All About Denim

America certainly seems to have a love affair with denim, or jeans. What was once worn for function, such as working in the mines or on farms, has now become a staple garment in American fashion, but with great differences. The original denim product was predominately manufactured as pants or overalls that were a stiff formed fabric, prior to being worn in. As jeans become more of a fashion statement, rather than worn as protection, the textile industry found new ways to process the fabric with more comfort and style. New technology provided ways for manufacturers of denim to create the look and feel of a worn in product before it ever got worn in.

What Exactly is Denim?

Denim is a cotton twill type of fabric that in its raw form is rather stiff and typically a dark indigo (dark blue) color. Eventually, the raw denim fabric becomes broken in, worn or faded in color, with a relaxed fit over time but the geniuses of the fashion and textile (fabric) industries have created various methods to speed up, as well as the creation of unique finishes to denim from color to texture.

Chemical Treatment Methods

Bleaching: A liquid or powder form of bleach is used to uniformly wash out the entire color of the denim, creating lighter shades of blue that can be found on the market. This is also known as a basic wash. In addition, what was once popular in the 1990s and making a huge comeback, bleach can be used sporadically to create a pattern or design in the denim, creating a sort of tie-dyed effect.

Acid: Rather popular during the 1980s, an acid wash is very similar to bleaching but with one particular difference in the process. Acid wash has a more textured looked to the washing out of the color, which is created by beating up the denim with pumice stones that have been soaked in bleach. The color is less uniform than washing completely out in the bleaching method, but the texture it creates is rather more uniform than you can get using bleach straight on the fabric.

Dye: After denim has been mostly washed out of the darker blue color, a rainbow of colors is then used to dye the fabric. Some of the most colorful assortment of colors was produced during the 1990s (think of the hip-hop trio TLC). Denim was worn in reds, purples, greens, blacks and whites. Dyed denim has grown popularity recently, but not in the bold vivid colors of the 90s.Todays colors of denim are more muted versions that have a vintage finish to them, also known as a hue of color.

Mechanical Treatment Methods

Stone Wash: Basically, this is the exact same process as an acid wash, however, demonstrates the mechanical side of the process. As stated earlier, pumice stones are used in collaboration with the bleach chemical to create a process that simultaneously removes color while adding contrast to the fabric.

Distressing: This is an aging process to the denim, creating an over-worn look that is popular amongst current trends. The distressing can be created through the process of micro-sanding the denim, literally sanding the fabric, wearing out the denim in target areas. Further distressing of the fabric can create rips and frays that are found in even the most high-end jeans. There is even a coined method by the Japanese fashion industry called Atari, which distresses the denim specifically at the creases of the seams and stitching.

Dirty Wash: After distressing the denim to create a fading of the indigo color and worn in look, the fabric goes through a quick, faint wash of brown or yellowed hue, or dye. The faint coloring does not create a brown or yellow colored jean, but rather leaves it with a transparent hue of color to create the illusion that your jeans are literally dirty.

Vintage: Similar to a dirty washed denim, the vintage wash is less focused on the distressing and more focused on creating an old-look to the denim. A vintage wash will have that worn-in look strategically placed in areas of the denim where it would naturally occur if worn over a long period of time. Often times a hue will also be added to the fabric to make it look extra-aged.

Quick Tip: Caring For Your Denim

After investing the time and money into finding the perfect fitting piece of denim, you want to ensure you get the most out of its lifespan. If the sizing is perfect, you definitely do not want to put them in the machine dryer. In fact, you should almost always hang dry your denim whenever possible, especially if there is any stretch built into the fabric.

Denim also lasts longer the less you wash the fabric since it becomes thinner with each washing. A machine washer may be too rough on your denim, so it is best to wash it by hand or on a cold gentle cycle of the washer. This will also prevent fading if you are washing denim that is dyed.

Source:http://mensfashion.about.com/