get anxious

whenever i use my hands i feel peace

[justinbaily21]

Chicken-

No, I understand the two processes to be the same. I am not an opponent to a dryer at the beginning, but it is something that should not be used afterwards.

"Dryer machine is not a bad thing, since you can get a steady and controlled environment for the jeans to dry. But the downside is huge. Over-drying can cause an irreversible damage. So they can’t recommend it. Some experienced dryer machine users, though, have tricks using towels and/or tennis balls with the jeans.

Drying naturally is the best."

I may have been colored by advice from experts that you have posted in the past.

[Charlie Delta]

Ok so I was too carefull I just took them out and they were still a bit damp from the soak, and I even air dried them before throwing them in the dryer.

So I chucked them in again and now on the highest setting.

No Mercy!

[poly800rock]

Ok so I was too carefull I just took them out and they were still a bit damp from the soak, and I even air dried them before throwing them in the dryer.

So I chucked them in again and now on the highest setting.

No Mercy!

always cotton, highest setting, WITH fucking dryer sheets to make them extra soft when they come out. The second dryer experience was last night, but even when the machine spun the water, it was just as blue as it was during the 1 soak. I def. feel comfortable enough with samurai that I know that even if i do a 1 wash and HOT dry the first time, there is still enough indigo to go around as well as room for future stretching. other brands, maybe not, my 19oz oni's aren't forgiving me in the waist since i threw them in the dryer...

if you're scared that tumble drying won't allow you to get good fades, i present exhibit 1 and 2, my contest samurai's

[cheep]

damn poly... those look almost as good as mine.

looks like a dryer wont hurt.

[denimdestroyedmylife]

nice fadezzzz poly

you are a machine

[tangerine]

I sometimes use a hot dryer after the first soak of unsanforized denim, to get most of the shrinkage out of the way, but not always, and very rarely use the dryer at other times.

[moykky]

I dont use the machine. But I air dry almost everything except underwear and towels. saves electricity

Same here, except I dont machine dry anything.

[ianpalermo]

My dryer has a static shelf that allows you to lay a pair of pants or sweater down and have the barrel of the dryer tumble around it. You get all the heat, but not any of the abuse the dryer can inflict on more delicate fabrics.

[rome1]

I'm up in the air on this question it kinda all depends on the mood I'm in at the time. I have air dried several times and just recently threw my eternals in for a machine dry. I kinda like how soft they come out after the machine, but soon began to miss the crispness and rigidity of an air dry.

[ChaseDizzy]

Same here, except I dont machine dry anything.

Yeah same with my whole family, my mom doesn't like the electricity use

[denimdestroyedmylife]

My dryer has a static shelf that allows you to lay a pair of pants or sweater down and have the barrel of the dryer tumble around it. You get all the heat, but not any of the abuse the dryer can inflict on more delicate fabrics.

:eek:

that shit sounds AWESOME!

[snugglepony]

My dryer has a static shelf that allows you to lay a pair of pants or sweater down and have the barrel of the dryer tumble around it. You get all the heat, but not any of the abuse the dryer can inflict on more delicate fabrics.

mine has the same thing, but i've never used it... doesn't it take much longer to dry anything?

[beatle]

Too lazy to handwash - but I assume Cheep and DDML are right - cheaper and peaceful..

I only throw Jeans in the dryer that are too loose and that did'nt shrink enough after soak..

If I want some nice and soft and warm Jeans - dryer is perfect ...But that almost never happens , maybe once or twice in winter..

[Chicken]

i am becoming a luddite i think

i enjoy the "hands-on"ness of handwashing and drip drying (massaging out moisture, flipping the jeans at intervals, etc) and would not give up the pleasure to a machine

I may have been colored by advice from experts that you have posted in the past.

i think i'm more of a luddite myself. i give my leather jackets, shoes and denim special treatments, and i enjoy making these things age. plus, i think i am colored with the expert advice myself. but i also like to keep an open mind and learn from other people's experience. hence, this thread.

please keep it coming.

[mizanation]

i do both and i like both for different reasons.

drying brightens up the indigo a little, and gives it that nice american-style tone. also, wearing it right after drying feels great.

soaking and hanging is what i have to do when i am at home because i don't have a dryer. i like the feel of stiff jeans.

sometimes i even use the washing machine on handwash cycle.

[twistedtrees]

Too lazy to handwash - but I assume Cheep and DDML are right - cheaper and peaceful..

I only throw Jeans in the dryer that are too loose and that did'nt shrink enough after soak..

If I want some nice and soft and warm Jeans - dryer is perfect ...But that almost never happens , maybe once or twice in winter..

The only time I've dried my raw jeans was when I first got my Samurai's and wore them for a week & they were too big so I wanted to shrink them. The thing that pissed me off was that the legs never really "opened" in the drier & I got this shitty crease up the front part of the shins of the jeans, right in the middle & it's still there.

but I still soaked them & air dried them for the crispiness. I've always liked really stiff, crispy jeans. Even before I got into good jeans, I would hang dry all my jeans to get them stiff & crispy.

[will_i_am]

i've only thrown my edwins in the dryer at college because i didn't want to seem weird and hang my jeans outside my dorm.

also i didn't really mind because they're a year old.

i wouldn't do it with any new jeans because of fear of the creases not matching up.

then again i think all of my sufu denim has been sanforized so i never had to deal with shrinking accept for levis stf.