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ACID WASH A very successful wash and a controversial issue. World famous, acid wash was first commercialised by the Italian firm Rifle, at Inter-Jeans in 1986. It turned into a boom and proliferated in a number of variations, but the process was actually patented by the Italian Candida Laundry Company the same year. It consists of soaking pumice stones with chlorine and using their abrasive power to bleach jeans into sharp contrasts. Also known as moon, fog, marble, ice and frosted.

AMERICAN CLOTH A light-weight, plain-weave fabric, usually of cotton, coated on one side with a mixture of linseed oil and other materials so as to render it glossy and impermeable to air or water.

ANGORA YARN Fibre from the angora rabbit. Note The hair of the angora goat is known as Mohair.

ANTIQUE A denim finish achieved through sanding and washing, which gives an aged look to the garment. Antique is also a type of ring denim in which the yarn is strongly uneven.

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AUTHENTIC A finishing process similar to vintage, using stonewashing or a cellulose enzyme wash, with or without bleach, for an old and worn look. Also a type of ring fabric in which the ring yam has evident slubs. Also, a jeanswear adjective that became a marketing buzzword in the early '90s as the quest for original denim qualities swept the European market. Among the characteristics of "authentic" jeans are traditional fabric weaves and finishes and jeanswear styling details.

BACK POCKET FLASHER Paper or cardboard flap attached to the right back pocket of jeans, used as a means of communicating the difference between denim fabrics, finishings, shapes and sizes. A strategic marketing tool, it also expresses a jeanswear brand's image, featuring illustrations, copy and graphics that evoke such themes as western-style, American '50s, eco-consciousness, romance and high-tech.

BALL WARPING A step in denim making in which the individual threads formed at spinning are combined for further processing. The yarn threads are pulled together into a single continuous strand and wound onto a wooden beam called a "ball warp."

BANDANNA A colorful printed handkerchief complementing any jeans look. From the Hindu "bandhnu," for a primitive tie-dye technique.
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Cowboys' bandannas were brightly colored squares tied around the neck or face to keep out dust. In the U.S. during the '50s and '60s they resurfaced with the revival of cowboy style. The '80s saw another comeback thanks to music idols Bruce Springsteen and Little Steven, who wore bandannas, typically printed in red and white or blue and white, wrapped around their heads. Also, Milan's Pan liked them at the neck or wrist or as he and in the '90s, rappers kept them tied under their baseball caps.

BAR TACKS Closely spaced stitches that connect to form a band or a bar that reinforces the comers and edges of pockets, seams, tucks, belt loops and buttonholes.

BASICS Easy pieces and perennial commercial favorites, including the five pocket jean, the western-style jacket, the western shirt and the bib 'n' brace.

BELL BOTTOM A jeans style born in the late '60s, '70s. Tight at the waist (sometimes lowered) and at the thighs, the trousers flare out from the knee to make a comeback at the end of the 80s, but didnt quite catch on.

BELT BUCKLE

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Indispensable complement to any western or jeanswear look. Though seemingly ornamental, its origins are practical: The hardships of western life called for comfortable but well-fitting pants. Consequently, strong leather belts and sturdy buckles became "vital" goods. As embroidery, studs and geometrical applications were adderd to belts, decorations started enriching buckles with the scenes of life in the fields.

BELT LOOPS Standard feature added to jeans when the belt replaced suspenders as the preferred method of holding up pants. Regular jeans have five to seven belt loops; others have double belt loops or additional loops at the back. Wrangler boasts extra wide belt loops to accommodate a trophy style western belt. Levi Strauss added belt loops to the 501 in 1922, though the suspender buttons remained until 1937.

BESPOKE Descriptive of a tailored garment made to an individual customer's specifications.

BLACK CHANGE BLUE Denim fabric made with black overdyed indigo warp yarn, it "fades" into deep blue after a number of washings.

BLACK DENIM A denim weave using black yarn rather than indigo. It fades to deep gray or to salt & pepper and has become a classic color for
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jeans, preferred by tough urban guys and girls. Wrangler claims to have been the first to introduce black denim back in 1950, producing the outfit for American TV character and rodeo hero Hopalong Cassidy.

BLAZER CLOTH Traditionally an all-wool woven fabric for apparel, in either solid colours or stripes, that may be milled and/or raised. Imitation blazer cloths introduce cotton in the weft. The term may be used loosely for other fabrics for blazers.

BLEACH Essential ingredient in giving denim a faded look. Bleaching can be achieved with Hypochloride of Sodium or Potassium Permanganate. The latter can leave a yellow tint that purists don't like. (Pinto Wash Denim)

BOOT LEG A popular jeans style in which the pants' leg is wide enough to accommodate a pair of cowboy boots underneath.

BOOK CLOTH Fabrics of many qualities, used by bookbinders. They are generally of plain weave, usually coloured, heavily filled, and calendered or embossed between hot rollers.

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BOTANY WOOL A term applied to tops, yarns and fabrics made from merino wool. The term originated from Botany Bay in Australia. BRILLANTINE A dress cloth of cotton warp and lustre worsted weft. It generally of plain weave, but jacquard designs are sometimes used.

BROAD CLOTH A fabric made from fine woollen yarns in a twill weave heavily milled and given a dress-face finish. It is usually in dark colours.

BROCADE A figured fabric, usually of single texture, in which the figure is developed by floating the warp threads, or both, and interlaced in a more irregular order.

BROKEN TWILL Denim weave invented by John Neil Walker and first used by Wrangler in its Model 13MWZ in 1964. The fabric is distinguished by a construction in which the diagonal twill line changes direction. At the point where the direction changes, if the warp yam is on the surface, the next thread on the surface is the filling yam, forming a clear break. This breaking of the continuous line reduces the torque in the fabric and thus avoids the leg twisting phenomenon particularly common in early jeans construction. (Anti-Twist)

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BRUSHED Denim in which the back of the fabric has been raised by passing the cloth over a napper, giving it a fleece like hand. BUBBLEGUM DENIM A general name for Lycra containing denim that has between 35 to 50 percent stretch.

