Denim Care: Soaking

If you don't know, wearing raw denim requires a few things of the wearer. But first let's define raw denim. Raw denim are jeans that have never been washed, have not been artificially faded and such. Raw denim is usually a uniform color, and are stiff because they have not endured the normal washing processes that most jeans go through. Because of this stiffness they can be very uncomfortable the first times you wear them. So why choose raw of your run of the mill jeans? because with raw denim, they fade to your body specifically, with everything from the way you wear them, to what you carry with you in your pockets affecting the final outcome. To accomplish this desired fading however one must wear their jeans for as long as possible without washing them(usually 6-9 months). By not washing the jeans, creases in certain areas start to develop, and these creases knock the indigo of the jeans loose, thus creating areas were there is less indigo, otherwise known as fades. If you wash your jeans to early the creases and folds have not had enough time to completely fade, and since washing jeans rids the pants of such creases, and you have to start over again. This practice of not washing ones jeans for an extended amount of time does create two problems, the smell, and since you are not regularly washing your jeans, they don't have a chance to shrink back down from being stretched out do to wear. Good thing one simple solution can take care of both these problems, soaking. By soaking you jeans in a bath of hot water you can shrink your pants, rid them of possible odors and keep a lot of your well earned creases intact. My APC petite standards have been feeling a little baggy after the past 5 months of wear, so I decided it was time for their first soaking, a two hour hot bath. View the process below.

Pre Wash

Weighing down the jeans

Dirty water post soak from indigo and dirt

Drying

Pre and post soak fit