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Before, long before, jeans were neither an object of desire, nor an icon of popular culture, nor the garment of the bad boys of Hollywood, nor even the uniform of billions of people in the world. Before, at the time of its invention, they were a rustic garment designed to face the most extreme environmental conditions.

Jeans, perhaps the most iconic garment on the planet, were born in the 19th century in the United States by a German businessman and a tailor of Jewish origin. In 1871, an immigrant from Germany named Levi Strauss thought of using the tent cloth he sold in his San Francisco shop to make sturdy clothing for gold prospectors, who traveled to California hoping to line their pockets with the find. of the golden nuggets.

After running out of stock of this genre, he turned to a fabric of medieval origin known as serge de Nimes, which would later become known worldwide by its abbreviation: denim. In 1873, he and tailor Jacob Davis would patent the first pair of trousers, which didn't look much like the fancy versions sold today in millions of stores around the world.

Far from caring about aesthetics, these pants made of thick, brown fabric sought to be resistant so that gold prospectors could wear them on their demanding days of exploration and their nights out in the open. It was quickly adopted by miners, railroad workers, and other laborers who needed durable clothing that wouldn't tear during the course of their forced labor.

Among the proposed modifications, the Genoese purveyors of the garment dyed the fabric an indigo blue shade sourced from India, giving it the standard color of trousers today. For his part, Davis decided to place a series of rivets in some weaker sectors to reinforce its durability, and thus he riveted the pockets or the end of the fly, to prevent the garment from disassembling.

After several trials, the inventors' winning lot was 501. That was the name given to Levi's most iconic model, which had been on the market for decades and is still sold as the traditional blue jean design. . This model includes the typical five pockets: two on the back, two on the front and a very small flap that is confusing for many.

Legend has it that Levi Strauss designed this tiny pocket for western cowboys to store watches on a chain. The thicker fabric of the jeans protected their artifacts more than the traditional thin vests where they were kept before.

Levi Strauss created the jean in 1871.

Its low cost and its remarkable durability in relation to other articles of clothing meant that its sales levels were maintained even after Black Thursday of 1929 and the Great Depression, which considerably reduced the purchasing power in the United States. Money was tight, so investing in a cheap pair of pants that would last for years seemed like a reasonable gamble.

By World War II, the pants were already part of the lots that the United States sent to the allied troops for its soldiers, who had to face, once again, harsh environmental conditions. There was no fashion; just sheer necessity.

How did it happen then? How did rough pants associated with furious jeans, the humblest workers, the most marginal gold prospectors, become a garment that can cost up to 200 euros if they carry the Calvin Klein label or if they are bought by the most exalted leaders? world?

The legend assures that it was thanks to the most rebellious. In the 50s, the bad boys of the Hollywood star system, such as Marlon Brandon or Elvis Presley, were seen wearing this rustic garment. Elvis's hip moved to the rhythm of rock and roll in scandalous movements and sheathed in dark denim pants with notorious white stitching. Marlon, who along with James Dean seemed to channel the desires of a nascent pop culture, was seen with motorcycles and classic unworn Levi's. And the remembered photo of Marilyn Monroe still circulates, who, before becoming famous, posed with a dark pair and a red shirt tied above the waist.

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— ˗ˏˋ nana ´ˎ˗ Wed Jul 21 18:20:46 +0000 2021

The torn, snow-covered, flared-bottom or chupin-style models did not yet exist. That would come later. But the rebellion of the young people of Hollywood managed to convince an entire generation that this rough garment of the working world was also comfortable clothing that adapted to all kinds of uses. The young people of that second half of the 20th century would incorporate them as a flag, an act of rebellion against the linen and piqué of previous generations, from the ironed line of dress models.

In the 1960s, at the height of Flower Power, San Francisco designers were already setting the trend for denim for men and women. The cuffs widened and the youngsters were seen wearing frayed or unstitched versions. From the stores they proposed to embroider colorful flowers to cover the holes of the most worn specimens. Thus, they gave rise to a new fashion symbol that was rescued on the Gucci catwalks in the 2000s.

Although pants arrived in the female world in 1940, when women added this garment to their wardrobes to fill the jobs in factories that men vacated to enlist in the war, in 1970 a new concept arrived, which associated denim with elegance and feminine sensuality.

Jean skirts were added to Vanderbilt's innovative design. In their first versions, they were floor-length and made from old recycled pants, a true tradition of hippie culture. However, the garment evolved to join the miniskirt trend and remains today in a wide variety of lengths and designs.

The hippie influence exaggeratedly widened the cuffs of the pants, so the models that were manufactured seemed to have forgotten the boot cut, a trend that was born from sailors who needed narrow-sleeved pants that allowed them to put on their boots No problem. These chubby versions made a comeback in the 1980s and have been seen in store windows on and off ever since. Today, it is the most accepted cut in modern clothing.

In the 80s, more than a century after the creation of this garment, the arrival of stretch fabrics managed to open a new universe for blue jeans. In those years, skinny pants, bombilla, chupines or skinny jeans were born, furiously clinging to the body and giving more sensuality to a garment that, a hundred years ago, was considered almost a work tool.

Its low cost and remarkable durability in relation to other garments meant that its sales levels were maintained even after Black Thursday in 1929.

The world of rock took to this trend with great enthusiasm, so it was common to see the most famous rockers in very tight pants that revealed their slim legs walking from one side of the stage to the other.

Although jean pants are a worldwide trend, each culture seems to incorporate them in a different way and different currents tend to coexist in different regions of the world. Although the blue color remains a banner, the hue and level of wear and even the dyeing techniques vary over the years. Also the height of the waist, which makes the pants cover or uncover the navel as the years go by. The booties, the use of elastic and even the torn ones also enter and leave the dynamics of fashion.

Far from being forgotten, this garment seems to be the raw material for new inventions. With embroidery, snowy dyeing techniques or a return to the most original versions, clothing designers pay tribute to the Levi Strauss patent in every possible way. Their old practicality, added to their new inventiveness, position them as one of the most consumed items in the world and it is rare to meet a person who does not have at least one pair in their wardrobe.

However, the undisputed massiveness of the jean has been threatened in recent years by a new trend in the feminine world: leggings, leggings, or yoga pants. Last year, the Chicago Tribune newspaper outlined major denim brands' strategies to get more women back into traditional five-pocket pants and ditch the stretchy, comfortable versions that should stay in gyms and yoga classes.

According to the remark, 2017 was the first year in which North American imports of stretch pants such as leggings exceeded the entry of traditional denim garments in volume. Although the main labels such as Calvin Klein, Levi's itself or Tommy Hilfiger still remain as icons of current fashion, the industry seems to need a new reinvention so that the rough worker pants remain current and reach, once again, the generation what is to come