Denimhunters is a digital denim destination. Since 2011, we’ve helped denim lovers make educated buying decisions in the pursuit of timeless and adaptable wardrobes stocked with well-made essentials.
With our Raw Denim guides, The Rebel Essentials, and our Well-Made Essentials, we will help you find the best of raw selvedge jeans, leather boots, denim jackets, heavy flannels, and much more. Start your hunt with the guides below.
RAW SELVEDGE JEANS
Looking for the bar-none best pair of selvedge jeans? You’ve got options. We’ve cut it down to a dozen makers of the best men’s selvedge jeans.
DENIM SHIRTS
A well-faded raw denim shirt is a grail for most denimheads. But it’s tougher to fade than your jeans. Here’re 20 shirts worth the work.
DENIM JACKETS
If you need a jacket that can stand the cold and look great for decades, this buying guide is the perfect place to start your hunt.
Best Lightweight Selvedge Jeans: A Denim Expert’s Guide
Everything you need to know about lightweight selvedge denim—from true lightweights under 12 oz. to borderline fabrics that wear easier than the spec suggests.
Raw and Ready: The Ultimate Selvedge Denim Jacket List
Whether you’re an expert or a first-time fader, you need a made-to-fade raw denim jacket. This list of 20 fade-primed jean jackets will get you started.
Slim Pickings: The Best of Slim-Fitting Selvedge Jeans
If you’re looking for the absolute best-fitting pair of jeans that can also fade beautifully, these pairs should be at the top of your list.
Ready to Wear: One-Washed Unsanforized Jeans
Get the best of unsanforized selvedge without the sizing risks with these brands that specialize in one-washed unsanforized selvedge.
Brave Star: Heavyweight Jeans Without the Hefty Price Tag
Brave Star makes raw selvedge jeans in Los Angeles, blending heavyweight fabrics with straightforward fits. This guide covers their best denims, fits, and what to know before buying.
Can Your Jeans Do This? Stretching Our Legs in KATO’s Mammoth Selvedge
KATO’s heaviest pair of stretch selvedge denim, the 17.5 oz. Mammoth Selvedge, is forcing us to reconsider our position on stretch denim.
A Little Bit Extra: Big John XXXX-Extra Review
Big John have done it again! The Big John XXXX-Extra jeans prove that the Japanese pioneers do middleweight selvedge denim better than most.
Exploring Nudie’s Jeans Fits and Japanese Selvedge Denims
Thomas takes a look at the best Nudie Jeans in essential fits and Japanese selvedge denim. This guide is for both newcomers and enthusiasts looking for quality jeans from the influential Swedish brand.
So So Good: The Best Fade-Primed SOSO Denim
Fans know SOSO denim delivers on the brand’s promise of well-made made-to-measure at reasonable prices. Here are their best-fading denims.
Gustin Time: The Selvedge Brand Worth Waiting For
Since 2013, Gustin’s low-cost crowdsourced model has drawn crowds of denimheads. Patience is expected, but we think these jeans are worth waiting for.
The Magnificent Seven: Iron Heart’s Best Made-to-Fade Shirts and Jackets
Iron Heart fans are spoiled for choice when it comes to made-to-fade shirts and jackets. These seven well-made pieces should be at the top of your list.
Sailor’s Iron: A Salty Assortment of Seaworthy Sweaters
Fishermen know a thing or two about how to keep the wind and water at bay. Here are our all-time favourite versions of the classic fisherman’s sweater.
The Best Loopwheeled T-Shirts Money Can Buy
The best loopwheeled T-shirts: With expert advice from Thomas, this guide helps you find the perfect high-quality basic for your wardrobe.
Unsinkable Style: Who Makes the Best N1, Peacoat, and Duffel?
Naval jackets like the peacoat, the N1, and duffel coat offer the best (and most stylish) protection you can find against the elements.
Knit Picking: How Samurai Has Revived Japanese Cotton
Starting with a single pair of $10,000 jeans in 2013, the Samurai Cotton Project is taking Japanese workwear back to basics with a line of sweats, tees, and denims made with Japanese cotton.
Flannel Roundup: The Best of Heavy and Well-Made Flannels
Up your cold-weather fashion game with one of the best flannels that money can buy. This list guides you to our favourite well-made flannels.
The Best Work Boots and Engineers Money Can Buy
Boots make or break the outfit. If you’re looking for the best heritage boots from the world’s best bootmakers, you’ll find them on this list.
Why Heavyweight Denim Is Not Only Harder to Fade
Why 33 oz. denim is difficult to make, plus a new selvedge jeans guide, five weekly picks and the Indigo Invitational Year Five winners.
33 oz. Denim Fights Back Long Before You Ever Wear It
From overloaded shuttle looms to specialist sewing, SOSOBROTHERS’ 33 oz. denim pushes every stage of production. Now, the current rolls may be the last.
What Do the World’s Best Raw Denim Fades Look Like in 2026?
After three rounds of selections and voting, the Indigo Invitational finally is ready to announce their Y5 winners.
