The Fabric of Jeans: a timeless fabric

It never goes out of style. On the contrary, it’s always cool, always up-to-date, always trendy. As you have probably already guessed, we are talking about the most universal, flexible, practical, and iconic garment that there is: jeans.

A garment we can wear on any occasion, informal or not, cleared by an influencer ante litteram, among the most imitated Masters of Twentieth Century style, Avvocato Gianni Agnelli, the famous Italian industrialist himself.

But why has denim become so globally popular? Why has it become, in every corner of the world, an emblem of the most disparate messages – from rebellion to the most extreme conservatism (see jeans ironed like any other type of pants or trousers) – from one era to another, the identifying garment of very different generations?

Perhaps the secret lies in that rough and never-too-soft blue denim fabric that has always been the material jeans are made of. It’s a sturdy fabric, suitable for a wide variety of uses, perfect for sitting anywhere and on anything without a care; it can take a lot of punishment.

Denim is a fabric that looks good on almost everyone. Very adaptable, it can interpret very different personalities and lifestyles. It’s literally magical! It accompanies us everywhere in space and time. (How many of us keep old worn-out jeans in the closet, perhaps linked to some indelible memories of our younger days, convinced that one day they will become relevant again?).

Ok, so what is the nature of this unique and iconic fabric? How can we recognize its quality? What features should you consider when choosing your next pair of jeans?

We’ll try to answer this question in this post, in the hopes of making you curious, and revealing some great little secrets of His Majesty Denim!

At the beginning, denim, the jeans fabric par excellence, only came in one of three shades: “Lee blue”, i.e., the light and washed-out shade of blue; “Levi’s indigo”, the more intense and luminous shade; and the “raw” shade, characterized by a dark-blue-almost-black shade, typical, for example, of the garments designed in the 1960s-1970s by the Roy Rogers Company that invented Italian jeans, proposing a garment that was literally crushproof and rigid, with an almost unalterable color.

Today denim comes in multiple variations: different weights, thicknesses, colors, and treatments to satisfy a heterogeneous public with decidedly varied and changing expectations, needs, and tastes.

All of us, then, are accustomed to having more than one denim garment, precisely because their unique characteristics make them an ideal passe-partout for any situation. We might wear a more conservative and not too extreme pair to work, for example, while, in the evening, going out with friends, we might wear a bolder laser-etched pair, perhaps with a few rips here and there, together with a pair of sneakers, a perfect ensemble for the more “unstructured” moments of life.

Since jeans reveal a lot about us, they are not just another garment like so many others, they are a real language that we use to express ourselves and communicate.

“Tell me what jeans you wear and I’ll tell you who you are”, one might say.

Quality that you can see and touch

“Touching is believing”: a saying that, in the case of denim, is as fitting as ever, because our hands never deceive us. Indeed, with our fingertips we can determine clearly whether a fabric is sturdy while at the same time being soft, stretchy, and comfortable, and it all depends on the fibers used to make the denim: pure cotton mixed with synthetic fibers, organic fibers, etc.

Of course, even our eyes gives us … “a hand” in deciphering the identity and nature of the material of the jeans depending on the color – and the treatments – in fact, the shade of the garment tells us its story and can even be an obvious “signature” of the brand that defines its style.

One of the reasons why jeans are so well-loved is their versatility. We all know it well: We can create different looks, all unified by their comfort and the easy way they make us look good. For example:

• the Casual Look a la Harry Meets Sally: all that’s needed is a white T-shirt or a comfy, casual tank top, teamed with a pair of sneakers, also in white, to enhance a pair of classic slim jeans
• the Casual-elegant Look: a blue blazer and a pair of loafers, even better, if they’re by Church, and voilà, a pair of jeans can adapt to any work setting
• the way we were… the Vintage look!: this suggested look applies especially for “her”; let’s revive that old, high-waisted garment (sometimes they do come back into style…) and pair it with a baggy shirt, maybe knotted, and some boots from the ‘80s: rogue nostalgia!
• streetwear, forever young… maybe: those who love an “urban” and informal style can choose the timeless pairing of baggy jeans and an oversized sweatshirt: for the man (or woman) who never wants to grow up!

In recent years, “sustainability” has emerged as a dominant keyword in the world of denim.

Many companies around the world, driven by the new regulations and public awareness of environmental issues, have opted for more ethical and responsible raw materials and production cycles.

• controlled origin cotton: more and more people are choosing organic cotton, grown without chemical pesticides and therefore with a lower carbon footprint: less CO2, less impact on the planet!
• environmentally friendly washing: reducing the consumption of water, energy, chemicals, and pollutants carried out with new technologies makes it possible to finally make the entire denim industry more environmentally friendly
• infinite times: some brands offer recycling programs, recovering and reusing garments to give extra life to the fabrics they are made of

As you know, for years, we at Tonello have been a globally recognized benchmark in the world of garment finishing, and of denim in particular. Those who are looking for innovative solutions and advanced technologies know that they can turn to us.

Our strongest characteristic is our ability to combine both tradition and innovation, and technical effectiveness and style, thanks to our talent for creating eco-sustainable technologies, washing techniques, and treatments. We are thus able to support brands in producing garments that respect almost “religiously” the denim fabric of jeans, while at the same time, enhancing their aesthetic potential.

If you’d like to delve deeper into this subject, you can browse through the pages of our website: many pages are dedicated specifically to denim. We’d like to point out, in particular, something we think is a real treat, because it presents an innovative and patented process dedicate to all the new shades of indigo, the magical, iconic color of denim.
Here you will find many really interesting and surprising…surprises!

Happy surfing! 😊