BULKED YARN A yarn that has been treated mechanically, or chemically so as to have a noticeable greater volumniosity or bulk.

BURLAP A plain cloth made from single yarns of approximately the same linear density in warp and weft, usually made from bast fibres, particularly jute.

BUTTON The traditional jeans button is made of two parts, one the short "nail" fixed to the fabric; the other the visible part pressed onto the nail. It is typically made of a metal alloy--copper, brass or aluminum-and on its face bears the brand's logo or a symbol or initial. Some jeans buttons, composed of three parts, have a movable head for better flexibility in fastening.

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BUTTON FLY The original jeans closure, and still the favorite of jeans aficionados.

CABLED YARN Two or more folded yarns twisted together in one or more operations.

CAMEL FIBRE Fibre from the fleece of the camel. This comprises strong, coarse, outer hair and soft, fine undercoat, both of which are used in the manufacture of textile products.

CAMLET A fine, lustrous, plain-weave fabric made of silk, hair, or wool fibres and in a variety of qualities for suitings.

CANVAS A fabric usually made from cotton, flax, hemp, or just. The weave is plain or double-end plain.

CARDING A step in denim in fibers are further cleaned and paralleled and the short fibers removed. The raw material is transported to

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"cards," each of which consists of three cylinders covered with wire teeth. The first cleans, the second parallels the long fibers and the third delivers the fibers for transport to the next process.

CARROT Loose-fitting style of jeans whose shape is similar to that of a carrot. Also known as peg jeans, comfort fit and baggy jeans.

CASEMENT CLOTH A light-weight to medium-weight weft-faced curtain fabric of cotton or manufactured fibre yarns.

CASHMERE Originally hair from the dowdy undercoat of the Asiatic diameter of 18.5 microns or less. Similar hair from animals bred selectively from the feral goat populations of Australia, New Zealand, and Scotland is regarded as cashmere provided the fibre diameter is similar.

CEYLON A coloured woven fabric for blouses and shirtings made from a cotton warp and a cotton-wool weft.

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CHALLIS A lightweight, soft-handling, plain-weave dress fabric, generally of wool, using single worsted-spun yarns in warp and weft.

CHAMBRAY The lightest of indigo-dyed fabrics, chambray is a plain cotton weave normally used for shirts and womenswear. A lightweight plain-weave cotton fabric having a coloured warp and white weft, producing a mottled appearance.

CHEESE CLOTH An open lightweight fabric of plain weave, usually made from carded cotton yarns.

CHECK FABRIC Two or more stripes of colour in the warp and weft direction resulting in a square or crossing line pattern.

CHIFFON Originally a very light, sheer, open-mesh fabric made from silk yarns in plain weave: now made also from manufactured fabrics. The term is loosely used adjectivally to describe the lightest types of fabrics, e.g. 'chiffon velvets', 'chiffon taffetas'

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CHINOS Classic, basic slacks often worn with jeanswear. A favorite of '50s teenagers and college students, although the pants' origins go back a century before. Made of khaki Indian cotton, chinos were first worn by British colonial troops in the mid-1800s. At the end of the century they were adopted by the U.S. Army for the Spanish-American War. The name comes from the nickname given to the fabric, because the tailors who worked with it were Chinese.

CHINTZ A glazed, printed, plain-weave fabric, originally and usually of cotton lighter than cretonne.

CIGARETTE JEANS Straight-legged trousers with a slim fit and lean proportions.

CLOTH A generic term embracing most textile fabrics. Note: The term was originally applied to wool cloth suitable for clothing.

COIN POCKET The "fifth" pocket, also called "watch pocket." Very functional, it is located inside the right front pocket, and justifies the term five-pocket jeans.

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COIR A reddish-brown-to-buff coarse fibre obtained from the fruit of the palm Cocos nucifera.

COLORED DENIM Jeans used to be blue and nothing else. Then they were offered in black and ecru which quickly became staples. Now they come in a variety of colors that range from seasonal pastels to deep brights and intense darks. Colored denim is generally yarndyed. either just in the warp or in both warp and weft, for greater resistance to fading. Colored jeans can also be piecedyed or garment-dyed.

CORDUROY Strong, durable fabric with a cotton ground and vertical cut pile stripes formed by an extra system of filling yams. Often used as an alternative to denim in jeanswear garments. A cut-weftpile fabric in which the cut fibres form the surface. The binding points of the pile wefts are arranged so that after the pile has been cut, cords or ribs are formed in the direction of the warp.

CORE DYEING Considered by some a requisite for quality indigo fabrics. The color remains on the surface of the yam and does not soak to its core. Denim dyed this way is called core denim.

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COTTON The seed hair of a wide variety of plants of the gossypium family. Textile fiber obtained from the cotton plant (hot. Gossypium herbaceum). The fruit of the shrub is an oval capsule that contains a white down to protect the seeds. From this soft wad comes the fiber so essential to the production of denim. Original denim uses GOSSYPIUM HERBACEUM only American cotton: the Memphis, Texas, Mississippi and St. Joachim Valley types. The last is a high-resistance, special quality cotton that is often mixed with the first three. European denim makers buy mainly Pakistan, West African, Indian, Turkish, Greek and even Spanish cottons.

CREPE A fabric characterised by a crinkled or puckered surface.

CRETONNE A printed of fabric originally and usually of cotton and of heavier weight than chintz.

CRINOLINE A stiff fabric made with a cotton warp and a horsehair weft.

