I have only two days left of my "30 Days of Denim", but I decided to interrupt my calendar to bring you information on the care and feeding of your denim.
Some of us have jeans that we have had forever, they are probably our most "go-to" items in our closet. The older jeans get the more care they need, but so do your new ones need loving care. Come on, jeans put in a hard day's work , if you prone to wearing them a lot. So like you they need some tender loving care too.
Here is some great information.
1. Jeans can be worn 5-10 times before being laundered unless they are used from some pretty grimy work.
2. When you do wash your jeans turn them inside out, make sure you have zipped them up and buttoned them at the waist.
3. I usually use very little detergent (I do have a front load washer, which typically uses less ). If they are brand new I will put about a half a cup of white vinegar in the wash as it helps to set the indigo dye. Woolite also haS a dark wash product that works well. USE ONLY COLD WATER.
4. After they have washed pull them out, straighten the legs and hang from the waist. I let my jeans air dry until there is just a little dampness left, then they go in the dryer. It helps so they are less stiff. Do it for just a very few minutes. Drying is hard on jeans.
5. Jeans should be hung straight, I hang mind from the hen as it helps to keep them wrinkle free and may be just maybe helps to lengthen them.
6. This is the most wonderful tip of all, if you don't want to launder your jeans yet wrap them up and put them in the freezer overnight to kill any bacteria, you think they may have.
TOMORROW HOW TO WASH SELVEDGE VINTAGE JEANS.
We have two more days of warm weather and then the cold hits. I have been pulling pots in from the garden as the plants seem to be sensing the change of scenery too. No matter I am ready for winter, I am actually kinda tired of my warm weather clothes so a change in the closet is just as welcome. This jacket is synthetic but it's so warm I love having it for the cold. If I add my selvedge chambray shirt and it's a great casual about town outfit. Add a little color with a red belt and a autumn scarf.
CASUAL
Dressy
Tomorrow night we are going dancing. I love to go out dancing, it's great exercise, it releases all your worries from a week of work and it's just plain fun.
We have definitely had a change in the weather today so tomorrow night this is what I will be wearing, I think.
The great little moire sleeves stop has a vintage feel but looks new, the shearling jacket (fake fur of course) is perfect for a cool night. I love the idea of the sweet romantic top with the rugged jacket. I have always preferred high- low, cheap- expensive, new-old look in my dressing so this outfit fits that look completely.
I really love those over sized pearls which again have a vintage but new feel. Add a animal print belt and it's a pretty outrageous outfit.
My favorite dancing shoes. The purse just may stay at home. Sometimes I just bring my I.d., a credit card and lipstick when I got dancing.
The whole purpose of this series is to teach you how to mix and match. How to mix textures, colors, prints and strips, how to combine accessories, with the outfit. How to make an outfit look dressy and yet with different shoes and purse it becomes everyday. Experiment with your clothes, have fun with them, be a little daring. Make sure you do it on a day when you feel confident, or practice some of your outfits before you leave the house on days when you don't have to be some place. If you feel foolish or out of place don't wear it out and about. At least once a week experiment with your clothes.
If you tend to buy things in a color palette, certain styles and always go for the same thing, then that is probably your style. If you bored with it shake it up.
J Crew knit sweatshirt that is more like a sweater and one of my favorite go to fall items. A black and white gingham shirt, and a very old Banana Republic belt that I wear as a necklace, animal print belt from Crew as well. Levi's 506 from Kohl's.
Dressy
casual
Dressy and just plain fun.
Today I was feeling old, I had just gotten several fashion magazines and it made me feel old. I thought why am I writing this, why do I care, is anyone even looking at this. Then I snapped out of and realized that there a lot of women of a certain age, that care, about how they look. Not so much if they are "in fashion" but whether they look great, age appropriate and feel amazing in their own skin and the clothing they are wearing. So I carry on sharing my ideas and sense of style. The bonus at the end of this photo session you will see a photo from the new J. Crew catalog, it's Linda Rodin a famous stylist, fashion icon, and now the owner of a beauty line. She's older and she cares, and she wears J. Crew and Levi's.
I made this jacket out of a couple of men's cotton knit tees that were on sale. I used ideas and directions from one of the Alabama Chanin sewing books, It's verse applique. The shirt I made too, it's a small lightweight cotton print. The jeans are Levi's 505. Red belt from J. Crew.
This is a detail of the sleeve and part of the back. I used the tee shirt design printed on the front and embroidered around them.
The jacket is sorta casual and sweatshirt-ish. so I would wear it with boots.
Linda Rodin for J. Crew.
It's such a beautiful morning this morning, the sky is a most beautiful blue, this is the time of year when it goes from hoy to cold, cold to hot, day to day. It makes it harder to decide the day before what to wear. I like to layer so I can add or subtract from my outfit, makes it easier this time of year. So with that here is the next outfit. The purses I have been choosing and the shoes at well are a little more fall then summer, just remember that is the season we are looking forward to. I have chosen a necklace that is more somber in colors to go with the darker navy sweater.
Oh, yes and here is a tip on denim or jeans. If you love a pair of jeans and they fit everywhere but the waist get them. You can have them altered to fit, easily. I usually have them take a bit out at the back behind the loop. I have them the waistband taken in more at the top of the band then at the bottom. This makes the waistband curve ever so slightly inwards so you don't have that gap in the back when sitting down. WOW.
I wear my white jeans all year long, today is a great day for this look. It's a light weight cotton v-neck sweater in the color navy. I have added a pink belt for a little fun.
Red Hobo purse and black ballet flats.
Black Marc Jacobs bag and Red Aerosole shoes. The open toes make them great for summer or fall.
I love rolling the bottom of my jeans, I always think it makes it look like I pay a little extra attention to how I wear them. The first pair on the left has a simple twice fold over roll, in this case it shows that these jeans are cut on the selvedge which makes them special. The middle pair has a roll that is a little less formed (it's how J. Crew does it) it's actually harder to achieve because of the unevenness of it. Yhe third on the right is a big cuff look, just make sure your jeans are long enough for this. You do not want to look like your trying to be overly young.
I have these J. Crew white denim jeans to add to the pile. I wear them all year. In the winter they are more apt to get dirty faster from the slush, but they work with some of the clothes I have. The rule of no white after Labor Day no longer applies.
I do wear these jeans they show a lot of living. I am careful though that when I wear them I also have on really well cared for shoes, purse, and clothing items. I do not want to look like a slob, or like I do not care. I do love these jeans.
Because most of my clients are over forty years of age and this website is devoted to the over forty crowd, here are my denim recommendations for men.
1. Do not wear a light wash in jeans, they are barely attractive on the young and they are especially not attractive on an older man.
2. As men age they lose their behinds. Having jeans with extra fabric hanging back there, only makes matters worse. If your jeans hug what you have it's much more attractive than all that baggy denim.
3. Your denims can be altered to fit, just like anything else. Big sloppy, stretched out jeans are not attractive, have your jeans altered to fit you.
4. Stick to a straighter leg, it much more flattering than a wider leg.
Here are some examples of good fitting jeans. They have a comfortable feel but fit and give the guy some shape. Older men you could wear them just a little tighter for a more dressed look.
J. Hilburn
Banana Republic
The Gap
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