Pretty Pales

Pale frills and flounces are a staple style for summer denim shirts.  Looking prettier in the lightest chambray cotton or tencel for extra drape and bounce.

L-R: ©Maison Manila ©Paloma Lira Helena ©Carla Fernandez Angelica   

The denim dress - a must for hot days in graduated shades of pale indigo.  Mix and accessorise with pretty colours and effects so that the silhouette isn't all about indigo denim.

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Prints and clipped weave jacquards bring prettiness into the arena of mens denim shirts as well as for women in indigo textures and patterns in paler washes. 

©Mih ©Topshop

Gathered fullness  and colour degrade float the different levels of pretty and palest indigo chambrays into long dresses.  With finest and softest fibres as well as different levels of shade indigo has boundless potential for summer wear.

Trend Alert: Lighter Shade of Pale

Light washes and lighter shades of indigo have found it difficult to achieve the same level of interest as their darker cousins and have not stood the "being loved for long" test.   Things have now changed.     We no longer just use bleach to lighten we have many more tricks to create edgy pale hued denim jeans.   

The shade starts dark so with chemicals and tints we carve out exciting new lighter shades leaving 3D highs and lows at the seams and focus areas;  we use sulphur tints to change the cast of the shade;  we heavily wear out areas of interest in the garment as well as ripping and repairing to add dimension;  with paler shades we naturally have the impression of wearing an "old friend" so ripping with no repairing even leaving giant holes looks real.   All of this is laundry work but the start denim must be substantial enough to withstand the artificial wear and tear as well as be made in 100% indigo shade such that the result is clean, clear, almost pretty.

Composite Image ©TheDenimEye L:©Diesel

Scraped and spayed pretty blues for the garment body leaving 3D high/low effects at the edges and seams; false tacked up hems which, when let down after spray, create decorative effects to further add dimension to the worn in effect.   Myriad levels of light indigo achieve varying levels of interest in different textured denims - pre-shrunk;  STF ( Levi) shrink to fit effect;  flat finished smooth effect as well as with different textured constructions from crunchy plain weaves and dobbies to smooth sateens and twills. 

Composite Image ©TheDenimEye Top Left: ©Amelia Lindquist ©UMagazine

Texture and differentiated indigo shades offer opportunities for design intrigue, fabric combing and clever cutting.  The crackled texture of pre-shrunk or STF denim finishing cut and combined in new wider shapes take paler denim to a classier level of denim fashion.      Whilst pretty green casted indigos and sulphur aqua blues are edgy and cool.

Composite image ©TheDenimEye L: ©Faustine Steinmetz

Splash and sponged bleached out pattern effects are summer camouflage with crush and creased effects in lightweights.  Start with dark indigo and bleach out to white with tie dye technique or sponge effects.      Or start with white undyed denim and work in with dark indigos or sulphur dyes.

l-r ©zara, ©framedenim

Combine light with dark; clever cut the jeans for super creative effect;  play with shade, texture and the use of high low 3D finish effects at waist and hem.

Silent Performance - Travel Easy

Featherweight denims for travel in comfort achieved through clever fibre blending of super fine yarns with high stretch, breathability, anti odour.   Never before have we been able to achieve so much in indigo denims.    Where denim used to be uncomfortable to travel in now it is the fabric/garment of choice dependent on style.  We can still look cool and travel in comfort.

Composite Image ©TheDenimEye

......and as well as having all this performance we can also have shine and glamour.  Super drape, super fit and super softness from Tencel and Lyocel with Lycra.

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Touch and appearance are the drivers of indigo denim fashion but with added performance it does much much more.  Blends of natural and synthetic such as linen & polyester; wool & nylon; Cotton & Dyneema all with that essential element of stretch creates cool fashion with cool performance.  The two go hand in hand in todays denim world.

A 21st century take on jeans, made from the most ruggedly comfortable tech fabric around. A pant that stays dry in light rain, yet drys fast if it does get wet. A pant that shrugs off coffee and beer. A pant that looks and smells good even if you never wash them, but can easily be washed without compromising their core style. Pants we can travel the world in, through mud, dust and grime, and still walk into a restaurant looking sharp. 