CROTCH RIVET Reinforcing rivet located at the base of the button fly, common in early jeans. Its demise was the eventual result of complaints received by Levi Strauss & Co. When worn around a stove or

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fire, the rivet heated up, causing discomfort, to say the least, to the wearer. But it wasn't until Walter Haas Sr., then chairman of the company and a descendent of Levi Strauss himself, wore the jeans on a camping trip in 1941 and crouched a bit too close to the campfire that the offending rivet was removed from the 501.

CROTCH RIVET Reinforcing rivet located at the base of the button fly, common in early jeans. Its demise was the eventual result of complaints received by Levi Strauss & Co. When worn around a stove or fire, the rivet heated up, causing discomfort, to say the least, to the wearer. But it wasn't until Walter Haas Sr., then chairman of the company and a descendent of Levi Strauss himself, wore the jeans on a camping trip in 1941 and crouched a bit too close to the campfire that the offending rivet was removed from the 501.

CRUSHED DENIM A textured effect achieved through a special fabric construction and wet processing. The denim is woven with an overtwisted weft yam; when the garment is washed, the yam "shrinks," acquiring a goffre look that is further enhanced by bleaching and stonewashing.

CUT-OFF'S Denim jeans, usually tom or ripped, that are turned into shorts by cutting off the pants legs. The popularity of shredded and tom

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jeans, however, has saved many pairs that would have become cut-offs.

DAMASK A figured fabric made with one warp and one weft in which, generally, wart-satin and weft-sateen weaves may be sometime introduced.

DENIER Traditionally a 3/1 warp-faced twill fabric made from yarndyed warp and undyed weft yarn. More recently, other weaves have been used in lighter construction.

DENIM The stuff that jeans, and dreams, are made of. A sturdy cotton twill fabric characterised by a 3x I warpfaced weave, traditionally made with indigo-dyed yarn for the warp and natural yam for the weft. First known as a workwear fabric, it later became popular as leisure wear and eventually was even used by high-fashion designers. In recent years the versatile fabric has been bleached, stonewashed, acid-washed, overdyed and destroyed. It has been offered in black, ecru, colored and stretch varieties. Originally called serge de Nimes, for the French city in which it was produced, denim is now manufactured in specialised mills around the world; the U.S. is its largest producer. Traditionally a 3/1 warp-faced twill fabric made from yarn-dyed warp and undyed weft yarn. More recently, other weaves have been used in lighter construction.

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DENSITY Low, Medium, High and even Super High Density refer to the number of yams that make up the weave and result in a tighter or looser fabric construction. High density denim weaves became more sought after in the early '90s.

DESTROYED A wet process that shreds jeans to pieces, for a tough effect. Taken to its extreme at the designer level by British Katharine Hamnett, whose slashed jeans caused a sensation when they hit the runway in 1985.

DIPS Historically, the number of times the yam is dipped into the indigo dye bath, averaging 6 to 8, with a maximum of 12 to 16. Later also achieved with changes in the concentration of the indigo dye.

DIRTY BLUE Indigo denim that when washed shows a green or beige tint, either from dyeing, tinting in the finishing process or a garment treatment that discolors the fabric. Also Backwater Blue, Vegetable Blue, Fuzzy Blue.

DO-IT-YOURSELF JEANS

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Before stonewashing went industrial, jeans lovers had home-made versions. Among them: Leave jeans in a running stream, held down by rocks, for one month; bathe in salt water, then rub wet sand over jeans thighs, bottoms and crotch; or, for real men, rub crotch with a stone (carefully) and wear jeans very tight.

DOESKIN FABRIC A five-end satin or other warp-faced fabric with dress-face finish.

DOUBLE ARCUATE The double stitched pattern on the back pockets of Levi's jeans, symbolizing the mythical American eagle. Added in 1873 and trademarked in 1943, the arcuate stitching has been in use longer than any other U.S. apparel trademark. During World 11, when distribution of Levi's 50]s was limited to factory workers and the military, the War Bureau required that the jeans be stripped of any details considered "superfluous" and the arcuate pattern was painted on to save thread. In 1947, it was again stitched on.

DOUBLE-DYED DENIM Historically, denim made from warp yarn that is dipped into the indigo dye bath 12 to 16 times instead of the standard 6 to 8. Results in a deeper, richer, brighter blue color. Later also achieved through changes in the indigo concentration.

DRAWING

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Step in denim making in which a predetermined number of strands of cotton fiber "slivers" are passed through a series of drafting rolls. These rolls combine and draft them into a single, more uniform strand. The procedure is repeated to further increase uniformity before spinning the sliver into yarn.

DUFFEL A heavy low-grade fabric, napped on both side made from woollen yarn.

DUNGAREE A 3/1 or 2/1 twill fabric used for overalls. A type of denim pants similar to jeans, though generally baggier due to their workwear origins. Dungaree was the name given to trousers worn by sailors that were cut from "dungri," a coarse denim cloth made in India. It came to be used synonymously with jeans in the '50s and '60s, then all but disappeared, though some U.S. jeans makers, such as Ralph Lauren, seeking a workwear authenticity, refer to their jeans as dungarees. In Europe, the term dungarees is more commonly used as a synonym for the bib 'n' brace.

DYEING PROCESS Step in denim making in which the natural cotton warp yam is dipped into a number of indigo dye baths (typically 6 to 8). After each dip the yam is oxidized (skying), which gradually turns the color from yellow to green to blue. The yarn is then rinsed several times to remove excess dyestuff.

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EASY Fit Or comfort fit. A very popular style, with wide straight legs and a wide waistline cinched by a belt.

ECO-DENIM The use of environmentally friendly dyeing and recycling techniques in the production of denim. At the end of the dyeing process, for example, the remains of the indigo substance are filtered and recycled for other dye baths, instead of being discarded into waterways.

ECRU Undyed denim, the natural shade of the cotton yarn, now considered an alternative basic color for jeans, worn all year round.

ELASTAN Man-made elastic fibers that add stretch to denim for a sexy, comfortable fit. Often confused with Lycra, which is a type of elastan registered and marketed by the Du Pont de Nemours fiber company.

