What is selvedge denim, and is it worth it?

Selvedge denim is denim woven on a traditional shuttle loom, which produces a narrow, tightly woven roll of fabric with a clean, finished edge on both sides. That edge, the "self edge", is where the name comes from. When the fabric is cut into jeans, the selvedge is used for the outseam, so you see it as a neat line, often with a coloured thread, when you turn up the hem.

Most jeans made today are not selvedge. They are woven on wide, fast projectile looms that leave a loose, fraying edge which has to be overlocked. Selvedge is slower, more expensive and, for many people, a lot better.

How selvedge denim is made

Until the 1950s, almost all denim was woven on shuttle looms. A shuttle carries the weft thread back and forth across the warp threads in one continuous length, turning at each edge, which is what seals the selvedge. These looms weave fabric about 30 inches wide, slowly.

As demand for jeans exploded, American mills replaced them with projectile looms that weave fabric twice as wide, many times faster, and cut the weft at each edge. Cheaper, wider denim won, and the old looms were sold off or scrapped. Many of them went to Japan, where mills in Okayama and Hiroshima, together with brands that wanted to reproduce vintage American jeans exactly, kept them running. Today Japan is the centre of the selvedge world, with mills such as Kaihara, Kuroki and Collect, and brands such as Momotaro, Pure Blue Japan, Samurai, Full Count and Iron Heart. Mills in the United States, Italy and Turkey weave it too.

Why people love it

The edge itself does not make better jeans. What makes the difference is everything that tends to come with it.

• Character. Old shuttle looms run slowly and at lower tension, which gives the cloth an uneven, slightly textured surface. When it fades, that texture shows up as streaks and vertical lines that flat, modern denim cannot match.
• Indigo. Selvedge makers usually rope-dye their yarn many times in natural or synthetic indigo, leaving the core of each thread white. That ring-dyed yarn is what fades to high contrast where you wear it most.
• Weight. Selvedge runs from light summer cloth around 10oz to heavyweight denim of 21oz or more. Heavier denim takes longer to break in but fades with sharper contrast.
• Construction. Selvedge jeans tend to be made with the details of the originals: chain-stitched hems, hidden or exposed rivets, button flies and leather or paper patches.

Raw, sanforized and unsanforized

Most selvedge jeans are sold raw, or dry: unwashed and stiff, straight from the loom. Raw denim fades only where you wear it, so a pair worn every day for a year becomes a record of your own movements, with whiskers at the hips and honeycombs behind the knees.

Raw denim comes in two kinds, and the difference matters when you choose a size.

• Sanforized denim has been pre-shrunk at the mill. It will shrink only slightly, about one to three per cent, on its first wash. Buy close to your usual size.
• Unsanforized, or loomstate, denim has not. It can shrink seven to ten per cent in length and at least a size or so in the waist, and it is usually soaked before wearing to shrink it to fit. The shop's size chart will say which a pair is and how to size it.

How to tell if jeans are selvedge

Turn up the hem. A selvedge pair shows a clean, finished edge along the outseam, usually with a coloured line in red, white, green or another colour. A non-selvedge pair shows a zig-zag of overlocked thread. Some brands also show the selvedge on the coin pocket or the fly. Beware the occasional fake: a stitched coloured line on an overlocked edge.

Is selvedge denim worth it?

If you only want a pair of jeans that fits, a good non-selvedge pair will do the job. Selvedge is worth it if you care how the cloth looks, how it ages and how the jeans are made, and if you plan to wear them for years. Good selvedge jeans start at roughly the price of premium high-street jeans and climb from there, but they last far longer and get better as they go.

The best way to find out is to buy one good pair, wear it hard and see what happens.

Where to start

A sanforized pair of around 13 to 15oz in a straight or tapered fit is the easiest place to begin: comfortable from the first day and easy to size. If you want more character, try a heavier or slubbier cloth from Okayama. If you want the toughest jeans made, Iron Heart's 21oz is the benchmark.

Prices for the same jeans vary between shops, and so do the sizes each shop has left. Browse men's jeans on HARDSTOC to compare every shop's price and see who has your waist and length in stock, or read our guide to heritage style for what to wear with them.

Caring for selvedge denim

Wear raw denim as long as you can before the first wash, at least a few months if you want strong fades, and then wash it rarely, inside out, in cold water with a mild detergent, and hang it to dry. Repair small holes early: most denim specialists will darn a worn crotch or knee for far less than a new pair costs.