What are the important functional parts of denim jeans/jean pants?This article will deconstruct jeans from the perspective of design and sewing, take you to understand the process of jeans from denim fabric to completion, and tell the historical evolution and role of the important components of jeans.

Components needed to make a pair of denim jeans:

Wide-width denim fabric requires about 1.6 meters (1.7yards); narrow-width denim (red edge fabric/selvedge denim fabric) requires about 2.6 meters(2.8yards).
Lined front pockets fabric.
6 rivets, 10 if you need to hide the rivets.
1 main button and zipper; if no zipper is used, 4 to 5 additional buttons are required.
Hundreds of meters of cotton thread in various thicknesses and colors.
Leatherpatch/Lables.

Jeans making process:Design – denim fabrics selection – cutting – sewing

While design is the first step in making jeans, the choice of denim fabric plays a vital role. Because there are a wide variety of denim fabrics today, different textures, ingredients, and pounds will affect the finished product. Therefore, the designer must know the characteristics of the jeans fabric very well in order to combine it with his design.

After the designer selects the fabric, he or she will create a sketch of his or her ideas.

Then broken down into each component, a pair of jeans is usually assembled from about 20 pieces, depending on the design.

As shown in the picture, the outer seams of traditional jeans are straight, and the angle of the hem is also straight. The outline is only shaped by the inner thighs, front and rear stalls, front and rear midlines, yokes, and waist.

The picture above is a comparison between narrow-width denim (selvedge/red edge denim fabric) and modern wide-width denim. Generally, wide-width denim is about 150 cm wide, while narrow-width denim is only about 86 cm wide. Therefore, jeans of the same size, if made of narrow-width fabric, will be almost twice as long as wide-width jeans, which means the materials used will be More than wide denim. (This is one of the reasons why red-edged jeans are more expensive.)

The next step is to cut and lay the pattern on the fabric on the cutting table. In mass production, special machines are used to cut multiple layers of fabric simultaneously. The cut pieces are marked and bundled according to different parts and sent to the sewing workshop.

During the sewing stage, the cut pieces are sent to designated stations on the sewing line. Then follow the steps of making the front piece → placket and zipper → back piece → assembly and sewing → bartack and buttonhole.

Let’s explain the important components of jeans:Denim Fabric

The choice of denim fabric is the most important part of designing jeans. It affects the texture and style of the finished jeans, as well as the subsequent washing process. With the development of textile technology, there are more and more types of denim materials on the market. Designers must have a good understanding of the characteristics of various denim fabrics in order to better combine designs.

The main categories of denim textiles are as follows:

In terms of ingredients: 100% cotton denim, blended denim, polyester-cotton denim, Tencel denim, linen-cotton denim, viscose denim, 100% cotton denim, blended denim, polyester-cotton denim, Tencel denim Cloth, linen cotton denim, viscose denim

In terms of weight: light denim (6~10oz), medium denim (10~13oz), heavy denim (13oz)

Classified by texture: twill denim, broken twill denim, slub denim, convex denim, jacquard denim, plain denim, satin denim, etc.

According to the technology: desizing denim, double-shrunk denim, rinsed denim, singeed denim, printed denim, mercerized denim, coated denim, etc.

From weaving: woven denim, knitted denim

The narrow-width denim and wide-width denim mentioned above are produced by shuttle looms and shuttleless looms, and can be regarded as classified from the loom.

▼Selvedge denim fabric

Narrow denim produced on old-fashioned shuttle looms has a seam called Selvedge. Because this seam is mostly red, it is also called red ear in Japan. In fact, there are many other colors of hemming, such as yellow, blue, green, purple, gold, etc.

Selvedge/selvage is one of the important features of replica jeans. For early jeans, red-edged fabric was a symbol of quality. However, with the development of looms and textile technology, red-edged fabric is no longer synonymous with high quality. Nowadays, the red edge is simply a decoration. Of course, for aurochs enthusiasts, the red edge still has profound meaning.

▼Back York

The back panel of jeans connects the waistband to the back body. It is generally V-shaped and is located between the waistband and the back pocket. Early jeans existed as work clothes. Designers took into account the large amount of waist movement of miners and designed the york in order to allow miners to remain comfortable and comfortable when making large movements.

Nowadays, York has become a powerful tool for modifying the buttocks and shaping curves. Designers will use York lines with different arcs or heights to create various hip effects.

Inverted Arc: Gives the illusion of fuller buttocks.

Straight: A straight yoke will make your waist appear wider.

“V” Shape: The most common and popular York line shape.

Sweet Heart (Heart Shape): Close to the body shape, making flat buttocks achieve a butt shaping effect.

Wide York: Creates an illusion of dropped pants with dropped back pockets, suitable for men’s wear.

No Yoke: Usually decorated with fake pockets, suitable for women with large butts.

▼Cinch/Bckle Back Rear waist adjustment belt

In the era when belts were not yet popular (from the late 19th century to the 1930s), Cinch was an important functional design of jeans.

Early jeans did not have trouser ears. Workers had to rely on suspenders to fix the jeans to prevent them from falling down, so early jeans had suspenders on the waistband. There are usually 6 suspender buckles, 4 on the front will be placed on both sides of the main buckle, 2 on the left and right, and 1 on the left and right in the center of the waist on the back.