ELASTENIM Trademark of the Lauffenmiihle company for a denim that was elasticized lengthwise, or in the warp, which came on the market in 1980. The indigo-dyed cotton fabric containing

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three percent Lycra was one of the first generation of stretch denims, but was later forced off the market by more costeffective stretch denims elasticized in the weft.

ELASTICITY The in-built tendency of the fabric to recover after stretching.

ENZYME WASH Enzymes are organic substances that quicken natural reactions (the best known are that those accelerate food digestion). Having been used in such divergent fields as medical research and laundry detergent, they are now also used in the jeanswear industry as an alternative to stonewashing. The results are the same, but enzyme washing has several advantages: It's environmentally friendly because the substances are organic; at the end of the process the jeans are softer because enzymes have "digested" the fabric, eating its cellulose; and their use requires less labor because they do the whole job themselves (a final rinsing is enough to have pants ready to be sold).

FADED Denim that's a lighter shade of blue, either naturally through exposure and repeated washings, or induced through stonewashing or bleaching.

FASTNESS
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The color's resistance to washing, sunlight and abrasion. Indigo has poor color fastness because it fades as a result of each of these.

FESTAMENES A loosely woven 2x2 twill worsted dress fabric with a rough finish.

FELT A textile fabric characterised by the entangled condition of many or all of its component fibres.

FINISHES Final treatment applied to fabrics or garments, in the form of wetprocessing.

FINISHING Step in denim production in which the cloth is passed between rolls that remove lint and raise loose fibers. Next, the cloth passes through a gas flame or "singer" that bums the loose fibers off. It is then run through a vat of liquid finish solution and afterwards through squeeze rolls to remove excess liquid. A series of steam cans dries the fabric while setting the widths.

FIT

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A major determining factor when it comes to buying a pair of jeans. Manufacturers now offer in-between sizes and variable lengths (short, medium, satisfaction. Good fit is an especially important requirement in selling to girls (and juniors).

FIVE-POCKET The basic jean. A there are five pockets-two in the front and a coin pocket inside the right front pocket. Originally, the fifth pocket was on the thigh, as a place to keep tools. A "fivepocket" jean is a straight, reliable, tough-looking garment, originally for guys, now also for girls.

FLAG The small but very important signature label normally sewn to the side of the back patch pocket. Some, like Closed, have put it on the front, by the zipper, and made a fortune. Also known as the tab.

FLANNEL An all wool fabric of plain or twill weave with a soft handle.

FLY LABEL Method of branding jeans, used by Closed, Pepe and others, in which a woven label is sewn to the fly of the jeans.

FOULARD

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A light-weight fabric, frequently printed, originally of silk, and of 2/2 twill weave.

FRENCH CUT Very tight, sexy looking jeans, especially for girls. Also called "second skin."

FRINGED Denim with unstitched edges at hems or seams, which, after repeated washings, looks fringed. Used to give a rugged, very worn-out aspect to jeans and jackets.

FUSTIAN A hard-wearing type of clothing fabric containing a large amount of weft yarn. Used to describe a class of heavily wefted fabrics.

GARMENT-DYED Process in which the garment is stocked in an ecru or bleached colour, then instant-dyed in a variety of shades, depending on the market requests and fashion's whims. The technique also gives the garment a special, characteristic look.

GEORGETTE A fine, light-weight, open-texture fabric, usually in a plain weave, made from crepe yarns.

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GINGHAM A plane-weave, light-weight cotton fabric, approximately square in construction, in which dyed yarns, or white dyed yarns, form small checks or, less usually, narrow stripes.

GOSSYPIUM The generic name of the cotton plant.

GREY FILLING Weft, or filling, yarn that is produced from a blend of ecru and dyed cotton fiber. Originally conceived as a way to recycle discards from dyed warp yarns, and therefore save money, grey filling is being adopted by some manufacturers today as part of the revival of original looks, particularly in lightweight denims (7 to I I oz.).

HAND The feel or touch of a fabric, inherent to its contents or achieved through washes and finishes. HANG TAG In addition to the label and back pocket flasher, hang tags are another way for a jeans brand to communicate its features and philosophy to the consumer. Though done in a variety of sizes and shapes, and inspired by a wide range of themes, they all have a common characteristic-they "hang" from the garment.

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HARVARD A shirting cloth with a 2/2 twill weave, usually with a coloured warp and a white weft. These cloths are often ornamented by stripes or white or coloured threads or by simple weave effects or by both.

HEAVYWEIGHT DENIM Denim fabric over 14 oz.

HEMP A fine, light-coloured, lustrous, and strong bast fibre, obtained from the hemp plant.

HESSIAN A plain cloth made from single yarns of approximately the same linear density in warp and weft, usually made from bast fibres, particularly just.

HIPHUGGERS A style of jeans, very popular in the '60s and early '70s, that have a low-slung waist construction that literally "hugs" the hips.

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HOT PANTS The shortest of shorts for covering the behind and little else. The style became the early '70s and made a comeback in the early 90s

HYPERWASHED Fabric that has been washed repeatdly for an extremely faded and worn look.

INDIGO The deep blue dye traditionally used in the production of denim. Known as the "living" colour because it fades gradually and naturally with wear. First used over 4,000 years ago for dyeing wool, indigo was originally produced from the leaves of the Indigofera plant. Both China and India, the natural home of the plant, first cultivated and processed the dye commercially. At various times, it has been associated with poison and witchcraft, most likely because its introduction in Europe threatened the production of woad, a home-grown, but inferior, staple dyestuff. The English were the first to adopt indigo widely. In the New World, the crop was grown and marketed until the late 18th century, when the American Revolution curtailed the lucrative trade; by 1789 India was once again the chief source of supply. In 1878, the German chemist Adolf von Baeyer perfected the formula for synthetic indigo. Cleaner and more stable, it soon eclipsed traditional methods of production. Indigo lives on as the world's most popular dyestuff, with more than nine thousand tons produced annually. In addition to yarn- and piece-dyeing for jeanswear and other garments, it is frequently used in batik printing. Since the early '80s, it has also been used for an indigo-dyed knitting yarn.