Best Selvedge Jeans for Men, From $60 to $350+
I’ve picked 17 of the best selvedge jeans across three price tiers, from $60 entry-level pairs to $350+ favourites. Each one comes with sizing guidance, fit notes, and the reasons I think it deserves a place here.
How Do You Know If a T-Shirt Is Really Loopwheeled?
Tubular construction doesn’t prove a T-shirt is loopwheeled. Here’s what does, three tees I’d buy with confidence, and a look at how far Weirloom has moved since its first trade show.
Why Loopwheeled T-Shirts Are Only the Starting Point
Loopwheeled used to feel like the deep end. In this issue, I’m looking at what comes after it—and what happens when once-niche denim knowledge moves further into the mainstream.
This New Waffle Sweater Shows What Comes After Loopwheeled
Iron Heart’s new IHSW-86 waffle sweater leads us beyond the familiar loopwheel tee, through heavyweight thermals, 11 oz. knits and 14 oz. sweats.
Why Your White T-Shirt Shouldn’t Look Best on Day One
James O’Neill joins Denimhunters with a fresh take on the white T-shirt, plus sashiko repairs, super heavyweight denim and five things worth your attention.
3 Popular Raw Denim Care Myths That’re Totally Busted
When it comes to raw denim care, there’s no shortage of false assumptions and myths. In this member resource, I bust three of the most common ones; freezing your jeans, washing them in the ocean, and waiting six months before you wash.
How to Wash Raw Denim and Why You Should (S01E15)
In this episode, Jake and I talk about denim care and how to wash jeans. We discuss the pros and cons of never or at least very infrequent washing, as well as the different washing methods we recommend.
Sashiko for Selvedge: A Step-by-Step Beginner’s Guide
No sewing experience needed. This covers everything you need to start doing sashiko repairs on your jeans—even your heavy selvedge ones.
How Denim Is Made: Fabric Finishes
This final episode of my “how denim is made” series discusses how the two kinds of fabric finishes impact the way denim looks and behaves. The trick is to use this knowledge to your advance a make it part of the story you tell.
How Denim Is Made: Weaving
In this fourth episode in the series about how denim is made, you’ll learn how denim is woven and why denimheads prefer shuttle-loomed denim.
How Denim Is Made: Indigo Dyeing
In this third episode in the series about how denim is made, you’ll learn about natural and synthetic indigo, and the differences between rope dyeing and slasher dyeing.
How Designer Jeans Broke Through the Mainstream
In this part 2 of my history of jeans overview, you’ll learn how ‘designer jeans’ broke through the mainstream, plus how to tell the story when you’re selling.
How the Japanese Pioneered Heritage Fashion
In this 4th part of my series about the history of jeans, you’ll learn how the Japanese built a cult around Americana, which evolved into heritage fashion.
How Denim Went From Workwear to Fashion Statement
Storytelling is a great way to get your customer excited about what you’re selling and to demonstrate your competency. The hard part is not telling the story, it’s how you tie it together with the specific features and benefits of what you’re selling. That’s what this article helps you do.
The Reason Why Jeans Have Rivets [Video Guide]
Rivets are a key defining feature of blue jeans. They were introduced in the early 1870s as a simple and durable solution to an urgent need for durability. In this video guide, I explain the origins of rivets.
The Durable and Practical Defining Features of Jeans
In this first episode of the series about the defining features of jeans, I look at four features that originally served practical purposes, and how those purposes have changed.
Purchasing Power: Labels That Highlight The Pedigree of Your Jeans
When we look for new jeans, there’s much more than the colour and fit to take into consideration. In this article, I’ll be looking specifically at the labels that appear on premium denim, and the semiotic and semantic power that such labels carry.
The Denim Encyclopedia by Denimhunters is a knowledge base with answers to frequently asked questions about denim and jeans, as well as explanations of how denim and jeans are made.
The Encyclopedia is divided into sections, each with its own homepage where its entries are listed with brief descriptions and links to read more. The Encyclopedia is continuously updated with new entries.
DENIM EXPLAINED
This section of the Encyclopedia is home to everything that relates specifically to the denim fabric. You’ll find answers to all your questions about denim and how it’s made.
JEANS ANATOMY
Many of the features that define blue jeans started as pragmatic solutions to the problems. Here you’ll find answers to questions about the details of jeans and how they’re made.
VOCABULARY
Every business has its own vocabulary. This section lists and explains the most common and frequently used terms from the world and jeans and denim.
A-Z
Here you’ll find all entries of the Denim Encyclopedia in alphabetical order. Each entry is explained briefly – you can read more by clicking the link.
Cuffing is not only a practical way of making your jeans shorter without having to cut and sew, it also looks great.
This guide explains the eight most common ways to cuff your jeans.
If you need to wash your jeans, but you don’t want to change the way they look, wash them by hand.
It’s the most gentle way you can wash your jeans because there is less agitation, which less risk of unwanted creases.
In this section of the Denim Encyclopedia, we investigate and debunk the myths about how to wash raw denim, including not washing for 6 months, ocean washing, dry cleaning and more.
