Denim in Portland, Oregon?

[murv]

Hows it going guys, I was browsing around, and decided that i deserved my first pair of "high quality" denim. I've been wearing some mavi jeans, and polo jeans and what not. but now i'm looking for some better denim. so, i come to style forums for some questions: - ok, first off, when your paying 190$ and up for denim, compared to 70$, what exactly are you paying for? i mean, i've tried some on, i love the cuts alot better, but am i paying for anything else? if so, what? sorry if this is such an amateur question... what can i say? i am a newbie.

-also, looking around town, only at general stores such as saks 5th, nordstroms, and the diesel store, i've fouidn taht i like paper denim, and possibly some seven (though some of their "boot cuts" are WAY too extreme for me). however, browsing online, i really want to try on a pair of nudie jeans. now, woudl you guys know some killer places around portland area i can try them or any other denim? or have i basically hit them up? -also, how hard is it to find 28 or 29 waist jeans?.?. gosh, i've only been able to find a couple makes in this size... do i just need to get a bigger waist? lol. - and, like i said earlier, some of these boot cuts are really extreme for me. do you guys ever "alter" your denim? or is that just wierd? alright, thanks for any advice fellas, hopefully you guys get me off to a good start in my search...

 

[Kent Wang]

-also, how hard is it to find 28 or 29 waist jeans?.?. gosh, i've only been able to find a couple makes in this size... do i just need to get a bigger waist? lol.

some of these boot cuts are really extreme for me.

What do you mean by extreme? Too tight? Or are you referring to the washes?

For smaller sizes you can always try women's jeans. If you have a small waist (as I do) you'll probably look better in women's jeans that have a tighter leg. Also, have you measured your waist? Even though you wear 28 or 29 in most "mall" brands, higher-end garments tend to be more true to size. I can easily fit into 28 in Gap (one of the worst offenders when it comes to size inflation; that's why I don't shop there any more) and I'm a true 30" waist.

 

[Brian SD]

Finding smaller sizes is hit and miss. Generally stores like Diesel Denim Gallery will have the smaller sizes, but department stores will have a much smaller selection. Chances are you're not going to find 28 and below for men's jeans.

As Kent suggested, you could give women's jeans a shot but the fact is that no matter what you do you're going to look like you're wearing women's jeans. The pockets are higher and smaller, the crotch is a lot higher and the fly is smaller. Some people like this.

The difference between $70 and $190 jeans is a lot more complicated than it would seem, depending who made the jeans. Dual ringspun denim, branding, washes, cuts, selvage/no, hardware materials.. well the list could go on forever. The most important thing is cut/fit and wash. Find one that looks good on you and find a wash that looks authentic. If you want your jeans to look vintage, get a vintage-looking wash, not one that looks like you've got a five lane highway on your lap.

 

[murv]

hey thanks for the replys so far guys. but i still havn't been successful in finding a pair of jeans. just hit up another nordstroms today, only two pairs of 29 waist. but the length is starting to become a problem.

What do you mean by extreme? Too tight? Or are you referring to the washes?

by extreme, i mean that the jeans flare out WAY too much. i know i should be looking for some more straight legged jeans besides the bootcut ones, but those seem harder to come by. is it possible to reduce the flare of a jean by bringing it to a tailor??? as for wearing womans jeans, i think i want to stray from that... i dont know, i guess i just dont want to be wearing woman's jeans.

well, gonna hit up some more stores. i think i'm down to either, seven, paper denim (love these the most so far), and still want to try nudie.

 

[Sway23]

hey thanks for the replys so far guys. but i still havn't been successful in finding a pair of jeans. just hit up another nordstroms today, only two pairs of 29 waist. but the length is starting to become a problem.

Most "high-end" jeans come in only one length... usually 34". You're just going to have to get them hemmed if they're too long.

 

[murv]

ok, so i got them. they happened to be a pair of sevens i found at Nordstroms. The wash immediately caught my eye and i even liked the destroyed parts (even though i typically HATE destroyed denim... generally over done). And after trying them on, i had to buy them. The fit was perfect, except for that it was WAY too long. I got them hemmed at Nordstroms, and 3 days later...

the flare was still a bit extreme, but i think i'm begining tol grow onto it. not sure if i cut off too much though..

how much do you guys think these will shrink after a wash? ... i love them so far. except i'm scared i may have cut off too much, when i stand it is perfect, but when i sit, somtimes you can see my socks...which is not normal to my current wardrobe. hmmm... well, what do you guys think?

 

[Kent Wang]

Eh, not a fan of that wash -- too light for tastes. I believe most people on the forums hate Sevens but I'm indifferent towards the brand. I think other than the wash, they look good. The distressed holes and snags look tasteful but whiskering in the crotch and knee areas is lacking. Perhaps if you could show us a full length picture of you standing up we can get a better idea of the length and cut.

How is it that your hems are frayed even though you had them hemmed?

 

[Sevcom]

Not bad. Not my thing, but if you dig them, cool. The flare looks fine, but it's hard to tell from that angle.

Kent, in all likelihood he got an original hem.

 

[murv]

yah, i kept the original hem. was only 2$ extra.

most people on the forums hate Sevens

awww, why? is there something i shoud know about them?.? ok, here are more shots of the pants:

and here, you can sorda see when the pants may seem too short:

thats a picture of me bending down while i'm sitting, so a little extreme, but hey, i'm tryin gto show when it may feel too short. so hwo does the length look from these pics?

 

[benchan]

The length looks absolutely fine to me. In my view, the flare cut doesnt look good if you have some extra fabrics bunch at the bottom. Since you have the washed model, I doubt the lenght will shrink much when you wash them.

You can reduce the flare of a jean at the time you get your jeans hemmed. I know a few who did this for pairing their jeans with converse, but I would suggest you simply pick a different model instead.

 

[sonick]

i like that wash... good for summer and lighter sneakers like your superstars

 

[shoreman1782]

People dislike sevens because of the general association with the "American Jackass" look and the feeling that there is better, less ubiquitous stuff out there at the same price point. I have a pair, the same cut you have, but a dark, cleaner wash. I like the cut and fit. I think mine have a little break in them, but I don't think your length is too short. I just avoid wearing them with striped shirts, and square toed black shoes. Though apparently this rakes in the ladies...

Also, I think the lack of pronounced whiskering is a good thing. The artificial whiskering always bothers me. EDIT: Portland's a pretty hip town, there's no independent denim shops there?

 

[Brian SD]

most people on the forums hate Sevens

I am probably the reason for these comments. I don't hate Sevens, they just look horrible on me and on 85% of guys that wear them. They look fine on you, however.

I am a fan of the super-light wash / destroyed look. They look cool, murv.