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JEANS In the classic sense, jeans are casual pants made of heavyweight indigo denim, featuring five pockets, six rivets, contrast stitching, five to seven belt loops and a zip or button fly. Though interpreted in endless ways, their unique design remains instantly recognisable. Jeans' origins date to the mid-1800s in the American West, when workwear manufacturer Levi Strauss & Co. and tailor Jacob Davis together patented the use of rivets as reinforcement. But there's more to jeans than just their comfort, affordability and versatility.

JUTE The fibre obtained from the bast layer of the plants Corchours capsularis and Corchorus olitorius.

LABEL Item that brands or identifies a garment, bearing the logo and other pertinent information. A pair of jeans can have more than one label, each with a different communicative function, including the back pocket flasher, hang tag and leather tag. The word label is also often used as a term referring to the brand or line.

LEATHER TAG

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Rectangular label made of real or imitation leather, normally sewn to the rear waistband of a pair of jeans, above the right hip pocket. The leather tag often bears the size and lot number of the jeans, as well as the brand logo.

LEFT-HAND Term indicating the direction of the denim weave. This type has the diagonal twill line rising to the left, which provides a very soft texture after washing but which is also much more difficult to produce, since it requires more attention in the sanforization and finishing processes.

LENGTHS Jeans lengths are measured along the inseam, from crotch to hem. The shortest commercial adult jeans leg is 20 inches, the longest can reach 38.

LOGO Individually designed name or graphic symbol characteristic of each company or brand.

LOOM Weaving apparatus that produces fabric by interlacing a series of vertical parallel threads (warp) with a series of horizontal parallel threads (filling or weft). The oldest American loom is the Draper shuttle loom, originally weaving a 75 cm width. The most modem one is the air jet (600 strokes a minute).

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LYCRA A trademark of the multinational fiber company Du Pont de Nemours, introduced in the early '60s. An elastan fiber originally launched for the swimwear and lingerie market, it came to be used in jersey, sportswear and jeanswear fabrics. Erroneously synonymous with stretch.

MARBLE Another word for acid wash. Some crushed denims, if strongly bleached, are also called marble.

MILLWASH Term referring to denim fabric that is delivered already washed to cutters or garment manufacturers.

MOTHER COTTON A mature cotton from the American South with a high tanin content that gives a vintage look when indigo-dyed. The fruits of this cotton become the "mother" of the next year's crop, hence the name.

NATURAL A type of ring-ring denim, naturally uneven in warp and weft.

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OPEN-END An industrial, highly efficient type of yarn spinning technology that utilises turbine machinery. Faster and less expensive than the original ring-spun system, it produces denim fabrics that have a more regular, flatter appearance. Often referred to by the initials O.E.

ORGANIC BLUE Name given to an indigo dye that has a slightly reddish tint. Was used by Levi's to make the Big E. The dyeing formula originally included actual corn syrup. Also known as Happy Days, Violet Blue, Heavy Blue.

ORIGINALS Jeanswear's great American heritage-cult and collectors' items from the early years of the jeans

OUTSEAM Opposite of inseam. The pants seam that runs along the outside of the leg, from waist to hem.

OVERALLS A loose, one-piece garment made of denim or canvas that incorporates jeans-style pants with a bib front and suspender straps. Popular both for its functionality and as fashion. In Europe, more commonly known as a bib 'n' brace or salopette, while

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the word overalls is used to designate a one-piece, longsleeved workwear garment.

OVERDYEING A process that can take many forms. The blue yarn can be overdyed black, known as black change blue. Blue or black denim can also be overdyed with contrasting brilliant colours, for unusual shade effects. Or indigo jeans can be bleached to neutral and then overdyed with a vivid bright colour.

OVERTWISTED DENIM Made from yarn that is overtwisted, giving the fabric a particular crinkled surface. OZ. An abbreviation for ounces. Denim is weighed in oz. per square yard.

PAPERBAG WAIST A very loose and large waistline that when cinched with a belt gives the appearance of a paper bag that has been gathered at the top.

PATCHWORK JEANS Made from either recycled pieces of denim or with colourful patches of other fabrics. Normally a form of do-it-yourself customised jeans, they can also be produced on a commercial scale.

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PEDAL PUSHER Ankle-length womenswear jeans style with the distinctive "X" pockets in the front, invented by Marithe and Francois Girbaud for the Italian label Closed in 1980-81. It became world famous and widely copied.

PETROLEUM WASH Denim finish developed in 1992 by the U.S. brand WilliWear. A lefthand denim is enzyme-washed until it has lost most of its colour. It is then overdyed and put through a silicone wash, which gives it an oily coating, and, in turn, a super-soft, butter-like hand.

PIQUE Warp knitted A plain-normally made with two guide bars, that shows pronounced cord effects in the warp direction. Woven A plain-weave fabric with sunken lines between rounded cords and having a plain-weave face.

PIECE-DYED

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Term referring to the process of dyeing pieces of fabric, rather than the yarn.

PIGMENTS A kind of dyestuff that coats the fabric. The colour remains on the surface and easily washes away, fading. Pigments are available in a wide range of colours.

PINTO WASH DENIM A product of Cone Mills, USA; said to be the first bleached denim. In 1969, in Greensboro, North Carolina, a hurricane flooded local Cone Mills plants and warehouses. Millions of yards of denim were soaked with water and had to be dried immediately to avoid mildewing. It seemed a catastrophe, but a Cone Mills merchandiser in the New York office came up with an idea: run the fabric irregularly through a solution to remove the dye and give the denim a faded and mottled appearance. Designers, manufacturers and young consumers all jumped on the new product, making Pinto Wash Denim an instant success.

