Living with Denim

What denim is

Denim is a hard-wearing cotton woven in a twill, which gives it that familiar diagonal texture and its toughness. Most denim is dyed with indigo on the surface, which is why it fades gradually and develops the personal, worn-in look that people prize. That surface dye is the key to understanding how denim behaves and how to care for it.

Because denim is essentially a rugged cotton, it shares cotton's habits — it can shrink in heat and fade with rough washing — but it is even more rewarding of a gentle, hands-off approach, which keeps its colour rich and its shape reliable.

Wash it less than you think

The single most useful piece of denim wisdom is that jeans need washing far less often than most clothes. Frequent washing is what strips the colour and loosens the fit, so restraint keeps denim looking its best.

Wear denim, air it, and wash it only when it truly needs it. The less often it meets water, the longer it holds its colour and its shape.

Between washes, simply airing jeans freshens them well, since denim resists odour better than lighter cottons. When they do need cleaning, a gentle wash preserves both the colour and the fit far better than a frequent, aggressive one.

Washing to keep the colour

When denim does need washing, a few habits protect the indigo and the fit. The colour lives on the surface, so anything that abrades it lifts colour too.

• Turn jeans inside out to shield the dyed surface from rubbing.
• Wash in cool water, which holds the colour and limits shrinkage.
• Use a gentle detergent and wash dark denim separately, especially at first.

Handled this way, denim keeps its depth of colour and fades slowly and evenly, in the personal way that makes a well-worn pair look better with time rather than merely older.

Drying to keep the fit

Heat is the enemy of denim's fit, since high temperatures shrink the cotton and can tighten a comfortable pair. Air drying is the surest way to keep jeans the size and shape you want.

Let denim dry in the air rather than in high heat, and reshape it while damp — smoothing the seams, patting the legs straight — so it dries true. If jeans have tightened a little after washing, a gentle stretch while damp and a wear or two usually eases them back. Denim dried gently keeps the fit you chose it for, wash after wash.

Handling fades and wear

Part of denim's charm is how it wears, developing lighter areas where it flexes and a character all its own. You can let this happen naturally or slow it, depending on the look you like.

If you want the colour to stay even and deep, wash inside out and gently, and keep the denim out of strong, prolonged light. If you enjoy a lived-in fade, simply wearing and airing the jeans lets them develop naturally. Either way, tend small repairs early — a loose hem or a thinning spot caught in time keeps a favourite pair going far longer.

Storing denim

Denim is easy to store and asks little, but a little order keeps it ready and in shape. It does not need coddling, only sensible keeping.

Fold jeans or hang them by the waistband with a clip hanger, whichever suits your space, and keep them somewhere dry. There is no need to seal denim away, and it is happy with air around it. Make sure any denim going into longer storage is clean, since marks can set over time even in this hardy cloth. Kept simply, denim stays ready to pull on whenever you reach for it.

The relaxed fibre

Denim is one of the most forgiving fabrics to own, precisely because it asks for less rather than more. Wash it seldom, keep it cool, dry it gently, and it repays you with deep colour, a reliable fit, and the personal fades that make a pair of jeans truly yours.

The whole approach is one of restraint: resisting the urge to over-wash, letting the denim wear in at its own pace, and tending it lightly. Where finer fibres ask for careful, active care, denim mostly asks to be left alone between wearings, which makes it one of the least demanding fabrics to live with. Do that, and a good pair of jeans becomes one of the longest-lived and best-loved things in a wardrobe — sturdy, comfortable, and, in the way of well-kept denim, better every year.