Levi's Orange Tab ID

[Heartworm]

I found a pair of Levi's orange tab's with a BLACK leather patch with white printing, and strange thin purple-ish denim. Are these real? And does anyone know when they're from?

[Sympathy-For-The-Denim]

I found a pair of Levi's orange tab's with a BLACK leather patch with white printing, and strange thin purple-ish denim. Are these real? And does anyone know when they're from?

these seem to be legit, Levi Europe produced these black leather tags in the 1980s, once I got a pair of them, these were 631 skinny jeans... a very ugly period of levis models i think

[twistedtrees]

Alright, so I went shopping for suits the other day in my hometown & went to this small men's store that apparently used to sell Levis. Walking back to the fitting room I noticed a couple pair of what appeared to be deadstock Orange Tab Levis. Sure enough they were, and after talking to the owner he let me buy them. I'm trying to find more info on them, like an Antiques Roadshow thing, but not really for money because I don't think they'd be worth that much.

But they are never-worn, never-sold either Blue Bells or Traditional Flairs. They have the small "e" on the tab, but appear to be older, maybe 70's or possibly early 80's. I took some pics and was hoping someone would be able to shed some more light on these. They are pretty ugly, but I'm keeping them.

Is it possible to send this last picture to the Levis Archive people or Lynn Downey and see if they could identify them based on the coding on the back?

Also, he had a crazy pair of deadstock 501xx that he wasn't willing to part with. He said a few years ago he was offere like, $600-$800 dollars for them & he turned them down. The reason they were so special is because they were a promotional pair that Levis had sent out and they had a tagged waist size of W-75 L-46. They were crazy huge! I need to go back and get a picture of those.

[ChaseDizzy]

haha yeah the HUGE pair, I've seen a pair at 88 tees in Hawaii. That's it though

[Vanquish Gold]

That is definately HUGE.

[Conie Jeans]

Big & Tall creazy massive

[hawkeye]

Is it possible to send this last picture to the Levis Archive people or Lynn Downey and see if they could identify them based on the coding on the back?

They are 684-0217 bell bottoms, here's another pair.

[tweeds]

i'm no expert on vintage, but the levi's batwing on the zipper is supposed to indicate more recent orange tabs, no? 080291 - i remember Paul or mopar_jj or one of the other vintage experts telling me a number on the tag of my pair in a similar format was a date stamp...

you probably should really wait for one of the others to figure out. cheep, Paul, mopar_jj, numero_uno...

[twistedtrees]

Thanks for the help.

Yeah, I knew that since it had the little e on it they were pretty recent. I haven't looked at the encyclopedia in a while but thought I remembered that they started using the little e in the late 60's...but I thought that they style was pretty old because I don't know when bell bottoms were even in, like I said, early 80's at the latest. Oh, and the musty smell of these things is awesome & disgusting at the same time:rolleyes:

[hendo99]

Those look like big bells. I have the 1966 LVC 646 bells and they look smaller than yours. I'm wondering if any of you guys can answer this, my LVC have an orange tab with the big E. I always thought that no orange tabs ever had the big E

[dhalgren]

Those look like big bells. I have the 1966 LVC 646 bells and they look smaller than yours. I'm wondering if any of you guys can answer this, my LVC have an orange tab with the big E. I always thought that no orange tabs ever had the big E

Wgsn interviews lynn downey

(Denim inspirations: Levi's archives

HELEN JOB, WGSN 07.12.07)

"

What is your favourite pair of jeans in your own wardrobe?

My Big E Orange Tab 517s that I bought for 50 Euros in a vintage store in Brussels back in 2005. The best score I ever did."

[hendo99]

cool anymore info?

[mopar_jj]

The jeans are 684 bell bottoms, guessing made around 1980 by looking at the tag. Would fetch good $ on ebay or elsewhere because they were not as common as the 646s. These were refered to as elephant bells because they had more flare than the 646s

The big E tab disappeared around 1971, and there are various models of orange tab big e vintage jeans available

[mopar_jj]

oh dhalgren, could you post that interview? or a link to it

tks

[dhalgren]

oh dhalgren, could you post that interview? or a link to it

tks

Denim inspirations: Levi's archives

HELEN JOB, WGSN 07.12.07

Archive garments

For the denim aficionado the Levi's corporate archives are something of a holy grail. WGSN was lucky enough to be invited to take a tour with company historian Lynn Downey.

