The Best Denim Fabrics

Denim is a cotton fabric created to be rugged and long-lasting. While it is most commonly found in jeans and jackets, it can also be used to make shirts, bags, hats and many other items. The quality of denim largely depends on its production, particularly how it was sewn and whether it was washed.

Washed Denim

Some denim is immediately washed after it is dyed, producing an artificial fade that would not occur naturally for many wearings. This method is quite common, and manufacturers carefully control the wash to produce desired fades and effects in the final product. This is often used to give jeans a "worn" look or to produce patches of lighter color around the knees and near the pockets, two areas that would fade with normal use.

Raw Denim

Raw denim, sometimes called "dry denim," is not washed after it is dyed. Products made this way only fade naturally with use. Jeans and other items made of raw denim take time to get "broken in," and many owners of raw denim jeans do not typically wash them, instead letting a natural process of aging and fading occur. Raw denim also tends to develop a close fit to the wearer's body, since the spots that get worn down are the ones where actual (not machine-made) stress occurs.

Color Denim

Color denim is also relatively common and can be used to make jeans that are black, green, red and many other colors. The process is much like making washed jeans, but the dyes used are sulfur-based, as opposed to the indigo used to make blue jeans. The main drawback with color jeans is that sulfur dyes produce runoff that can pollute waterways, since sulfur-dyed denim is always washed after the fabric is dyed.

Selvedge

Selvedge denim is the most desirable and high-end type of denim fabric. It is produced on a shuttle loom, which produces a natural edge that does not unravel. This type of denim is produced using one continuous cross-thread, and as a result, the piece of fabric produced is narrower. This production technique requires more cotton and is more labor-intensive, making this type of denim more expensive but also less prone to fraying.

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