How To Stay Warm In Flare Jeans This Winter

Flare jeans are making a comeback, but what do you wear them with in the colder months? Check out what this ShopBop stylist recommends to make sure you looking cool and cozy.

Q: It’s officially winter, and I go nowhere without a heavy coat. How can I pair parkas and flares without looking too bulky?

A: Again, keep things minimal and linear. Try a longer jacket with clean lines, hitting at the mid-thigh or knee. A wool trench coat is great, especially belted!

Denim Therapy Tutorial: Removing wax from your jeans

Let’s face it: sometimes we’re not all as graceful as we’d like to be. We slip, trip, and spill and many times, the universe will have these things happen at the most unfortunate times. So, when Denim Therapy‘s Renee found herself in her brand new black Nudie Jeans, hanging at a bar, with a wax spill on her precious pants, she knew she had to figure out how to fix them. Watch as Renee shows us how to get white candle wax out of black denim!

What Jeans To Wear To Holiday Dinner

What jeans should you wear to holiday dinner (AKA, the grand tradition of over-eating)? Raven Denim suggests you aim for higher-than-usual-waisted jeans, if you don’t want to resemble a stuffed bird. Aim for mid-rise to be comfortable and still contain your food baby.
“Don’t be afraid of a higher rise. After you have dinner, everyone gets a little tummy. Wear a a mid-rise, which will hold you in, while giving you versatility to tuck-in or wear loose.” (Ya’el Torbati, Raven Denim)

Try This Vinegar + Oven Treatment To Remove Odor From Raw Denim

Today’s tip comes by way of Rawr Denim, assessing the crisis of jeans with odor. If the previously discussed methods of cleaning have not worked for you, you might give these two methods of cleaning raw denim a go.

How-To Clean Your Raw Denim via Vinegar Wash

1. Fill a bathtub with enough cold water to completely submerge the denim
2. Addabout 2 cups of white vinegar
3. Lay the pants flat and inside out
4. Agitate and flip several times over few hours of soaking
5. Rinse with cold water and hang dry (ideally outdoors)

How-To Clean Your Raw Denim via Oven Treatment
1. Preheat oven to 400°F and turn back to 175°F – 200°F
2. Flip denim inside out and fold to fit on center rack
3, Leave for 1-2 minutes and shut oven door
4. Remove from oven to cool down (fumes may exude from fabric)
5. Refold and reposition denim on rack for 1-2 more minutes; be mindful for denim not to scorch

In the Rawr Denim example, the jeans were not sufficiently odor-free after the vinegar soak alone, so they were put into the oven to be cured of stank.
“While this an extreme example that pertains to black sulphuric-dyed denim, the oven technique made scientific sense (i.e. sulphuric dye must be broken down into particles via heat exposure prior to being water soluble) and proved to be extremely effective.”
Rawr Denim also warns that the oven cleaning method is the most hazardous & dangerous way to clean your jeans, so proceed at your own risk!

How To Keep Jeans Clean Without Losing Your Denim Snob Street Cred

“Don’t wash your jeans!”
We hear it over and over, and many of us abide by this denim-addict’s rule of thumb when it comes to letting denim take its shape around your figure, and letting wear happen naturally. But the fact is, after a certain period of time, you’re going to want to remove odors, dirt, and even dead skin cells (yep, their final resting place is your jeans).  Freezing denim removes odor to some extent, but if you’ve decided it’s time to take action with *gulp* water… there’s a right way to do it.
Check out this awesome tutorial on washing raw denim from Park & Bond (and visit the original to see their informative graphics).

Step 1: Fill a sink, tub, bucket or other jean-sized vessel with lukewarm water and a small amount of ultra-mild detergent. Woolite Dark is a good bet, but it’s very concentrated, so start with just a couple of teaspoons. Take a deep breath, ignore the anticipated slights from the hip police running through your mind, and put your smelly-ass jeans in the tub. Make sure they’re fully submerged (this may require you to weigh them down).
Step 2: Soak them for about an hour, giving them a stir half way through to loosen any dirt that’s worked its way into the denim.
Step 3: Remove the jeans, drain the tub (of course), and rinse them thoroughly with cold water to remove detergent residue. Roll them up in a dry towel that you don’t mind staining blue to remove some moisture.
Step 4: Hang them out to dry. (Note: Make sure you hang them in a place that has good air movement, as you don’t want your jeans to mildew. Also, take care to hang them somewhere that won’t be ruined by a steady flow of indigo-infused water.) Do not tumble dry, as all that heat will undo your good work. Once your jeans are dry, pull them on and proceed to beat the hell out of ‘em till they need a bath again.

