Raw denim - would Sheldon Cooper wear them unwashed for 6 months?

[Andreas1965]

Hi guys,

I'm new to raw denim. For the last 47 years my mom, and then I, used to wash a pair of jeans whenever they were dirty or smelly.

Now I really want to wear some dry jeans, but am unsure about the washing issue.

I have to explain the point of departure:

1) I work at the office, so 8 hours a day without the opportunity to wear them "hard".
2) I don't ride horses, when I ride my bike, I wear bike gear, I don't hunt, I don't go camping, I do not hike. In my spare time I go to the tennis court (no need for jeans here) or just sit around, watch TV or things like that.
3) My job consist of visiting hospitals, practices, nursing homes etc. I am currently assistant director of the German equivalent of the CDC. Lots of germs there.
4) Might be a result of my job... I am very picky with hygiene. Clothes I wore at work have to be pulled off immediately when coming home. I would never let a jeans I wore at a hospital touch the sofa I sit on with clean clothes. I couldn't stand sitting on my sofa with the same pant I wore in a bus or subway (or McDonalds). You'll never know what kind of pig sat on that seat prior to you... So I have clothes I wear in my house and clothes for work etc.
5) I know that each time you empty your bladder while standing at an urinal you sprinkle the yellow stuff on your pants. We're not talking about a laser-beam-like thing here, watch some super-slo-mos, and you'll know what I mean. At home I sit down on my toilet, of course, but public restrooms? Oh my god, I would rather piss in my pants than sit down on these.

Needless to say that I wash my hands VERY often... I know from my job that our hands are the main carrier for infections. But the guy that shook your hand? Did he wash his hand after taking his morning dump? Touching a jeans supposed to be unwashed for half a year with hands covered with bacteria from someone's intestines is a thing causing me nightmares.

You can call me crazy now. I sometimes see myself as Sheldon Coopers lost twin. But you might understand that it is nearly impossible for me to wear a pair of jeans for 6 months. I just couldn't stand it. And I wonder if my activity level would be enough to wear the jeans only 6 months or if I would need 2 years anyway to develop the level of fading one can see here often.

Am I, simply put, just the wrong man for raw denim?

I'd like to make an experiment. I bought a raw Nudie for next to nothing from ebay. Wore the jeans for about 2 weeks in the house while watching TV. I am really tempted to throw them in the washer and see what happens ;-) If the result is plain ugly, I can wear them in the house, but maybe it works out fine?

And now, start laughing at me... I'm used to that.

 

[SirGrotius]

Actually, you're the perfect man for raw denim because maybe they'll help you loosen up once you start seeing progress in them.

 

[sparrow]

wash them if you feel uncomfortable.
you just wont get nice fades.

 

[slide13]

wow....you're a little crazy. If you want to wear raw jeans then wear them and wash them like you normally would. They're just jeans. You won't get the high contrast fades that some people like but they'll turn out just fine I'm sure. It's not like raw denim has some crazy negative reaction to being washed that all other denim doesn't, it's just often that people buy raw denim to get some striking fades worn into them and often the best way to do that is to go for a while without washing them so the wear areas loose significantly more indigo than the non-wear areas. Washing causes a slight loss of color everywhere, meaning the wear patterns are often not as dramatic...but can still turn out great in their own way.

 

[Andreas1965]

wash them if you feel uncomfortable.
you just wont get nice fades

Already did it! I threw the raw Nudie in the washer, 60 Celsius, tumbled at highest possible grade, then the dryer, again highest grade. In fact. I did everything you're not supposed to do ;-)
The jeans lost lots of indigo, no fades, just light abrasions at the pockets. Looks ok so far. Like a new jeans with no fading.

Won't do that with my selvedge Edwin Nashville, because this is a fine fitting jeans. I'll try to wear the Edwin for a few months strictly in the house.

