The Levi’s 501 jean is an archetype, the jean that all jeans sprang from. Levi’s Vintage Collection does a fantastic job of producing faithful reproductions of the 501 from the defining moments of its history. From the introduction of belt loops in the 1933 501 to the abandonment of the suspender buttons in 1937, to the painted Arcuate and loss of the cinch on the 1944 to the more modern, recognisable cut of the 1947. Each iteration marks an important step in the development if the 501 and indeed in the history of jeans themselves. The changes reflect the history of the time period, technological changes, fashion, practicality and social status. However, there is one jean in the 501 family that tends to get overlooked and it could be argued that it is the most authentic of all 501s. Namely the humble Red Tab 501 shrink-to-fit jean.
Back in the day, as I am sure we are all aware, all jeans were unwashed, untreated and shrink-to-fit and all jeans were a practical answer to work wear. Above all they needed to be durable and affordable to the working man. Although Levi’s were sold at a premium compared to other brands, workers were willing to pay the extra because they stood up to the everyday abuse of heavy labour.
Nowadays a pair of LVC 501xx will run you in excess of €250, fantastic jeans undoubtedly, made in the USA with fastidious attention to historical details. From the button to the rivets, thread weight and colour, to the denim itself, all aspects are the closest possible to how the jeans would have looked and felt when they were initially produced in which ever epoch your jeans hail from. However, not something most of us would be willing to wear around a building site. The most basic shrink-to-fit however you can find in eBay for under €50 (they are a little more difficult to source in shop in Europe, but I believe the price is comparable in retail stores in the US).
The shrink-to-fit comes in two varieties. The most basic being the non-selvage, 12.5 oz. denim and the slightly more ‘authentic’ but still affordable red line selvage 15 oz. denim. The former appears to be produced in Colombia and Mexico and the latter is produced in Turkey. Both are untreated and unwashed. The denim for the more basic version is presumably locally produced on larger commercial looms, however the 15 oz. selvage denim is sourced in Japan.
It is the red line selvage that is shown in this particular article. They have been shrunk but did not come close to the 10% shrinkage you are told to expect from the flasher – actually they only shrunk 0.5 inch in the inseam. The loss if indigo was minimal.
The fabric itself is soft and supple after a week or so of wear. The more industrial dying processes means that the dye is more deeply ingrained into the yarn so the fading takes time and is more subtle, however it is possible to find examples online of really nicely faded shrink-to-fit 501s. This particular pair has seen about 4 month’s continuous wear including a month long trip around Colombia. After the South American adventure they needed a wash which was done in a bath tub and no more shrinkage occurred nor any loss of indigo.
So why you ask is this the most authentic of the 501s? It is simple. It is the jean that still provides the solution to the problems that saw the creation of blue jean in the first place. It is the jean that is suitable for everyone, affordable to everyone and durable enough for (mostly) everyone.