Lynn Downey and Stacia

Fink in the vault

Vintage labels 1930s-1950s

Founded in 1989 the Levi's corporate archives contain over 5,000 garments including the XX, the oldest 501 jean in the world dating back to 1879. The collection is meticulously catalogued alongside thousands of photographs, marketing and point-of-sale materials detailing the brands extensive history.

"Every item in this archive is a piece of history. I get to touch history every day and when I touch denim it's like the fabric of American history," Lynn Downey.

A published writer and expert archivist Lynn Downey was hired as the company's first-ever historian 18 years ago and charged with the task of organising the collection and turning it into one of the most visible corporate archives in the world. Follow the link at the top of the page to see a selection from the vault.

Archive boxes

Archive fireproof safe

The XX , the oldest

501 in the world

XX LVC replicas for spring 2008

What did you know about denim before you joined Levi's?

My family has worn Levi's for three generations and that's literally all I knew. I had no experience of textiles - my training was in the organisation and preservation of paper and photos. So when I joined Levi's, I called curators of local costume collections to help me understand quickly how to care for the textiles.

Denim Family POS, 1950s

Covered rivets

POS, 1937

Can you describe your working day?

Our first responsibility is to serve the company, so we answer a lot of emails from employees about history and aid with presentation materials. It's rare a day goes by that someone isn't in here, either a designer or someone from legal looking at trademark info or someone from marketing looking at catalogues.

I also get a lot of consumer emails - how old are my jeans? what are they worth? I'm also writing a biography of Levi Strauss - I've been researching it for 18 years and am finally about to begin writing.

My job is like going to a surprise party every day, as you never know what the next phone call will bring.

Overalls, 1970s

[dhalgren]

Overalls, 1970s detail

Overalls, 1970s detail

Do you negotiate purchases yourself?

Sometimes if they're local…I also work with a couple of dealers, for big ticket items like the Dead Man's Jean I work with dealers. Unusual small things that I hear about from consumers I buy myself like my latest acquisition these 1970s overalls for girls.

I don't really source anymore, as after 18 years there's not a lot out there. My first ten years literally all I did was buy things to fill in the blanks. I do go on ebay looking for old marketing materials, maybe a pair of fun girls jeans from the 70s, but really old denim just doesn't show up there.

Generally we've been here long enough and there's enough publicity that people know to call us if they have something really old. I keep up with my consumer mail as you never know what you might find there.

Do you have a favourite vintage period?

The 19th century really appeals to me - it's the part of our history that is the most lost because of the 1906 earthquake and fire where we lost everything our factory, our headquarters and our inventory.

It's also the beginning of jeans as workwear, so the examples that we have are worked to death and they're still with us and that is fascinating to me. I like to think about how hard these men worked in these pants and how hard their lives were and how our product made their lives a little bit easier. We made it for them and they made the product what it was.

Workwear, 1890

Workwear, 1890 detail

Workwear, 1890 detail

How has the 501 evolved over the years?

We say we don't change the 501 and we don't - we update it. In 1922 for example we added belt loops - men wanted belt loops, so we gave them belt loops - we do to the jean what the customer needs to keep it current and keep it in fashion.

What's the history of the Levi's arcuate?

My feeling is that other workwear garments might have had pocket stitching that was functional, because they might have had a lining. When we created our product men had worn denim pants for years, but ours was the first riveted pair which was this new category of clothing. We wanted to make it familiar enough that they would understand it was for them.

If other workwear had stitching, we're going to put back pocket stitching. We were the first company to do rivets - we got the patent to do rivets on May 20, 1873 - that is the birth of the blue jean, as denim pants without rivets are just denim pants.

NRA Cowboy jean, 1933

NRA Cowboy jean,

1933 detail

NRA Cowboy jean,

1933 detail

What is your favourite pair of jeans in the archive?

The 1933 cowboy pair and I love it because we know exactly what the guy did. We know he was a cowboy and it has the most extraordinary colour - it is synthetic indigo, which is amazing. It's so stunning and beautiful.