 

[mcdecker1]



5) I know that each time you empty your bladder while standing at an urinal you sprinkle the yellow stuff on your pants. We're not talking about a laser-beam-like thing here, watch some super-slo-mos, and you'll know what I mean. At home I sit down on my toilet, of course, but public restrooms? Oh my god, I would rather piss in my pants than sit down on these.

this is amazing

 

[volatile]

This video will set you at ease: http://denimhunters.com/az/denim-mythbusters

Just wash the damn things. Cold, inside out, every few months.

(PS: I particularly enjoyed the words "of course" in your post! )

 

[FondDeJante]

Aren't you concerned about where those Nudies had been before you got them? There's probably a reason they were sold for cheap on the bay

 

[Andreas1965]

Aren't you concerned about where those Nudies had been before you got them? There's probably a reason they were sold for cheap on the bay

Bought them from a trustworthy ebay seller (powerseller). They were brand new. The ridiculous low price is a result of these jeans being loose-cut. Everybody seems to wear skinny jeans right now - except me ;-)
They were 49,- Euros.

Cheap enough to experiment with them.

 

[Andreas1965]

this is amazing

No, it's just physics. The liquid splashes from the urinal back to you (and your pants). This is almost invisible in real time. Saw a super-slo-mo in a TV show some years ago. It is like a spray... Since then I try to sit down if possible ;-)

 

[cfrp]

I use to be like you.. Got over it after a few years.

I would say raw jeans aren't for you. There will be bacteria on the pants. Especially around the fly area.

Unless you dedicate the jeans to OUTSIDE only clothes and take them off as soon as you get home.. If you are ok with that.. Maybe you can rock the jeans for 6 months without washing. If even wearing "dirty" jeans outside bothers you.. Well you are going to have to wash the raw denim. Nothing wrong with washing raw denim but they will always leak indigo and they will never break in to be comfortable because you keep washing them.

 

[recondite]

You're operating on the wrong information and several logical fallacies. This is a function of your station as a specialist and not a generalist.

Just because lack handwashing contributes to the spread of disease, doesn't mean lack of jean washing has the same effect. Think about it.

If you have ever worked in an OR or ICU where there is risk of infection, you would witness the practical approach to infection control where anything below the sterile field is considered to be very low risk and therefore given only cursory consideration as a disease vector including street shoes which are no doubt in regular contact with the worst filth imaginable.

Compare this to your hands which are in direct contact with other people and their hands, fecal material from your own body, and the best disease vector on the planet, outside of the nasal discharge otherwise known as a sneeze and the hands of another, the average door nob.

Oh, and FYI; your average urine sample is nearly sterile when a UTI is absent. So, much for your own urine being a risk vector.

Hint, a fist bump instead of a handshake might ease your mind more than washing your jeans, all things considered including the information you now possess.

Also UV radiation is a natural disinfectant, so any time you spend outside being irradiated by the sun, has some disinfectant effect on your jeans. Although, it will fade your jeans and break down the denim for the same reason.

With your knowledge base, you should understand that most microbes have a very short life expectancy when they are left on a less than ideal growth substrate such as denim especially when they are left there at less than ideal conditions of temperature and pH.

Heaven help your sanity if you have a pet dog that regularly licks its butt and eats grass covered with its own fecal matter; assuming that absent real data, you continue to make a more general application of your specific knowledge base, which is the principle logical fallacy from which you are suffering.

Finally, doesn't your immune system enjoys an occasional workout from attacking the odd micro or two when you are otherwise relatively healthy, so that it can develop a protective immunity from that micro which might otherwise be fatal when you are exposed to it in a physiologically weakened state?

As they used to say; "you'll eat a peck of [micro laden] dirt before you die"; i.e., "you'll survive more than you think".

Wishing you a peaceful mind safe from logical fallacies.

Cheers!

 

[tigerpac]

Just let them hang dry and you'll avoid the weird dryer marks.

 

[meso]



Just let them hang dry and you'll avoid the weird dryer marks.

Among other benefits of never drying your jeans in a dryer...