Really, is there any price too high to make your butt look good in jeans? When I founded dapperQ three years ago, I didn’t think so. I was writing about fashion day in and day out so I figured I better be willing to spend serious cash. As dapperQ’s first street fashion video shows, Diesel was the gateway drug.
Incursions in to the fetishist world of raw denim ensued. In addition to $200 plus price tags came expectations that I wouldn’t wash my jeans until two to three months of daily wear intended to shape them to my body. (On-line I read that freezer time was advised as a great way to kill germs.)
But, times are changing and I am too. I want to look great, but I also want to live ethically. Spending hundreds for a pair of jeans just doesn’t make sense to me. (Be sure to check out GraietheObservantQueer’s newest “Fair Trade Fashion Round Up” if you feel the same.) It never did, but now I’ve got an alternative.
Duh. It’s Levi’s. I went in to the Levi’s store on Broadway in SoHo and spent time figuring which style fit my look and life best. The 511 Skinny Jean style I selected is slim in the seat and thigh. It looks equally great with cowboy boots and cuffed with tennis shoes. Levi has been dressing the world for decades so, across both the men’s and women’s aisles, you are likely to find an option right for you.
With that 511 number I go on-line to levi.com and wait for their site-wide discount offers to fuel my very economical purchases in corduroy, denim and twill. Even raw denim is represented at $178. With 30% and – 40% discounts and free shipping, most pants are coming in at one tenth the price of my Diesel days. Better yet? I’ve got colors and textures to mix and match.
Don’t get me wrong. It is not a fool-proof system. The twill, in particular, doesn’t stretch so what fits in a cord doesn’t there. One pair didn’t even consider stretching across the backside of my ego. Felt like I was on Candid Camera. If you can’t stand to pack and mail returns, knowing your number will at least making shopping at your local Levi store more streamlined.
For more denim-buying tips, check out Anita Dolce Vita’s recent article: Jeans 101: Tips on Fit, Brands, Color
Disclaimer: levis.com is totally abusing the privilege of access to my in box with multiple offers in a week. I’ll be hitting the spam filter now that my newest pairs have arrived, checking back in when the season turns. Forewarned is forearmed.
