Congratulations! You’ve found jeans that fit and have restored peace to jean world (*cough* your closet). Things are a little brighter now with your new best friend blues by your side.
But with things like stains, shrinkage, and fading threatening to take away your newly found happiness, you’re playing defense. Lucky for you, we own the playbook.
The truth of the matter is that jeans do not need to be washed after every wear. Because denim material is thicker than most, it’s able to shake off many of the daily grime we rub on throughout the day. Reducing the frequency you wash your jeans will help to minimize color loss on those baby blues.
Dark Jeans
- If machine wash is a must, turn your jeans inside out and wash in cold water on a delicate cycle. Cold water helps set the indigo dye coloring in your jeans.
- Opt for a detergent that offers color protection and does not have a mild brightener as an ingredient, this will help preserve the dark color of your denim. Hang dry your jeans but not in direct sunlight as this will fade the dark coloring just as much.
Destroyed Jeans and Distressed Jeans
- Wash your distressed jeans inside out to avoid rough abrasion and wash separately if needed. Hang to dry to avoid shrinking.
- Keep your destroyed and distressed jeans looking new by applying clear finger nail polish to the backside of the hole around the edges to keep your strings in tact. Avoid putting on too much nail polish, as it gets hard and could irritate the skin.
Embroidered Jeans
- Embellished denim and embroidered jeans have been recently making a statement. Be sure to turn them inside out before placing in a delicate wash cycle.
- Use smaller loads so there is less abrasion from other jeans and clothing.
Both tips will help preserve the face of your denim, preventing unwanted destruction, rips and tears.
100% Cotton Jeans
- Hot water and machine drying can cause shrinkage, making your jeans too tight or too short.
- Machine drying your denim is the number one way to lose the original shape of your jeans. Turn your jeans right-side out and hang dry instead of throwing them in the dryer.
- If your jeans seem stiff after they air dry, try rubbing the denim together before you put them on – this will loosen up the material.
Need help washing your delicates? We’ve got a few rules for that too.