PLACED Term used to describe sanding that is concentrated in certain areas, such as the bottom, knees and pockets, to create a natural worn-out look. Also known as localised abrasion.

PLATED
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A form of finishing that gives a stonewashed appearance to jeanswear using natural earth pigments. It looks real, but it's a trompe l'oeil.

POCKET STITCHING Common feature of jeans. The rear pockets are stitched in a decorative pattern, sometimes trademarked, which helps distinguish the brand. For a period in the '70s, elaborate pocket stitching, often in white as well as gold thread, was a dominant trend. In the '80s, with the return of basic style, pocket stitching also returned to a simpler look.

POLYESTER A manufactured fabric composed of synthetic linear macromolecules having in the chain at least 85% (by mass) of an ester of a diol and benzene-1,4- dicarboxylic acid.

PRE-SHRUNK The growing jeans industry's answer to the original Levi's concept of shrink-to-fit. In 1947, Blue Bell introduced the first Wrangler jeans, which were sanforised, or pre-shrunk, guaranteeing less than two percent further shrinkage. Other companies followed suit. In 1959, Levi Strauss offered the first preshrunk 50s.

PRINTED DENIM

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Denim that has been printed with a pattern-a batik, stripe or floral, for example- often in contrasting colours and aimed at a very young market.

QUARTER DIP A shortened dyeing process normally used for chambray and lightweight denims, in which the number of indigo dips are reduced to two or four, instead of the usual six to eight, resulting in a lighter shade of blue.

QUICKSTONE A classic denim from the early '80s by Burlington Denim. The 14 3/4 oz. all cotton, right-hand indigo fabric, designed to wash down fast, was first produced for stonewashing and is no longer made. It evolved into Burlington's style no. 3885, another 14 3/4 oz. denim that is used as a basic by jeans makers in the U.S.

RAPID SKYING Patented oxidation process developed by Tessitura di Robecchetto Candiani in 1992 that speeds up the skying step of the indigo dyeing process and therefore shortens the indigo dyeing technique.

RED INDIGO

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A special synthetic dyestuff that's a lighter shade of blue, originally used as an alternative to real indigo when there was a shortage of the natural dye. Had a peak period in the '60s, and resurfaced as a selling attraction in the '90s. Also known as Hydron Blue.

REVERSE DENIM A novelty use of denim-turned inside out to give jeans a really different look. RIGHT HAND Denim's original weaving construction, in which the twill line rises diagonally to the right.

RING DENIM A traditional type of denim fabric, revived in the late '80s and early '90s, using ring-spun yarn for the warp. Characterized by a softer hand and an uneven surface appearance.

RING OPTICS Technological development that gives open-end yarn the visual characteristics of traditional ring-spun yarn through an irregular (thick and thin) spinning process.

RING-RING

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Or double ring. Refers to denim in which both warp and weft are made of ring-spun yarn. The hand is even softer than in ring denim. It's the "Ferrari" of denim fabrics.

RING-SPUN Yarn that is produced by using a "ring" for spinning. The process is slower and more labor-intensive than the more technologically advanced open-end spinning, and because it uses a longer fiber, results in a yarn that has a characteristic, natural unevenness. This has come to be desirable because of its association with traditional denim. Irregularities are enhanced by stonewashing. The hand is softer than open-end denim. RIVETS Copper or metal studs used to reinforce pocket comers on jeans. Jacob Davis, a Nevada tailor, first tried riveting when miners explained that the weight of gold nuggets caused their pockets to rip. Davis wrote to Levi Strauss & Co., and together they patented the innovation in 1873 (U.S. Patent No. 1391121). Starting in 1937, rivets on the back pockets of the Levi's 501 were covered with denim after customers complained they scratched saddles and school chairs. In the mid-'60s, the back rivets were removed and replaced with bar tacking.

ROPE DYEING A yarn-dyeing process for indigo fabrics in which the yarns are twisted into rope before being dipped into the indigo dye. All good ring indigo denim is rope-dyed. (4Sheet Range Dyeing)

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SADDLE STITCH Looks like cobbler's stitching. Used to give jeans a kind of old-time sophisticated authenticity.

SAFETY STITCH Additional row of stitching in certain areas of stress.

SALT & PEPPER A form of extreme abrasion contrast for black and blue indigo, achieved through the use of mercerized yarns. SALTWATER DENIM A denim fabric that has been washed with a high-sodium content finish to, increase abrasion levels, used by Quiksilver, a West Coast surf resource, among others.

SANDING Method of abrading fabric with sandpaper for a peach-skin hand.

SANDBLASTING Jeanswear treatment that removes colour from certain areas, either allover or placed, and gives the garment additional softness. Sand is actually shot at the garment with a powerful spray gun. Recent technology has introduced "automatic"

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sandblasting, in which the jeans hang and rotate continuously.

SELVAGE The white edges of the denim fabric, usually stitched with a coloured thread. Normal denim width is 150 cm, which means the selvage is left out when the garment is cut. Because of the simpler, narrower looms, original denim fabric was only 75 cm wide, and the selvage was visible inside the trousers along the inner leg. American jeans giants had their own distinctive selvage thread colour-red for Levi's, green for Lee and yellow for Wrangler. Exposed selvage is a key to recognizing period originals.

SHADING Term referring to colour co-production. SHEET RANGE DYEING A yarn-dyeing process for indigo fabrics in which the yarns are dipped parallel into the indigo dye baths.

SHOTGUN DENIM Denim that has been shot with a gun, or in some cases simply washed to the extreme, resulting in small holes in a very worn and tattered fabric. Bullethole denim is a variation that produces less of an overall effect, with the holes being less concentrated on the fabric.