Closet Cleaning! Four Reasons To Ditch A Few Pairs Of Jeans

As you guys already know, we’re not really advocates of getting rid of jeans. In fact, we offer a huge range of reasons to keep ‘em with our Denim Therapy expert repair and alterations services, because even if they tear, you lose weight, or they don’t fit quite right, there’s a way to fix them up and make them your favorite pair again. But if you’re like us, you have about 100 pairs of jeans floating around, and sometimes donating denim to make room for superior pairs is a good idea.

1. When they are covered in rhinestones and you used to love them in Junior high. Seriously, we’re proud of you for still being able to fit into them, but they’re covered in rhinestones and you’re not in Junior high anymore. We’re sure some 12-year-old girl would love to uncover them while treasure hunting at a local thrift store.
2. When they’re three sizes too small and you used to love them in Junior high. If you want to be confident and feel amazing in jeans, wearing the same ones you wore in days-gone-by (while that might make you feel “young” for a minute) is not the way to do it. Wearing jeans that fit your figure now will help you look proportionate and stylish in ways ill-fitting jeans cannot.
3. If the pocket placement makes your butt look too big/too small/ too awkward. There are a lot of things you can modify when it comes to denim, but pocket placement is a crucial aspect of whether or not your butt looks good in jeans. Your denim collection should reflect trial and error pocket placement according to the unique shape of your bum.
4. If you have more than six pairs of the same cut/style/wash. We can sympathize here, as denim-lovers ourselves, but sometimes the extra closet space to branch out in your denim wardrobe is more valuable than owning a hundred of the same pair. The beauty of jeans is that they can be worn over and over without daily washing, so having a back-up arsenal of verbatim styles is not necessary. Why not explore some new cuts and colors in jeans instead?

How To Avoid Destroying Your Jeans When You Wash Them

Ruined jeans? Colors faded or dye bleeding? Oh no! Chances are, it could have been prevented. Garde Robe imparts some knowledge on making sure you don’t destroy your jeans when you’re washing and caring for them. This tip comes from our previously Q&A, which you can read for more expert advice.

“We’ve all had the experience of a pair of jeans bleeding or shrinking in wash. It’s important like any garment, to read and follow the care instructions for each and every pair of denim jeans we own.
Follow the instructions carefully to keep them looking bright and new, or break all the rules and create the denim you want. I’d always recommend washing denim by hand, if not professionally. If you do machine wash your jeans, I’d recommend separating and washing your jeans individually in a cold wash to prevent bleeding & shrinking.
Wash inside out with all buttons or zippers unfastened. Use a half-sized amount of color guard detergent of your preference. Wash on a gentle or hand dry cycle. When done, tumble dry on a low heat, never high. Remove from dryer when still damp to touch. Dry flat.”

Brighten Up Double Denim With White Shoes This Fall

Double denim’s been done. We still love it, but it’s nothing new, and at this point, you’re probably wondering how you can freshen up the look of a two-tone blue outfit. Here’s one way we love—a pair of big white platform shoes! White is a dramatic accent (more dramatic than black if you use it correctly), and when you’re working with one basic color in your look, a flash of white can mean the difference between an average ensemble and something worth street-style-snapping. In the market for a pair of white platforms? We love the Jeffrey Campbell Two Timer White Suede Perforated Wedge (on sale right now for $87.50).

Four Items To Invest In (Including Jeans) This Fall/Winter

Here’s a bit of shopping advice by Jessica Quirk of What I Wore. “If you’re going to spend money on investment items, look for a quality winter coat and boots, jeans and a cocktail dress.”
Here are a few ideas!

1. Rag & Bone Mid-rise skinny jeans ($240) – buy it at Net-A-Porter.
2. Australia Luxe sage rubber ‘Duke’ shearling lined rain boots ($153) – buy it at Bluefly.
3. Dress Up Topshop Sequin bodycon dress ($118) – buy it at Topshop.
4. Barbour Winter White honour wool trench coat ($493.35) – buy it at My Wardrobe.
Quote via Metromix.

How To Wear Isabel Marant Navajo Print Embroidered Jeans

With tribal prints all the rage, what better of a way to sport the look than with denim. Isabel Marant has done this perfectly with her  amazing Navajo print embroidered denim inspired by the trend. These tribal patterned jeans have been worn by celebrities such as Nicole Richie and Cheryl Coles. Paired with a simple blazer and high platforms this is the perfect look to transition into the winter months. One may need to dig a little deep in their pockets to splurge for a pair, but it’s worth it, right?!