MEMORIES...Your first pair of high end denim

[Steve B.]

I will betray my age here but- Levis 501s. There was nothing better.

I don't still have them, but I do wear the same size...

 

[Homme]

Levis 501s in 97, followed by Nudie RR Used DeLuxe in 2004.

 

[rach2jlc]

A pair of Helmut Lang's around 1995 or 1996... I've had probably 15 pairs since then and still think they're the best jeans I've had. And, I remember when I first got them (I think they were around $150 or so), and people thought I had lost my mind. Now, if we find a great pair of jeans for that, we call it a bargain.

As for Dior, I agree with Socal that the first few seasons when Dior was using Japanese denim and such for their jeans, they were top notch. I had a pair from Follow me (in 2003 or so) that were the black overprinted blue jeans with hand-whiskering and they were a lot of fun; they also had the cat scratching and I wonder if maybe we're talking about the same style. They weren't very practical, but still fun. As Dior got massively popular with the kiddies from 2005 onwards, they really watered down the details and the quality.

In 2002 or so, I got some 45rpm. They were very nice... but I still liked my HL's better.

 

[ken]

Diesel Kratt. Still one of the best cuts out there, but I don't know if they even make them anymore.

I gave them to a buddy of mine in '03, before I started eating and squatting effectively. Last month, I was at his place and needed a pair of pants (don't ask). He still had them, worn to shreds, but I couldn't get them past the bottom of my butt. It was a good feeling.

 

[nioh]

Helmut Lang's in the late ninties. I fail to see how Levis or Diesel would be high end in any way.

 

[ken]

Originally Posted by nioh

Helmut Lang's in the late ninties. I fail to see how Levis or Diesel would be high end in any way.

How drastically different was the price point between HL and some Diesel? I didn't think it was much.

 

[SoCal2NYC]

Originally Posted by rach2jlc

As for Dior, I agree with Socal that the first few seasons when Dior was using Japanese denim and such for their jeans, they were top notch. I had a pair from Follow me (in 2003 or so) that were the black overprinted blue jeans with hand-whiskering and they were a lot of fun; they also had the cat scratching and I wonder if maybe we're talking about the same style. They weren't very practical, but still fun. As Dior got massively popular with the kiddies from 2005 onwards, they really watered down the details and the quality.

The pair that I bought were black/white/grey...no real blue dye in there. The cat scratch with the back pocket stitch was the hallmark style of the early Dior jeans. I remember those and a pair of highish waisted doubled over black wool trousers with tapered leg caused quite a stir going to class in Santa Barbara. At that time Blue Bee/Beetle was only carry women's clothing except for some men's Earnest Sewn. The other men's boutique Bryan Lee carried Energie and Diesel. 99% of the people at UCSB bought their clothes from Express, A&F, BR or Gap as those were the only other retailers (not counting Saks with Tommy Bahama and Hugo Boss).

 

[nioh]

Originally Posted by ken

How drastically different was the price point between HL and some Diesel? I didn't think it was much.

Maybe not much on the cheapest model, but iirc HL was the first high end brand go mass-market with jeans.

 

[rach2jlc]

Originally Posted by nioh

Maybe not much on the cheapest model, but iirc HL was the first high end brand go mass-market with jeans.

Yeah, HL preceeded the Diesel craze by at least a few years. In the early to mid 1990's, those $150+ HLs were about the priciest you could get for a regular pair of straight leg blue jeans with no "frills." They were great and then prada came along in 1999 and decided they could take away the "jeans line," add the actual denim jeans to the HL mainline, double the price and nobody would notice.

...and Lang never made a profit afterwards.

Yeah, Socal, we're talking about different jeans, but quite possibly from the same season (A/W 03... "follow me")?

 

[WayneGibbous]

Originally Posted by grilledcheese

The point of this thread--I think--is really to get people to recount what pair of jeans first broke the $100 barrier for them...

Yes that was the point of the thread. However, some people are engaging in anachronistic thinking...

 

[bob]

Rag and Bone rb6. Have had them for 1.5 years and washed once. Still minimal fading. Took them out of my rotation because I've come to appreciate a slimmer fit better. Currently switching btw an apc hipster and nudie sjdj.

 

[ken]

Originally Posted by rach2jlc

Yeah, HL preceeded the Diesel craze by at least a few years. In the early to mid 1990's, those $150+ HLs were about the priciest you could get for a regular pair of straight leg blue jeans with no "frills."

Who's saying they didn't? The thread is about our first pair of premium jeans, not the world's.

 

[Hawkeye]

Found a pair of Levis Premium Heshers at the Levis Outlet near me years ago, great jeans, really dark blue...I'd probably still be wearing them here and there if I didn't buy them too big.

 

[rach2jlc]

Originally Posted by ken

Who's saying they didn't? The thread is about our first pair of premium jeans, not the world's.

Who's arguing? I was simply agreeing with the nioh's earlier post that offered a similar sentiment. I don't really care WHO actually came first... I just find it interesting how much our sense of jean cost has changed in 10 years.

 

[SantosLHalper]

Anyways, back to the subject at hand... First was a pair of Banana Republic jeans at the ungodly price of $80. Then a pair of SFAM bootcuts. Neither of these has seen wear in a while.