Blog
How Levi's are Made
When you think of jeans, you think of Levi’s. Not only were they the first jeans, but they remain one of the best selling brands even today. Known for their durability and style, Levi’s jeans are the gold standard for quality denim. Let’s take a look at how Levi’s are made and what makes them so tough, stylish, and timeless.
Denim, like so much of our clothing, is made from cotton, so the first steps to making denim are harvesting and refining cotton plants into thread. The cotton is harvested and then put into a cotton gin in order to separate the good cotton from the stems and leaves. It is then cleaned with another machine to ensure quality. Next the cotton is pulled into thick strands and eventually into much thinner threads. It is then dyed blue and soaked in cornstarch to add stiffness. After it has been dyed and starched, the next step is to weave the threads together. For every three blue cotton threads, there is one white thread. If you look at your jeans, you can see these different color threads. The threads are woven together into large, thin, square sheets of fabric, which are eventually cut into the 15 pieces used to make jeans. Next the sections of fabric are sewn together into jeans. The rivets are put onto the seams and the zipper and buttons are added. Lastly, the signature Levi’s thread design is embroidered onto the back pockets. At this point, the jeans finally look like jeans. But the process is far from over.
The processes above are used in the making of each and every pair of jeans but the steps that follow are what make every pair of jeans different and lead to different styles and colors. Different types of dyes are applied at this point to give the jeans a light or dark wash. Since jeans that look worn and faded are stylish, many jeans undergo the process of distressing. They are sanded down with sandpaper and washed in a washing machine with coarse rocks. Sometimes a laser is even used to give stylish touches. Finally, the jeans get their tags and are shipped off to be sold to another happy Levi’s buyer.
The process of making jeans is complicated one, but one that results in a truly amazing product – especially when those jeans happen to be Levi’s.
Comments