Jeans
Major events in the history of jeans
“Yves Saint Laurent said he wished he had invented jeans, that he thought they were the most important item of fashion in the 20th century.” - Valerie Steele, Fashion Historian
Since this fashion choice spread globally during WWII, jeans have been recognized as a universal garment by the fashion industry as well as diverse cultures and societies.
Indigo plants on an eighteenth-century South Carolina map by William L. Courtesy Perkins Library, Duke University.
However, how can jeans be universal and individual at the same time? Jeans have always been on the side of culturalism and forming one’s own identity. The fact is that jeans are accent pieces that can be combined with a wide variety of styles. Jeans are unique because everyone can form their individuality through the diversity in jeans’ styles and the endless possibilities of combination with other garments.
Though all three theories of fashion flow can be valid depending on geographical, economic, and cultural factors, the overall history of jeans aligns with the trickle-up theory of fashion flow. According to Stone and Farnan, the trickle-up theory maintains that the lower income group determines the true fashion styles. while exploring the history of jeans you will learn that jeans were first intended for slaves, miners, construction workers, farmers, and industrial workers. Eventually, this garment became a fashion trend that spread around the world from the lowest social groups to the highest.
1739 — Indigo Cultivation
Eliza Lucas Pinckney began to improve strains of indigo, a plant used to dye textiles in the burgeoning manufacturing mills in England. According to the Women History Blog, Eliza Lucas Pinckney has been called the first important agriculturalist for dye in the United States.
Enslaved men agitating the liquid (background) and cutting the dried dyestuff into squares (foreground) on an eighteenth-century South Carolina map by William L.
“Eliza Lucas was probably one of the most well-known producers of indigo in colonial America. But Eliza's hands weren't blue. She didn't get her hands dirty with the indigo crop. The knowledge to grow indigo came from enslaved people. They’re the ones that did the work that allowed her to become this great planter that she's been credited for.” - Daina Berry, Historian
1800 — The Term “Genes” Appears
Illustration of André Masséna and his officers between 1809-1811.
When Massena's troops entered Genoa town, Jean-Gabriel Eynard was entrusted with furnishing them with uniforms cut from blue cloth called blue de genes which is the etymology for the later derivative term blue jeans.
1820s — Cotton and Denim Manufacturing
“First cotton gin” from Harpers Weekly. 1869 illustration depicting event of some 70 years earlier by William L. Sheppard.
According to Cottonworks, Indigo dye results in a deep and bright shade of blue. However, when combined with cotton, the wash-down in mill processing can result in lighter color denim.
“So as American cotton manufacturing begins to sort of find its footing in the 18-teens and 1820s, mills in Rhode Island, mills in Massachusetts, mills in New Hampshire, they need a source of cotton. And the only source of cotton that's available to make these mills economically viable is cotton that's being grown by enslaved men, women, and children in the American South.” - Seth Rockman, Historian
1873 — The Birthday of Jeans
US patent No. 139,121 for an Improvement in Fastening Pocket-Openings.
Levi Strauss accepted Jacob W. Davis's offer to partner in the process of requesting the approval for a patent to design and sell clothing reinforced with copper rivets which were meant to reinforce the points of stress, such as pocket corners and at the bottom of the button fly. The two men received US patent No. 139,121 for an Improvement in Fastening Pocket-Openings.
“We consider May 20, 1873, the “birthday” of blue jeans, because although denim pants had been around as workwear for many years, it was the act of placing rivets in these traditional pants for the first time that created what we now call jeans.” - Unzipped Staff, Levi Strauss & Co.
1878 — Synthetic Indigo Dye
Production of Indigo dye in a BASF plant (1890).
According to Cottonworks, German chemist Adolf von Baeyer invented the first synthetic indigo dye, which was the first synthetic indigo dyestuff.
Pfleger's synthesis of indigo.
“At the end of the nineteenth century, Americans were still largely working with their hands. Nearly 70% of workers toiled either on farms or in factories, mines, or construction. This of course created a huge market for jeans. But jeans initially weren't called jeans. They were called waist overalls.” - Emma McClendon, Fashion Historian
1914 — The Decline of Natural Indigo Trade
Almost 95% of the natural indigo trade had disappeared and replaced with synthetic Indigo dyestuff which accounts for essentially 100% of all denim products today.
1930s — From Necessity to Fashion
Levi's first blue jeans for women were labeled as "Lady Levi's" in 1934.
Denim began to popularize as a fashion trend in the United States.
“A lot of that had to do with this kind of nostalgia for the American West.” - James Sullivan, Author
1940s — WWII and the Globalization of Denim
1940s men favored wearing leather jackets, hats, jeans, and slacks.
According to Hawthorn, when American soldiers traveled overseas and were off duty, they wore their blue denim pair of pants, exposing locals to the style.
“For many men and women, World War II was the first time they wore jeans.” Melissa Leventon, Curator
“Because of the patriotism around World War II, denim almost became the blue in the red, white, and blue of the American flag. You know, and Rosie the Riveter is a classic example of this.” - Emma McClendon, Fashion Historian
1950s — Celebrities, Teenagers, and Denim
Marlon Brando wearing jeans, in The Wild One.
