Denim
Maintenance

According to the Cotton Incorporated Lifestyle Monitor™, the average American owns nine pairs of jeans and wears them four days a week. With blue jeans and other cotton fabric items being so popular --- and sometimes pricey --- it just makes good sense to know how to keep them looking fresh from the store (or distressed from the store) for as long as possible. Whatever your personal blue jeans aesthetic may be, the following maintenance guide will help maximize their wearability.

Denim --- What is It?
Denim is a made from a tightly-woven cotton fabric. The yarns that run lengthwise through the fabric are dyed with a colored dye, usually blue, or indigo. The yarns that run side to side are not dyed and remain white. The interweaving of the blue and white yarns gives denim its distinctive look, while the tightness of the weave makes the fabric durable.

Differentiating Denim: Prewashed & Unwashed
Most blue jeans bought today are prewashed (sometimes referred to as distressed or preshrunk) before they are sold in stores. Basically, this means that the cotton fabric has been “broken in” for you through industrial bleaching and other processes. Unwashed denim is just that, and is stronger and more durable because of it.

How to Keep Fading and Shrinking At Bay
Depending on whether you wear your jeans for fashion or function, you may or may not want them to fade or shrink. It is important to know that even prewashed jeans can fade and shrink over time as the fabric goes through the wash. However, there are a few easy things you can do to help maintain color and fit.

• First and foremost, read the care label.
• Always turn jeans inside-out before laundering; it keeps the rivets, buttons or zipper from snagging other clothes and from grazing the side of the washer. Also, if you use powdered detergent, turning the jeans inside out keeps the powder from making unwanted whisker effects on the fabric.
• Wash in cold water to prevent excess dye loss (color) and to control shrinkage. It also cuts down on energy usage.
• Use a liquid detergent designed especially for cold water laundering.
• If you are a hardcore denim-ophile, you might consider using a denim specific cold water detergent.
• NEVER USE BLEACH
• Air, towel or hang dry, if possible; or use the lowest dryer setting.
• To store denim, it is best to fold them; wire coat hangers can create an unwanted crease and clip hangers can prematurely distress the cuffs or waist of the denim. The best way to store denim is the way you see them in stores: fold one leg over the other so the that the zipper or buttons are inside the fold, then fold them in half lengthwise, then half again. Alternating the direction of the jeans makes for an even stack.

Keep your blue jeans looking great wear after wear by practicing these easy to follow laundering steps that will ensure that just bought look for years to come.