The Denim Report

The greatest thing about denim, and spending your hard earned money on it, is that jeans will never go away. Denim is here to stay, until the end of the world as we know it. No matter how much the color, rinse, wash or fit changes over time, the one thing we can count on in fashion is that denim will never die.

Finding the pair that you fall in love with is sort of like finding a potential mate. You have to try many times with many different brands to determine what suits your needs best. When you find your true love, you stay with it forever.

While the consumer can make the best educated guess on what jeans fit best, it’s important to give yourself ample options before you brave the denim storm. By holding all the cards, you can make the best choice for your body type, and your bank account.

THE DENIM PRICE PYRAMID

The concept of the denim price pyramid houses the most basic styles in the middle.

This is where all styles for denim emerge from; the basic denim pant. Basic can include price and/or style. Companies that have been around the longest (since the 1800’s) and have the most solid reputation with creating jeans for America qualify for this category. Levis (www.levis.com), Wrangler (www.wrangler.com) and Lee (www.lee.com) are the top three companies that produce denim at a fair price, ranging anywhere from $40.00 to $130.00.

Most discount stores such as Target (www.target.com), Wal-Mart (www.walmart.com) and K-mart (www.kmart.com) have their own jeans lines they carry in their own stores. Some of these labels include Mossimo, Route 66 and Faded Glory. Prices range from $9.99 to $29.99.
Moderate priced stores such as Macys (www.macys.com), JCPenney (www.jcpenney.com) and Dillard’s (www.dillards.com) carry most designer and moderate priced brands. Prices have a broad range from $39.99 to $150.00. Some labels you could find at these types of stores are Liz Claiborne, Gloria Vanderbilt, Mavi and Buffalo.

The Designer labels can be found at any high end department store or boutique in your town with prices ranging from $85.00 to $267.00. If this is more your style, then try Saks 5th Avenue, (www.saks.com), Bergdorf’s (www.bergdorfs.com) or Barney’s (www.barneys.com). Current/Elliot, Hudson, J Brand and True Religion are all top quality designer jeans for a designer price.

This fall when your legs are longing for the perfect new pair, you’ll be prepared to find your potential denim life partner, to be on your backside through many seasons.

For more fashion education, styling tricks and jean shopping tips, please visit www.thedressrecycler.com. “Your bargain fashion superhero!”