Denim

A Brief History On Denim


Denim shirts, double denim, denim skirts, denim dresses – the evolution of the denim trend this summer but what about before? Denim has a livelier history than probably  any other garment. Denim was made into a common fashion item by Levis Strauss (yes, Levi’s Jeans that we know). We all know the famous photo of Elvis in double denim but who else made denim fashionable today? Here is a few interesting bits of denims history.

Elvis Presley was of course one of the first to change the image of jeans from a laborers uniform to a fashion trend.

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James Dean in Rebel without a Cause, Jeans were still large and ruff textured, meant for miners.

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One of the first women to make tight jeans fashionable in the 1950’s, Marilyn Monroe used to buy Army Man Jeans and go into the sea in them. When they dried in the sun on her they would be skinny fitting.

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‘Waist Overalls’ advertisement for women by Levis

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Gianni Versace was the first designer to feature denim in his couture collection in the 1990’s. Pairing denim shirts with long evening silk skirts and denim jackets over ball gowns.

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So I hope you enjoyed my slightly different post today with the history of denim, and learnt a little about the overlooked material.