While jeans were becoming a fashion trend among celebrities, some where painting this fashion style with a rebellious image appealing to the 50s’ teenagers, and a head ache to parents. jeans began to form a negative reputation.
“We see that a lot in Hollywood of the 1950s, classically represented by Marlon Brando in the biker film, The Wild One. Brando's character, who was, of course, the guy who’s asked, "What are you rebelling against?" - James Sullivan, Author
“So during the 1950s, denim becomes increasingly associated with biker gangs and juvenile delinquency. There was a sort of fear, I think, among adults that if teenagers put on a pair of jeans, they were automatically going to become delinquents in some way. One thing in particular that is interesting about this period is the denim companies spend all this time in the 1950s trying to get away from the rebel image and then the 60’s happens.” - Emma McClendon, Fashion Historian
1960s — Rebelling for the Right Reasons?
“By the first years of the 1960s, the Peace Corps, JFK's initiative, sending young Americans out across the globe to do good deeds, they were actually dressed in blue jeans. That was their uniform. So no longer was it that the bad kids were the only ones wearing blue jeans.” - James Sullivan, Author
Denim-wearing young adults at Woodstock, 1969.
“When we think about the denim story in the 1960s we almost automatically think of the hippies, with their bell bottoms, and tie-dye, but the hippies weren't the only people wearing those clothes.” - Tanisha Ford, Historian
“The 1960s is a pivotal point in the history of denim” - Emma McClendon, Fashion Historian
1970s — Versatility in Jeans
Fashion spread from a 1971 issue of Ladies’ Home Journal magazine.
“Jeans undermine the idea of what fashion was supposed to be. They were part of a more general democratization of fashion. It suddenly becomes possible to wear jeans in almost all settings.” Valerie Steele, Fashion Historian
“By the late 1970’s designer jeans were chipping away at the fashion hierarchy.” - Emma McClendon, Fashion Historian
“In the late 1970s around the Bronx in New York City, we start to see hip hop emerge” - Kim Jenkins, Fashion Historian
1980s — The “denim-on-denim” Designer Jean Craze
The designer jean craze involved many styles with an excessive amount of jean fabric. This decade was also described as the era of more-is-more which involved pairing denim with a denim top or layering a denim top with a denim blazer.
Sunset Blues, Glamour magazine, March 1985.
“It could be a simple combination of denim jackets on top of shirts or t-shirts with a pair of denim jeans. The simple fad has been tweaked and improved with head-to-toe denim that can include anything from layers to single pieces, stitched as per the design sought. Trench coats, power suits, denim blazers and pants, and more would also feature in this segment.” - Fashinza
1990s — The “Back to Basics” and Hip-hop Era
The back-to-basics and popularization of hip-hop shared the same decade, which created a clear divide in styles of interests, custom to the individualities of the upper class and the lower class. We can see how in the late 1900s companies began to make jeans with styles that suit different cultural groups.
The cast of “Saved by the Bell” 1990s.
“The jean craze phase ended in the 1990s when Levi Strauss & Company created the “Back to Basics” slogan. This began the revival of the ringspun denim but by the mid-90s, the designer jean craze had resurfaced with many companies producing their own brands. Now, advances in finishing techniques especially garment processes and fabric technology have created a high-tech denim jeans market.” - Cottonworks
RnB singer Aaliyah wearing baggy jeans and a tight tank top, was a popular female hip-hop style in the 90s.
“It's a long journey from slave cloth to hip-hop denim and baggy jeans ruling the denim market in the mid 1990s. As I sit here in a denim jacket, you know it's clear to me that we can see the rich tapestry of where we've been as a people, as a nation.” - Tanisha Ford, Historian
References
CottonWorks. (2023, September 15). History of denim: CottonWorksTM. Retrieved February 23, 2024, from https://cottonworks.com/en/topics/sourcing-manufacturing/denim/denim-history/
Fashinza. (n.d.). Denim Dream: Weaving 80s style into current fashion. 80s denim fashion finds takers in the 21st century. Retrieved February 23, 2024, from https://fashinza.com/fashion-designs/design-trends/denim-dream-weaving-80s-style-into-current-fashion/
Lovelace, T. (2022, December 5). History of denim & the origin of Jeans. Hawthorn. Retrieved February 22, 2024, from https://www.hawthornintl.com/history-of-denim#
Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Jean. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved February 23, 2024, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jean
Napoleonic French Military Uniforms 1798-1814: As Depicted by Horace and Carle Vernet and Eugène Lami. (2022). United Kingdom: Helion.
Stone, E., & Farnan, S. A. (2018). In The Movement of Fashion (5th ed., pp. 77). essay, Fairchild Books.
Sullivan, J. (2006). Jeans: A cultural history of an American icon. Gotham Books. ISBN 978-1-59240-214-4. OCLC 62697070.
Unzipped Staff. (2019, July 3). The history of Denim. Levi Strauss & Co. Retrieved February 23, 2024, from https://www.levistrauss.com/2019/07/04/the-history-of-denim
Women History Blog. (2020, May 24). Eliza Lucas Pinckney. Retrieved February 22, 2024, from https://www.womenhistoryblog.com/2008/09/eliza-lucas-pinckney.html