Until the 1920s, the Paris buckle (Bckle Back) replaced the suspender buckle and was sewn on the back of jeans as a waist adjustment. Later, with the rise of belts, the Paris buckle gradually disappeared, but it is still the iconic design of replica styles today.

▼Belt Loop

To secure the waistband, a thin strip of fabric is sewn to the waist for the belt to pass through. Usually, jeans have 2 on the front, 1 on each side of the waist, and 1 in the center of the back, for a total of 5 trouser ears. However, some brands such as Wrangler have styles with 7 trouser ears.

▼Coin Pocket

Half hidden in the right front pocket, it is often called a coin purse, but it was originally used by miners to hold pocket watches. Although jeans are also called five-pocket pants, jeans did not originally have five pockets. Many people think that the pocket that was added later was a coin pocket. In fact, it was the left rear pocket that was added later. Around 1901, a second back pocket was added to the Levi’s 501.

The history of the coin bag is almost as long as jeans, and its function has also changed with the times, pocket watch bag → condom bag → ticket bag → coin bag. Small pockets that are insignificant or even inconspicuous in today’s eyes have actually played an important role in the history of jeans.

▼Pocket Lining

Usually only the wearer can see it. In addition to being used to store items, it also has another role for the brand, which is promotion, so many brands will print logos or slogans on the lining. As early as 1890, Levi’s printed the famous “two horses” logo and the slogan of the time on the lining of the left front pocket.

Hardware

▼Front Button

The button above the zipper of jeans is the most basic design of jeans, used to fix the pants. Usually each brand will have its own logo engraved on it.

▼Button Fly

The straight-breasted buttons located on the inside of the crotch are slightly smaller than the main buttons and are used to secure both sides of the trouser legs. Although most jeans today are replaced by zippers, buttons are still one of the main features of jeans.

Especially for raw cow players, buttons are also one of the retro elements, and when the raw cow fades over time, a beautiful button texture will be produced on the placket.

▼Zipper

A hardware attachment located inside the placket and used to secure both sides of the trouser legs. Before Swedish-American Gideon Sundback invented the zipper in 1917, all pants were buttoned. In the 1920s, Lee was the first jeans brand in the century to use zippers. Since the placket was slightly raised due to the buttoning, which was considered a bit unsightly, more and more manufacturers later favored the zipper. And the zipper is easier to make, and the crotch is flat and beautiful.

▼Rivet

Rivets are one of the important features of jeans, and their appearance means the official birth of blue jeans. Jeans were originally designed for miners. Due to the heavy workload of miners, pockets and other stressed parts were often torn. Tailor Jacob Davis came up with the idea of using rivets to strengthen the stressed parts, and in 1872 he worked with Fabric Suppliers. Cooperated with businessman Levi Strauss to apply for a patent. The two received the patent on May 20, 1873, which also became the birth date of blue jeans.

Although most jeans today still have rivets, they are no longer the only way to reinforce jeans. Many jeans manufacturers use rivets instead. And jeans are no longer just for workers, so rivets are now mostly for decorative purposes.

▼Stitch

▼Bar Tack

Tacking, commonly known as “tacking”, is a row of tight zigzag stitches sewn with a special sewing machine. In the early 20th century, some brands began to use tacks at the corners of the back pockets instead of metal rivets, which could strengthen the pockets without scratching things and cost less than rivets.

Tacking is usually used on jeans plackets, buttonholes, the upper and lower ends of trouser ears, the ends of the safety lines on both side seams, and the two corners of the pocket. Different brands will have different colors and patterns, such as straight lines, Z-shaped and X-shaped.

▼Chain Stitching

Also known as chain stitch, it is located at the trouser leg and the stitching looks like a chain-like structure. Many raw cow lovers like this kind of stitching, because when the cotton thread shrinks when exposed to water, a slightly inclined thread-like wrinkle will appear at the seam, forming a unique color falling effect (wavy pattern).

For vintage collectors, chain bikes are a way to identify the “age” of jeans, just like whether they have bare ears or not, which is a symbol of sentiment. Because chain bikes are easy to break, they were eliminated in the 1970s and 1980s. Later, they revived with the retro trend and are considered an essential symbol of authentic jeans.

▼Pocket Stitching

Special pattern stitched on the back pocket. In addition to decoration, it is also a brand identification mark. In 1973, Levi’s designed a double curved bag flower (seagull bag flower) on the back pocket to distinguish it from competitors. Later, other brands imitated one after another, such as Lee’s wavy shape and Wrangles’ double W shape.

▼Leather Patch

▼Pocket Lable

The red label on the side of the right back pocket is also known as a red flag. Levi’s jeans details added in 1936 to identify the brand name and differentiate them from competitors. Levi’s made before 1971 have LEVIS in capital letters on the red flag, which is called the big E red flag. It is highly collectible in the hearts of original cow players.

After designing and selecting materials, cutting and sewing, and adding accessories, a complete pair of jeans is completed.

What are the important functional parts of denim jeans?