Also we'd had this pair of pants for years before we realised that there was a New Deal National Recovery Act (NRA) label underneath the leather one. You can't even see it anymore. It's a blue eagle that you were allowed to display on your clothing or in your workplace in the 1930s under FDR's New Deal showing you abided by his governmental policies. We didn't know it was there until the patch started to shrink.

Also I know he was a modern cowboy, as he cut off the cinch and the suspender buttons so he could wear his pants with a belt. So they are multilayered in terms of meaning and I think they are just so stunningly beautiful.

What is your favourite pair of jeans in your own wardrobe?

My Big E Orange Tab 517s that I bought for 50 Euros in a vintage store in Brussels back in 2005. The best score I ever did.

The jeans I look best in though are women's 525s - I love, love love those jeans.

Casuals catalog for women, 1955

[dhalgren]

Levi's for gals, 1969

Why do you love denim?

Every item in this archive is a piece of history, I get to touch history every day and when I touch denim it's like the fabric of American history.

Now of course it's global history, but for me being the custodian of this company's heritage - which is mostly American until the 1960s - it's an opportunity to reach into the past every day. Some guy in Arizona wore this pair of pants on a horse. I also love the way I can share this with employees with the press and visitors.

History becomes more real for people when it gets within hands-length. It makes our history and heritage more real for people. The really old jeans - that we paid 1000s of dollars for -probably belonged to a working guy who died poor and probably paid 75 cents for.

It would blow his mind to know that his pants are in a fireproof safe and how much we paid for them. It's the links between past and present that I love. I get to be in the past, the present and the future all at the same time.

East Coast Right for School POS, 1950s

501 flyer in

Spanish, 1926

Levi Straus' Two

Horse brand

Where do you shop for denim?

I go to the Rose Bowl whenever I can, but unfortunately I can't be incognito - they all know me there. Toronto is a great place for vintage stores and I shop vintage and thrift stores wherever I happen to be. I rarely find any amazing denim, but I will always find some western shirts or something.

Key quotes

"The thing I love about my job is I get to be in the past, the present, and the future all at the same time."

"You could put this on and walk down the street and everyone would think what a cool pair of jeans. If you were wearing any other clothing from the 1870s, people would ask where's the costume party?"

"Yes, we invented the blue jean and we have a company with a great heritage, but it's what we do with that heritage that makes us fascinating. We take our heritage and make something incredibly gorgeous and modern with it."

Archive facts

Founded 1989

Contents

Documents: 400 linear feet

Photographs: 4,500 photos

Garments: 5,000+ pieces

Marketing materials: 750 linear feet

Posters: 500 pieces

Artefacts: 300 pieces

• The two oldest pairs of 501 jeans in the world, from c.1875 and c.1879
  
• 10 pairs of jeans from the 19th century
  
• A pair of jeans from 1938 that towed a car
  
• Denim jackets redesigned or decorated by Elton John, Paloma Picasso, Yves Saint Laurent and Elizabeth Taylor
  
• A pair of kid's jeans that prevented a child from being burned
  
• Letters from Cary Grant, Henry Kissinger, Clint Eastwood, Lady Bird Johnson, and silent-movie cowboy William S. Hart
  
• A one-piece garment for women called "Freedom-Alls" dated 1918
  
• A denim tuxedo jacket made for Bing Crosby in 1951
  
• A jacket and pair of jeans signed by the Rolling Stones
  
• A 1949 letter from a consumer who lost her denim jacket in the Texas mountains, and found it one year later, still wearable

The vault: is a permanent, public exhibition of rare and historic artefacts from the company's private archives. Located in the visitor's centre on the first floor of Levi's corporate headquarters in San Francisco, the 900squ ft exhibit offers visitors a behind-the-scenes look at the company.

Books

This Is a Pair of Levi's Jeans

By Lynn Downey, Jill Novack Lynch and Kathleen McDonough

Publisher: Strauss & Co

ISBN: 0961746017

Levi Strauss & Co

By Lynn Downey

Publisher: Arcadia Publishing

ISBN: 0738555533

Contact

1155 Battery Street

San Francisco

CA 94111

© WGSN 2007

[chucksvintage]

I sell the book at my shop. Chucks Vintage. It is really cool. They sell for $19.99.