I found the same thing. Mine didn't really shrink at all. The colour has stayed really strong but the first few wears saw a lot of colour coming out onto shirt tails and the dessies. Fat chance of getting them for $35 outside the U.S.

Hot soaks for shrinkage, not cold wash.

If you want to really shrink. Hot wash in machine with plenty of soap. Then fling in dryer on hot setting.

Shrink to fit. Fill bath with hot ish water, and soap, put jeans on, sit in bath for 20 minutes or so, then get out and walk around in jeans until they dry, and sculpt to your, no doubt, Iggy Pop shaped body. That's how we did it back in the good old bad old days.

What is the point of jeans if you have to wash them?

I did and do. They still bleed like crazy.

Are you sure? Cheeky bastards if so. I don't care the way some people do if stuff is made in Portugal, China or anywhere, but if it says "crafted in England"... I've always been suspect of that term. Thing is, to craft is to make something by hand. Make. So "made in England". That is annoying if it's Portugal. They used to use the Stevenage Knitting Company for their Steve McQueen type cardigan and some of their best knitwear. Shame when they closed.

I've been sucked in a little here...

One of the best bits of denim I own are 1966 Lee 101Z repro. Aero Leather says limited edition manufactured in Japan. Absolute bullshit. Made in Poland. I noticed it and so did The Weejun. He mentions in his blog how he took them up on it a few times, I believe, and they just ignored him. They truly are one of the best pair of jeans I own.

Last edited by Drink (2012-03-15 12:17:27)

Don't go near accurate 1947 501 repros if you dislike the 101s! Takes a bit to get used to these old style jeans I suppose, and for the jeans to get used to you (including Lee and yeah I know they're sanforized) but I love em. I love Levi's Vintage for jeans, but they're much more of a modern interpretation. This whole jean thing is such a big story, filled with myth. Repros are overpriced by most standards. It's all difficult to explain and justify. Just in terms of sweatpants I intended to upload a photo of a side view of two pairs of grey sweatpants that I own, folded one on top of the other. A pair of modern respectable sweatpants on top of a pair of Jap repro sweatpants. The modern ones are actually a size bigger but so much flimsier. They're wafer-thin compared to the the thick bulky repros. I can't be bothered to put up a photo, though. Oh, sorry, I stopped answering your question a while ago. If you don't like them after a year say, if you don't get used to the pockets and they don't get used to you, then you never will and you should just cut your losses and never think about them again. The alternative moral is ask somebody more sensible their opinion.

Watch out for creases on stiffish selvedge. That's where tears are most likely to appear.

I received a pair of 519's in the post last week. In a sand/stone twill. 11.5 inch rise and 16 inch bottoms. Pretty baggy on me and gave off a Woody Allen vibe when I wore them... which I sort of liked for about half an hour. I'll have them tapered to my ideal width and they will be just about perfect, I think.

The rise is the most important thing to get right. no question in my mind. A good fitting leg can be sorted by your tailor but if the rise isn't right the look is always slightly off. I think Woof said that himself.