Guide: How to Wash Your Selvedge-Denim Jeans

Note: I forgot to record myself washing my jeans so I tried to be as clear as possible. If you still have questions, feel free to contact us.

Note: This doesn’t just apply to selvedge, you could do this process with any pair of jeans to make them last longer. It’s just especially necessary for selvedge.

The noticeable blue stripe with white and red sewing is the self-edge

Getting your very first pair of selvedge denim jeans is considered to be hitting a milestone almost, at least for me. You finally acquire what you know is a very high quality and timeless piece that will last you for years on end. It’s unique to you, fits your body, and will end up with beautiful coloring the more you wear them. However, a beautiful garment comes with care. Throwing selvedge into the washing machine and into the drier is the worst possible thing you could do. Before I showcase my washing process, let me give a brief overview of what selvedge really is.

Selvedge is a play on the term “self-edge” which was coined from the fact that these jeans have an overlaying piece of fabric that stops the jeans from fraying and unraveling. The end product is something that is clean and gives off a finished look. Generally, because this method is higher quality and significantly harder to make, it drives up the price. This is a baseline explanation of what selvedge denim jeans are, but more on that later.

There’s a lot of curiosity as to when/how often you should wash your jeans. My tip would be whenever they smell like your grandmother’s snot or feel like it, it’s time. However, don’t wash it after every 5 wears. Instead, prolong it to about 20-50 wears (heck, you could go more). This will ensure beautiful fades that you create.

Now, the first steps to washing your jeans are crucial for the end result:

1. Check if your jeans are unsanforized, sanforized, or one-wash (these could be combined as well)

If your jeans are sanforized, it means they’ve been treated in a way during production that will reduce shrinkage. Unsanforized means it hasn’t been treated and is just raw. One-wash could go with either unsanforized or sanforized; it means that the jeans have been washed once before (similar to sanforized). If it says one-wash unsanforized, the amount of shrinkage will be similar to sanforized denim; if it says one-wash sanforized, shrinkage will be to the minimum.

2. Empty out the pockets, make sure the jeans are buttoned up fully, and flip them inside out

What you’ll come to see is that usually selvedge denim is made from real indigo, and can therefore leech out quickly. Making sure the jeans are buttoned up and flipping them inside out can help reduce the amount of dye lost.

3. Using either a bathtub or a store-bought plastic bin, fill it up with enough water to submerge your jeans (do not put your jeans in yet)

I’ve heard of issues where the indigo from the jeans stained the bathtub blue which is quite a hassle. I guess it’s a hit or miss so if you don’t want to risk it, I recommend you buy a long plastic bin from a local store. Also, make sure you use lukewarm to cold water; this will ensure that you minimize shrinkage.

I bought this bin from Walmart; it’s long and deep enough to cover my jeans. However, if you want, you could get on even longer as I found that my Oni Denim jeans had to scrunch up a bit to completely fit. Again, if you want to risk a blue bathtub then that’s fine, but you can get one of these as well.

Found this measurement somewhere on Twitter but it’s about how much you need. Honestly, you could go even less than this

4. Put in a minimal amount of detergent into the water and agitate so the detergent is mixed in

From my experience, any detergent that isn’t too harsh is going to do the trick. I personally used Tide Extra Strength April Fresh because it’s the only detergent around and, while I thought it was going to be too harsh, didn’t result in that much indigo loss. However, there are detergents out there that I would recommend for washing your jeans (Woolite Darks Defense is specially made to reduce loss of dark colors and I would recommend you get this one). Mixing around the water to the point where it becomes a little soapy is what you want to aim for.

The most optimal detergent for selvedge in my opinion (also a little coupon code available)

The detergent I used; smells great and wasn’t too harsh. Still, choose Woolite preferably

5. Put your jeans in and make sure they get soaked completely; begin to agitate, minute on each side

Because selvedge denim tends to be a heavier fabric, it won’t soak up the water completely at first. Make sure to completely submerge so you can feel the jeans soak up the water. Afterwards, begin to lightly rub on the jeans to loosen up dirt and grime (make sure you rub all parts of the jean from the waistline, pockets, leg sleeves, and hem). This process mimics the rinse cycle in the washing machine but is immensely more gentle and doesn’t put a ton of stress on the fabric. Gently agitate for about a minute on the front and back.

6. Let the jeans rest in the water for about 15 minutes; flip and rest for another 15 minutes

Letting the jeans rest in the water allows for the soapy water to really loosen up the fabric so all the dirt can release (not to mention, this is helped out through the previous agitation process). 

7. Drain the tub and refill with the same amount/temperature of water; let sit for another 15 minutes

When you drain the water, you’ll see it is a slightly disgusting shade of yellow and blue. This is from the mix of dirt and indigo that has come out of the denim. Refill the tub with clean water and submerge your jeans. The point of this step is to empty your jeans of all the suds/detergent that are still inside the denim. Agitate gently for another minute (you can do both sides if you want but not necessary), and let sit in the water for 15 minutes.

8. Drain water from the tub, Optionally, you can fold the jeans and press out water but I didn’t find it necessary

When you drain the water, you’ll see it’s not as disgusting and will probably be a pleasant shade of blue. You can fold and press the water out of the jeans but I found that it wasn’t really necessary.

9. Hang dry your jeans (anywhere from 6-24 hours)

Throwing your jeans into the drier is a no go because it agitates and puts way too much stress on the fabric; it can also dye the inside of it blue which I’m sure no one wants. If you have a drying rack, use that. You can set it up inside or outside but I found a really useful method that works for me. I got a cloth hanger and put it inside my jeans. I then hang it up on something tall (you can do it on your showerhead; I personally put it on a doorframe chin-up bar with a towel under it; a heavy pair of jeans just hanging on a showerhead is kinda scary). Drying will take anywhere from 6-24 hours so I recommend you do the washing process in afternoon, let it dry overnight, and the next day you’re good to go. 

My preferred method :)

The more rational thing to do

Hopefully this guide has helped explain. Again, I apologize for not filming my own washing process. There is a video by Drew Joiner who does a wonderful job explaining how to wash your selvedge and you could look at that as a reference. Treat your denim with care, always.