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SHRINK-TO-FIT Before sanforizing and stonewashing, jeans came "nature": stiff as cod, dark and extra long. They were unwearable. After the first wash at home they shrank to fit and eventually became the right size (and colour). In the early '90s, some jeans manufacturers began to offer them to old-time aficionados.

SILK The protein fibre forming the cocoons produced by sikworms.

SKYING Process in which the indigo dye is oxidated, or exposed to the air, a step that is necessary to develop and fix the colour.

SLASHING The last step in preparing dyed yarn for weaving. Threads from several section beams are combined, a wax and starch solution is added, and the threads are dried and wound onto a loom beam. The wax acts as a lubricant and the starch prevents loss of fibers and adds strength needed in the weaving process.

SNOW WASH DENIM Denim treated with a variation of acid wash that imparts bright white highlights.

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STITCHING Sewing with thread. A characteristic detail of jeanswear, in which much of the stitching is visible-at seams, pockets, waistband and fly. Traditionally done in yellow or orange thread. Mainly functional, but also used as decoration by some jeanswear brands.

STONEWASHING Technique used to accelerate the fading and softening of jeans through the washing of garments with pumice stones. The stones can be natural or synthetic, in different sizes or shapes, producing various effects. An average stonewash for 130 pairs of jeans uses 150 kilos of pumice stones and 682 liters of water and lasts one hour. Super stonewashing can last as long as six hours. Changes in water temperature, the size of the washing machine, the number of stones, etc. can all change the final result, and the "science" of stonewashing has kept many a jeans manufacturer busy in the search for new, exclusive effects. The actual origins of stonewashing are difficult to ascertain. Japanese Edwin claims to have been the first to stonewash jeans commercially in 1975, a "secret" it kept from the world until its announcement of the process in 1979. Meanwhile, Marithi and Frangois Girbaud, who may or may not have heard about it from the Japanese, patented the technique in 1978. Others who are generally considered among the pioneers of stonewashing are Big John, French designer Pierre Morrisset and Kurt Ulmer of Jet Set.

STRETCH DENIM Denim fabric made with a percentage of elastan fiber in the weft, giving it a body-fitting stretch quality. (-+Lycra) The first mill
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to produce this special denim in Europe was Legler, in the late '70s, though initially without great success. One of the earliest stretch jeans lines was produced in Hong Kong by Peter Golding, using Japanese stretch denim. In 1980 Levi's launched in the UK the first complete wornenswear program of stretch jeans with the help of Lauffenmiihle's Elastenim. This initiative met with very good response in Great Britain and other brands soon followed suit. Marks & Spencer (UK) was the next to bring stretch denim to the consumer, this time using a Legler range. And the following years in Europe saw a boom in the stretch phenomenon, notably with France's Buffalo and, around 1983/84, Germany's Mustang.

SUNWASHING A very light shade arrived at by bleaching and stoning, which looks as if the sun faded the fabric.

SUPER DARK STONE Commercial term for an extra dark indigo colour, resulting from a double-dyeing technique. SUPER STONEWASH Prolonged stonewashing, up to six hours or more.

TAFFETA A plain-weave, closely woven, smooth and crisp fabric with a faint weft-way rib, produced from filament yarns.

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TAPERED Term that describes a jeans leg that loses width on the way to the ankle.

THERMO-DENIM Or double denim, in which a lightweight fabric (either plain, fancy or coloured) is glued to the denim. After washing, the glue comes off and the trousers look like they've been lined.

TIE-DYE A bleaching or dyeing technique in which the fabric or garment is tightly folded and tied at intervals with rubber bands. When submerged in bleach or dye, only the exposed sections are affected, creating a distinctive pattern. The process is usually associated with the happy era in the late '60s and early '70s, when denim jeans and cotton T-shirts were personalized by tie-dyeing. The look reappeared in the early '90s as part of the '60s revival in fashion.

TWO OR THREE NEEDLE JOB Two or three rows of parallel stitches.

UNEVEN Ring-spun yarn has an uneven quality, defined as either natural (light) or antique (pronounced).

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USED WASH Term referring to a type of placed abrasive effect or sandblasting, made individually on each garment in special areas like the knees, pockets, thighs, bottom, etc., combined with stonewashing.

VELVET A cut warp-pile fabric, originally of silk, in which the cut ends of the fibres from the surface of the fabric.

VINTAGE A denim treatment that applies heavy stonewashing or a cellulose enzyme wash, with or without bleach, for an old and worn look.

WARP Set of yarn found in every fabric woven on the loom, running lengthwise parallel to the selvage and interwoven with the weft or filling, the two forming various weaves according to the method of intersection.

WEAVES

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Various patterns of interlacing yarns for fabrics woven on a loom. Denim weaves can be coarse (3/1), broken twill (3/1, staggered), fine (2/1) or chambray (1/1). Denim is always a diagonal weave, rising to the right (most often) or to the left. Other weaves have been used for jeanswear, notably the canvas weave.

WEAVING Step in denim making in which dyed warp threads are interlaced with natural filling thread. Warp threads from the loom beam are fed through a series of harnesses. Each harness controls a group of warp threads. As this harness moves up, its threads are separated from the others, creating an opening called a "shed." A filling thread is inserted into this shed. As the harness moves back down and other harnesses move up, the filling thread is locked into place by the crossing motion. A metal comb called a "reed" comes forward and packs the filling thread into its proper position.

WEFT In woven fabrics, the set of yarn that runs from selvage to selvage at right angles to the warp. Also known as the filling or woof. WEIGHTS Fabric weight is measured in ounces per square yard. The heaviest denim is 15 1/2 oz. or more, regular is 13 3/4 to 14 3/4 oz. Midweights are from 10 to 13 oz., and lightweights or shirtings are from 4 to 9 oz.

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WET PROCESSING A generic term used to describe a variety of finishing techniques, all of which use water or another liquid, and some mechanical processing, to treat the fabric or garment.