Silent Performance - Outdoor Indigo | Climate Control

Breathable coatings onto indigo denims allow us to wear our jeanswear pieces in all climates.  We love our jeans, we want to wear them in all conditions.      They can be lightweight, water repellant, breathable, comfort stretch. Not just for jean but for jackets and outdoor styles.

Denim and jeans can now be warm and insulating rather than the previously chilly cottons.    Thermalite from Invista helps us create warmer denims.  Brushed backside denim fabrics allow the simple cotton jean to become a winter cotton item.   Quilted constructions trap air between the double layers.  "Knit" like denim constructions can easily replace as well as replicate the classic fleece hoody and sweat pants in beautiful indigo denim with flexibility and comfort.

Face brushing can be better done in garment form to achieve a warm appearance as well as an insulating fabric.  In face brushing the garment the indigo surface level can be controlled to become like moleskin or velour.

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Double layering in the garment as well as quilting in the fabric enables us to use thermal fillings inside and water repellant coatings on the outside yet it is still a denim jacket!

Composite Image ©TheDenimEye

Natural plus synthetic fibre blend innovations have achieved the strongest fibre - Dyneema.  Cotton + Dyneema blends are used for high performance jeanswear where high rub and tear strength is required - motorbiking; street cycling; boarding; blading; mountaineering to name but a few extreme activities where performance denims are an advantage.   Cordura from Invista and Nylon 66 are also super strong fibres which when blended with cotton create synthetic strength with natural fibre softness.

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Shine and performance can be achieved with fibre rather than coated finish namely, hi shine nylons, tencel  and trilobal polyesters. Whilst denims are traditionally made with cotton warps we can now make a denim which is totally synthetic yet retaining ability to dye indigo - namely, Tencel or Modal ( Lenzing) cellulosic warps with other synthetic fibre blends in the weft. 

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We have mentioned temperature controlling fibres  in the form of thermalite from Invista.   Invista also help us create cooling denims with moisture management with their Coolmax for summer denims and Coolmax all season being a  blend of thermalite and coolmax for all year round comfort denims.

Nilit also offers Breeze which is a cool fibre;  Heat which is a thermal fibre; Aquarius which is a breathable moisture management fibre.

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Brushing; Quilting; Coating; Padding are all achievable in the classic character and shade of indigo denim.  We now need never to be without our denims whatever the weather.

 

Silent Performance - Clever Memory

Super fit, super fine and super stretch is what we need to perform in our jeans just as we would in our leggins. Invista blends of natural with synthetics have helped us achieve in denims what was until recently not even thought of.     Their dual core fibres namely Dual FX and Lycra Beauty have cotton on the face, spun fibre blend against the skin both wrapped around lycra stretch core to create whatever level of stretch is required.  Such fibres achieve both comfort and performance for even the lightest of denims.

More simple blends of spun polyester with elastane will likewise achieve a supreme high stretch with a soft touch but for even softer touch denims Modal from Lenzing can blend with cotton and lycra for super softness and high stretch.   Tencel or Lyocel from Lenzing is likewise blended with lycra for softness and in this latter instance a super drape.  All such blends are capable of being surface printed for branding or creative patterning.  

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For 360 bi stretch and V stretch we need to play more with the blends in the warp to achieve the desired levels of stretch whilst at the same time controlling the shrinkage and recovery.    All such technical research, development and innovation is done at the fabric make stage in order to enable the brands to achieve the best levels of performance for their active styles.

Composite Image ©TheDenimEye ©Calik Denim

What we want is a second skin denim.   As light and figure hugging as possible to replace our dependence on high stretch warp or weft knit active wear.     This is not just for active lifestyle denims but also for figure contouring denims.  Such clever blends enable us to do more in our daily denim jeans

©Calik Denim

Absolute fit combined with shine gives the appearance of activewear and yet it is clean smart denim daywear with the performance attributes of active wear.  Denim jeans with the versatility of day to sport to eve wear.    Here we have tencel lycra blends  with a super 360 stretch and perfect recovery.  

