All The Jeans Terms You Should Get Familiar With

Buying jeans can be hectic to say the least, especially if the sales person uses different types of terms in relation to the denims you have your eyes on. No need to fret as we have you covered. Here are a number of terms you should get familiar with before you go and buy your next pair of jeans to get the best possible pair of jeans.

Rivets

The rivets refer to the little round metal studs on the corners of your pockets and has remained largely untouched from the inception of jeans but serve no other purpose than decoration.

The Rise

The rise refers to the distance between the crotch and the waist. High rise jeans tends to sit high up on the hips and they match easily with crisp white New Balance sneakers to provide a balanced modern look. Low rise jeans are much more popular among the feminine folks and don’t apply much to men. As such, as a man you should choose to go for the simple regular fit.

Fit
Chances are you’ve heard sales people use fit a lot when talking about denims. You may have wondered what is the difference between loose fit and boot cut or slim fit and skinny leg? Fit is a term used to describes the room around your buttocks and thighs, whereas cut on the other hand refers to the width of the trouser leg.

Slim fit jeans are made to have have less fabric around the hips and back panels in particular and are best used to show off well-toned bodies. Relaxed fit on the other hand has an extended rise and provides more room around the thighs. It is perfect if you have extra weight in the backside.

It is safer to go for a regular fit, especially in this time where skin-tight painted-on on jeans is slowly going out of trend and people are yet to shift back to wide-legged dad jeans.

Weave

Jeans made of a weave between warp and weft yarns may be made to run up and down the fabric (warp) or run across it (weft). There are usually three dyed warp yarns for every one weft yarn left and this provides the jeans with its specific colour.

Selvedge however refers to the traditional weave on an old-fashioned loom which helps to make the denim softer and more durable. It usually has a thicker fabric and darker appearance which is a mark of quality. A lot of jeans are slightly washed but dry or raw denim describe jeans that are yet to be treated.

Cut

Straight cut jeans tend to pair well with straight fit around the legs, and the tighter ankle of a skinny cut works nicely with a slim fit. It is best to avoid maligned wide-legged or boot cut that are wider around the ankle than they are around the knee because they’re designed to slip over boots, not sneakers or dress shoes.

Inseam And Outseam

The inseam refers to the numbers you see on the size label. For example, a label that has 32×30 means that the jeans is a 32-inch waist with a 30-inch inseam, measuring the length of the leg from the middle of the crotch to the cuff.
The outseam on its part measures the outside of the leg from the waist to the cuff.

Hem

The hem is the cuff at the bottom of the leg and where the fabric is turned over and sewn. The hem can be dropped to make it slightly longer, distressed to look grungy and frayed or cropped to provide a contemporary style with tidy coloured lines on the upturned outseam of selvedge denim, or the rougher finish seen on other denim styles.

October 24, 2017