WICK A woven or braided fabric, or a yarn or a group of yearns, having outstanding capillary properties.

WIDTH Commercial denim's width is 150 cm. Excessive width is 160 cm. Denim's former width was 75 cm. WOOL The fibrous covering of a sheep.

WORSTED Descriptive of yarns spun wholly from combed wool in which the fibres are parallel, and fabrics or garments made from such yarns. WORSTED FABRIC A fabric manufactured wholly from worsted yarns, except that decration threads of other fibres may be present.

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X DYES Cross-dyed fabrics present a two-colour weave obtained by using different yarns for warp and weft (e.g., cotton and polyester), which respond differently to the same dyestuff.

X-POCKETS Unique front pocket cut invented by Closed in its pedal pusher model, in which the two pockets meet at the fly in the shape of an "X."

YARN The spun fibers from which fabrics are made by a process of weaving. The fmer the yarn, the lighter and the fabric weight. A product of substantial length and relatively small crosssection consisting of fibres and/or filaments with or without a twist.

YARN COUNT Indicates the yarn size. The denim industry works with English counts.

YARN-DYED Term referring to any fabric in which the yarn is dyed before weaving. Denim is a yarn-dyed fabric.

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ZED TWIST Traditional direction of the spinning twist been used only in limited production of denim fabrics.

ZEPHYR A fine fabric of plain weave used for dresses, blouses and shirtings and made in various qualities.

ZIP FLY The zipper alternative to the button fly, first used for jeans by H.D. Lee in 1926. Wrangler was the first to do a center zip fly for women, in its Jeanie line, which debuted in 1950. The innovation was considered hazardous at first, but eventually became a booming success.

ZIPPER A popular jeans closure. Also sometimes used as a design detail on back pockets or on tapered pants legs. The zipper was invented in 1893 by American W. Litcomb Judson as a system of small hooks and eyelets; it was improved by Swedish Gideon Sundback in 1913, when it became a system of small metallic teeth intertwined through a movable clasp

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Jeans Years : 1940 | 1950 | 1960 | 1970 | 1980 | 1990 Jeans was Invented a little over a century ago, jeans are the world's most popular, versatile garment, crossing boundaries of class, age and nationality. From their origins as pure workwear, they have spread through every level of the fashion spectrum, embraced internationally for their unmatched comfort and appeal. Constantly in demand, they have survived the passing of both trends and time, capturing the ethos of each succeeding decade. While their charisma springs from their legendary American roots, their commercial strength rests on innovation and interpretation in the hands of jeanswear makers around the world.

1940 In the mid '40s, the Second World War comes to an end, and denim blue jeans, previously worn almost exclusively as workwear, gained new status in the U.S. and Europe. Rugged but relaxed, they "stand for freedom" and a bright future. Sported by both men and women, by returning GIs and sharp teenagers, they seem as clean and strong as the people who choose to wear them. In Europe, surplus Levi's.are left behind by American armed forces and are available in limited supplies. It's the population's first introduction to the denim legend. Workwear manufacturers try to copy the U.S. originals, but those in the know insist on the real thing.

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1950 Europe is exposed to a daring new style in music and movies and jeans take on an aura of sex and rebellion. Rock'n' roll from America blazes a trail of defiance, and jeans become the symbol of a break with convention and rigid social mores. When Elvis Presley sings in "Jailhouse Rock," his denim prison uniform carries a potent virile image. Girls swoon and guys are quick to copy the King. In movies like "The Wild One" and "Rebel Without a Cause," cult figures Marlon Brando and James Dean portray tough anti-heros in jeans and T-shirt. Adults spurn the look; teenagers, even those who only want to look like rebels, embrace it.

1960 By the beginning of the '60s, slim jeans are a leisurewear staple, as teens begin to have real fun, forgetting the almost desperate energy of the previous decade, cocooned in wealth and security. But the seeds of change have been sown, and by the mid '60s jeans have acquired yet another social connotationas the uniform of the budding social and sexual revolution. Jeans are the great equalizer, the perfect all-purpose garment for the classless society sought by the hippy generation. In the fight for civil rights, at anti-war demonstrations on the streets of Paris, at sit-ins and love-ins everywhere, the battle cry is heard above a sea of blue.

1970 Bell bottoms hit their peak and creativity flourishes. Customized denim-embroidered, studded and patched-becomes all the

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rage in fashionable St. Tropez, giving jeans a new glamorous profile. Gradually, the outward symbol of the alternative culture is integrated into mainstream society. Even "respectable" adults accept denim in their wardrobe. The jeans culture has become associated with youth, and everybody wants to remain young. Disco reigns, and denim dresses up for night. The ultimate sign of the appropriation of denim by the establishment is the designer jeans wave, which sweeps America just as the decade is coming to a close.

1980 Designer jeans take hold in Europe, a sign of the rejection of the utopian ideals of the '70s and a return to affluence and status. A backlash surfaces in the form of "destroyed" denim, meant as the ultimate in anti-fashion but instantly a major trend. Riding the extremes of boom and bust, labels flood the market, then retrench as consumers get weary. Acid wash debuts in '86 and revitalizes the scene. In the midst of it all, Levi's launches its "back to basics" campaign. The pedigree of the 501 pleases Yuppies, who want to be seen in exactly the right label, and money-oriented executives find themselves wearing the working man's original uniform.

1990 The high living and conspicuous consumption of the '80s proves to many to be an empty pursuit, and the beginning of the '90s sees a widespread reevaluation of priorities. Facing the next millennium, people are becoming more concerned with the environment, family life and old-fashioned values. This search for quality and authenticity helps to perpetuate the basics

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boom of the late '80s, leading to an interest in period originals and in newer lines that recapture the details and fabrics of the past. Once again adapting to the spirit of the times, jeans now represent an old friend, practical and modern yet linked to the purer, simpler life of days gone by.

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