Trend Alert: Silent Performers

Life continues in the fast lane for which we need enhanced performance.  Performance fabrics are still the future of everyday wear.

Athleisure / Active Lifestyle dressing is shifting from leggins and performance knits to performance denims.  You can now do in your jeans what you could do in leggins and look more polished instead of wearing sport gear with its sweaty connotations throughout the day.  We want more refined clean denim dressing with added performance for all our daily activities through to evening cool.

Denim Fabrics, created by innovative Denim Mills, with added performances to be explained later are creating a new and exciting trend in denim jeanswear. 

High stretch and bi stretch.  Coated finish.  Breathability.  Are just three essential elements of denim sport performance wear.  The key is indigo.  The romance of indigo shades combined with classic denim texture are taking on a new life together with the excitement of added performance.     Polyurethane coatings and spray finishes enable the fabric to breathe and to repel moisture.   Hi stretch can be now bi stretch or vertical stretch.  We create a stretch for all different uses.  A common term is 360 stretch meaning all round stretch for ultimate movement and comfort in the denim jeans.   Jeans such as have not been previously experienced.

Composite Image ©TheDenimEye

Performance denims look just like your ordinary jeans either vintage character or refined and simple.  The secret is in the performance of the fibres and finishes employed in the manufacture of the denim fabric that makes them performance jeans.    Clever fibre blending is the current excitement, to achieve the touch and character of the natural fibre with the precision performance of synthetics.

Trashion - Recent Vintage 90s grunge

New/old grunge combines with beautifully contrived designs creating exciting mixes of texture, colour, shape and destruction.   All with more than just a nod to our enduring need for high Brands, sport brands and their fashion identity.

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Why not write stories and proclaim messages on our everyday clothing?  Wear thoughts on our sleeves and ripped up designer legs?   Tear and fray holes mended with recognisable brand fabric or imagery.

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Classic garments fall victim to the grunge trend - 90's bomber jackets are reinvented in coloured denims complete with ripped authenticity. The belted trench in fake flocked fur.  One of the highest fashion exponent of this trend is the super Junya Watanabe, being the original creator behind the use of tartan and denim in new and exciting ways.

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Sport meets street with Branding a feature.  Mix brands and fuse their identity and messages. Even combine brands to create a new identity and use for both.  Combine fabrics, shapes and sizes creating a revival of flea market fashion.

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The written messages and icons carved into pigment add many dollars as well as fresh excitement to a classic denim garment.  Fleece, hoodies and mixed fabrics  characterise the street fashion revival that is regarded as recent vintage.

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Gothic revival, meets classic Tartan = super exciting.  Combine also the dynamic of clean sport brands and what we get now is a new wave of high and recycled anti fashion the results have  "must have" quality.

Trashion - Rough and Tumble

So, lets look at finishing of denim and garment outside the realms of tearing them apart.   This means adding colour and worn in attitude stopping short of destruction.

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What we try to achieve is a garment finish that begs the question - am I an original or a beautiful replica?  We employ myriad techniques before dry or wet tumbling of 3D creasing, crushing, tagging, finishing garment edges with grinding and finally zinc oxide tinting and bleaching at strategic points of the garment.   Sometimes even experts are fooled!

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Unusual textured denim forms a perfect base to create a real worn in vintage garment.  Although the 3x1 twill is the original denim fabric followed by the 2x1 lighter variant, piques and dobbies can be made to achieve the appearance of old miners' worn out clothing having become much coveted gender neutral garments in today's world of vintage denim hounds.

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Iron oxide finish techniques achieve the original appearance of dirty denim - we take this to a higher creative level of actually burring holes in the garment as well as emulating the effects of scorch marks with black dye or holes to reveal orange weft looking like scorched holes.

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Super creative garmenting design with old or new jeans creates new styles, helped by the use of all the rough and tumble, colouring and bleaching effects available to our experimental drive.

 Lets use the jean in another context - it's fun, it's denim, it's Trashion!