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When asked how to distress jeans, my first answer is always this: Wear them.
Photos: Courtesy of Jane Herman
If you wantjeansthat look like theyve been loved to pieces, love them to pieces.
Eventually, theyll weather and rip and break apart in all the right places.
The durability ofdenimis undeniable, yes.
But nothing, we know, lasts forever.
Who among us has computerized lasers sitting around at home, though?
(Nothing really compares to the look ofA.P.C.
Standardsafter theyve been worn for a year or more with very little washing.)
Trust me, its not a good look.
Levisdefinesdistressed jeans as jeans that have been manipulated to give them a more vintage look.
Some put rips and holes in this category, others do not.
(I do, for what its worth.)
Theres a not-so-fine line between distressing and damaging, and thats it.
My general advice when self-distressing is to go slow.
Sandpaper is probably the most recommended tool for this.
Cheese graters get mentioned online sometimes; a microplane would work better, I think.
Air dry,hey.
Repeat until you get the desired effect.
The more obscure and less mainstream spur bites are one of my favorite real-life-inspired markings to see on jeans.
Spur bites are never perfectly symmetrical.
Take a trail ride and wade in a river.
If none of this works, live a little harder.
Get on your hands and knees in the garden.
Holes or not, you probably wont regret it.
