Soaking and Stretching Denim
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Yeah, good thread.
My other half hates my obessiveness when it comes to jeans sizing - its like when you get a haircut, self improvement is deeply subjective…
Some observations:
IH 634S - no shrinkage at all IME, and a fair bit of stretching, way beyond the tag size. I tend to do a leg stretch by hand when they are damp as well, I find that this give a more of a post-wash snuggness for couple of wears which I like.
IH 634SR - I was one of the over estimators in this regard, expecting a lot of shrinkage I up sized and in hindsight its a bit of shame, still a beautiful jean but they dont get worn. Stick to your normal tag size would be my recommendation.
Flat Head 1005 - I've got three pairs of these in various stages of wear and shrink, I find that the shrink is long and quite progressive on these - certainly my earliest pair is quite a bit snugger than the latest pair. These also shrink a lot overall.
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N.B.: I am 6 foot 4 inches (190 cents approx) and I find that both the IH 634SR and the FlatHead 1005 (post soak of course) are absolutely spot on for leg length, enough for a bit of stack but not enough to look silly.
Both jean types measure 35" in the in seam.
The 634S are way long though and I had a re-hem.
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The 634S are way long though and I had a re-hem.
The 634S have a 34in inseam, which should make them shorter than the 35in of other jeans. Or did you custom order an extra-long pair?
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Just thought I'd mention – I LOVE the way my SEXIH03BKs fit now -- after one hot machine wash/tumble dry inside-out and 30 days of continual wear. They're actually a tad baggy in the butt and a little loose all around but that's what I'm shooting for. I'm now wearing a belt with them to keep them hoisted up ! The amazing thing is that these were tight as fuck when I first wore them -- uncomfortably so -- but something changed in the 3rd week of wear -- they became all of a sudden looser and very comfortable. The Black cyclists run a bit smaller than the indigo (says so on the Self Edge website), and God knows I felt that extra pinch in the top button ! Anyway. I'm here to tell you that these jeans stretched AT LEAST an inch in the waist and butt area, and I'm guessing even more. Now they're so comfy and feel just perfect ! The Iron Heart Cyclist jeans are my ALL TIME FAVORITE ! I'm bummed that they are sold out forever, done and over with...no more runs !
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My 634SR are tag size 33. They are a bit tighter than other 33 jeans I have. I hope they will still stretch a little. While I did really good on the weight management plan. The 9634 in tag size 34 fit much more comfortably. I do have other pairs of new jeans in 32 or 33 waist and they are still a bit easier on the belly than the SR in 33. After the wash I did I have about 20 days of wear on them. If you want them to stretch faster it actually helps to wear the belt rather loose. This way the belt will not help to reign in your belly and the denim will get stretched faster. The reverse should be true, too, but God knows I don't have that problem.
I have seen people apply those stretching devices you can find at Home Depot to the waist of their jeans. Not such a bad idea. Just don't pop the button.
Till
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Till, I'm surprised that your 634SRs haven't loosened up yet ! My guess is that you're not wearing them enough – or maybe un-sanforized doesn't stretch as much ?? Also, did you throw them in a dryer ? Weren't you the one who told me that the dryer softens the jeans up, making them more stretch-able ? Wear them to bed ! Seriously ! I didn't mention that but I wear all my IH jeans (most of which are a W28) as pajamas...and none were as disgustingly tight as the IHSEX03BK at first, though all were pretty tight. With the IHSEX03BKs I had to leave the top button un-buttoned at night for the first 2 weeks. Not any more though...as I said, now, the IHSEX03BKs are actually a little loose, requiring a belt !
I'm glad I went with W28 though, cuz the next size up would be wayy too baggy on me by now, after 30 wears. This is true about all the IH skinny jeans I own (Cyclist IHSEX03 & BK, IH 301S, 9301 Slim Super Black).
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@simon626:
shooba i will buy any of your waist sized 29" IH's that you don't want….Let me know if you're tryin' to get rid of'em
simon626, thanks for the offer but I don't own any W29 ! I only have 6 pair of IH jeans so far – the 4 you know about (just mentioned in my previous post to Till) -- the skinny ones purchased at Self Edge, San Francisco. The other two are a W30 straight cut which I got 3 years ago, also at SESF, and which I hardly ever wear. You're wayyy too tall for those, simon626 -- they've been altered to a L32 -- and I've already offered them to my 65-year-old Mom. Self Edge didn't even have the skinny versions available back then, plus admittedly, I was 12 Lbs heavier back then than I am now. I've stayed 110-112 Lbs consistently now, for about 2 years. It was a simple diet change, which I have no problem sticking with. Basically -- skip the heavy dinner and eat granola cereal. Every now and then I break the rule (like last night, when I went on a friend date), but 90% of the time, I religiously stick by it. I'm VERY CAREFUL about what I consume -- to look this good at age 45 takes a lotta work and discipline, young man ! I NEVER, EVER, EVER, EVER, EVER -- OK, rarely, but - I NEVER eat dessert or junk food. I just don't fucking do it. I don't drink booze either, which is nothing but empty calories -- and that helps. I eat heartily -- meat, veggies, few carbs...and I don't count calories -- but I limit myself to a light breakfast (banana and possibly 2 eggs scrambled) and one major meal a day (which is always lunch).
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The dryer will make them softer. That would probably mean they stretch more, too. But the dryer will shrink them, so it's a wash up (pun intended).
I never put them in the dryer. Not yet. But might do that in the future. They are seriously not comfortable enough to wear in bed. Besides, I wouldn't wear unwashed street clothes in bed.
They will loosen up over time. I am sure. I just think it will take more than 30 wears. Also my waist is a moving target. To get an objective measurement whether the jeans loosen or my waist decreases, I'd have to measure the jeans and I am too lazy for that.
Till
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Maybe we could start documenting the stretching a bit more accurate.
For example - state Waist size + measurements when new - and waist measurements after apprx. 20 wears ….
We can do anything
http://bybeatle.com -
My IH non-selvedge jeans took longer to stretch out than the selvedge one's.
Simon -
Does it hurt ?
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that´s a good amount of stretching..thanks for keeping tabs, simon
We can do anything
http://bybeatle.com -
hi everyone
i'm sure you get a bunch of these - new guy joins and posts a question about fit straight away
buuutt…
i have 2 pairs of nudies which are both tagged as 29w... but measure exactly 32" when i lay them out on the desk
my waist also measures out to 32"
both are tight long johns, ~11oz, with 2% lycra
they have both obviously stretched out a bit over the year or so i have been wearing them - should i be sizing down with iron heart and 3x works in order to stretch out to 32", or should i buy them true to size?thanks for reading
steverps: here is a photo of one of the jeans. i should add that i got these whilst i was recovering from a knee injury, and have gained about 8kg since then. they were always tight, but never this tight
