Why I'm Wearing Stretch Selvedge Denim. And So Should You!

Ok, so is this another hot take video? Kinda.

It’s more a video to challenge some of the established norms in this little denim niche. Basically, we need to stop gatekeeping. We need to realize the having something as simple as a little stretch in our raw selvedge denim is nothing but a good thing!

5 Unexpected Essentials for Selvedge Denim:

Everyday essentials.

Camera stuff I use for the videos

[xxflamezxxable]

I'm ok with some stretch but I have bought some jeans back when I was in HS from like American Eagle and those felt like actually leggings. Not all stretch denim is created equal and some guys just want comfort straight from the beginning and not have to wait. Naked and famous has really nice stretch denim and I think they are great.

[TheIronSnail]

A BRAVE SOUL YOU ARE!

I’m torn but I usually stick with 100% cotton. I think if i biked a lot i may change my mind but i also may get a loser fit? Who is to say!!

Also i will die on the hill of a little bit of polyester not being a bad thing with a wool sweater for example (like 40% or lower), love that it adds strength and structure to the garment!

[stevefok]

I recently bought a pair of Left Field sulphur dye black denim with 2% stretch from Nihon Menpu and I am loving them!!
And I will certainly buy more raw denim with a bit of stretch esp. for the slimmer fit, it feels so much better!

[dukerobinson]

I’m not against stretch denim but I don’t see myself wearing it. It’s probably just stupid snobbery on my part but I like observing the heritage workwear aesthetic and stretch just feels sacrilegious to me. It does seem to be a trend with almost every manufacturer these days and they wouldn’t make it if people were not wanting it. That springiness in the fabric feels good but it doesn’t feel right to me. Just my opinion. Thanks for the video, as always.😊

[Glenrsi]

Love stretch jeans in the beginning. Then after a few washes they are no longer smooth and get like little bumps all over and i throw them away. Going back to regular cotton denim that last for years and years.

[neocortex]

Great video! From your experience does raw stretch denim get loose over time? I got a pair of Nudies that fits me a little snug and I need to decide to keep them or change them for a bigger size. Thanks!

[neilziesing]

“Where did I leave my glasses?”…..me, …..20 times per day….hahaha!

[lovemadeinjapan]

If a selvedge-raw-denim-fabric maker is adding stretch is like self-nailing ones coffin. Blasphemia is another way to name it. Stretch = the jeans are 1 size larger by the end of the year, and 2 sizes larger the year after. Sure, that is what we need. Men have no idea about good jeans anyway. They simply don't know the enlightment of wearing proper high waist mom-- or wide leg jeans (with 30+cm leg opening). It is a delight conceiled from the men section. Once you try that, you laugh about all those pointy butts squeezed into uncomfortable low rise men slim-fit jeans that need to be kept up with a belt.

[danielirvine]

I live in nudie jeans love the stretch
I find my selvage jeans hard to wear after nudies

[fhotrod]

Your not a man unless your bleeding behind the knees hahahahaha thats awesome. I guess that's one way to get some high contrast. I am knew to raw denim, and I don't see any negativity. Maybe I have just not gotten flamed yet for my Catechu selvedge, freenote 17 oz, and unbranded brand yet.

[ayursik]

What shirt are you wearing? Digging that. I can't find a denim shirt video on your profile, unless I'm missing it. I'd love to see one!

[edemaye]

I’ve been wearing stretch oni’s for a few years now. They fade amazingly, I can move better, they’re super strong and I don’t get crotch blowouts

[mindcache]

You’re right in my opinion. I’ve raw, organic, selvedge in my collection. Best jeans until recently for fit and ease? Nudie stretch. However, I was walking past a small menswear shop in a little city in Taiwan and saw a box outside on the floor with $6 or £ 5 scribbled on it . Inside there were 8 pairs of dark really well stitched jeans with a name I hadn’t heard before called Leon. They looked great. For £5 each, I took 5 pairs. Best jeans ever for me. Double stitching in gold everywhere. Reinforced yoke and crutch. The interesting thing is that they have 4% polyester woven in. Result ? The navy and royal blue never fades . They just look amazing . I have plenty enough jeans that fade . Now I have jeans that act and look like chinos but aren’t. £5 vs $ 118 for my selvedge ? Who cares from a distance or in a nightclub ? No one.

[wolfy]

My first raw pair was N&F stretch, same ones you have. Definitely makes it easier getting in and out of lifted trucks. Thanks for the review ✌🏽.

[thevintagefuture]

Thanks for this video; I really enjoyed it and I’m glad someone is talking about this and setting some things straight. However, I wanted to offer a couple points which I think are, at least to some people, a legitimate issue with stretch raw selvedge. Before I do, let me say I actually love stretch raw selvedge. I don’t wear it anymore, but I do see its rightful place as a tool in the toolbox of denim enthusiasts:

1. Stretch denim wasn’t invented until people started trying to wear jeans that would otherwise be too uncomfortable too wear. In other words, it wasn’t until jeans were technically too small to fit that people started making it stretch. That’s fine actually, as it’s now developed into its own style. For instance, my wife wears skin tight tapered stretch denim. This couldn’t work without the spandex or elastane. It looks fantastic. I’m all about it. So this isn’t yet the issue. The issue arises when wearers are thrown off by the stretch. It becomes a smoke screen, a crutch, a confounding variable in them finding the actual correct fit for their body. They have a body that needs big thigh dimensions or high rise dimensions or wide seat dimensions, but instead of finding the right fit, they buy stretch. Then every time they get interested in raw selvedge that doesn’t have stretch, it’s not comfortable cuz it fits wrong. They end up concluding all they can wear is stretch, when in reality the issue is that they never found the right fit for them because stretch always smoothed over their fit mistakes. Stretch sometimes prevents people from finding their correct rise, cut, waist etc…

2. For some people in heritage clothing (only some, not all; probably not even a majority:), one of the big appeals is that heritage clothing often offers a separation from fast fashion. It’s a rebellion against all the faults of fast fashion. So the stretch, which originates in that industry, to them represents something that doesn’t belong. There’s something about stretch materials which smacks of fast fashion’s lie: “you can fit clothes you actually shouldn’t be wearing”…. “you can look like the model because we cut corners in manufacturing” etc….I’m not saying this is objectively correct; I’m just saying that it is a feeling very real to some people in the heritage clothing community. Stretch materials represent something fake to them, so they want to push it out. They want complete disassociation from mall fashion and all its sweat shops and marketing hype and false advertising and “this is in” “but now it’s out” practices.

Anyways, just want to contribute to the discussion because I really enjoy that you’re on here discussing this stuff. Many just say like two things on their videos. You are actually arguing a point and dialogue with people. I’m grateful for your channel and your approach 🙏🏽

What do you think of these two points?

[mrhsiijoisiejiy]

Stone Washed, stretch denim… What’s next, dude? Maybe H&M skinny jeans?

[RoyU-fwwx]

Ever since I start squatting I can’t fit into any of my old denim cause my leg got a lot thicker. Stretch denim is the way to go for me now

[davidmacavei]

To piggyback on the “potentially risky unpopular opinion” thread : I love my Uniqlo 35EUR slim-selvedge pair, they get more primetime than some of my more expensive, Japanese pieces. Maybe worth a video? Anyway, cheers from Munich, great video!

[remmasangcay]

My first selvedge are currently the uniqlo stretch selvedge, and they are fading wonderful.

[UNIONFEATURES]

Just bought a pair of Gustin "stretch" selvidge jeans so good to hear your positive experience.