It's widely known in the raw denim community that a lot of people recommend not washing their jeans. But we do. Not washing your jeans at all can make the fabric deteriorate faster because of the bacteria in your sweat. Gross, right? Even if you freeze them, not all bacteria will die.

Here's some proof. Numbers from tests freezing bacteria and how much survived over time.

Basically just freezing your pants once for a day or two won't really do much to bacteria. It just slows them down. If you really wanted to kill them, refreezing seems more effective. But do you really want to spend 100+ days freezing your jeans? Don't you want to wear them?

How often?

Now, this really depends on the climate you live in. Is it really humid? Do you sweat a lot? Then I would recommend washing your jeans every 3-5 wears. You might think this is a lot. But our sweat can actually help deteriorate the fabric faster, because of bacteria. If you live in a less humid area, every 10-20 wears is enough. Just be sure to air them out every other day!

When you wash them

1.) Close the buttons/zipper & turn them inside out

2.) Wash them with a gentle detergent that does not contain bleach/softeners. You can wash them by hand in cold water in a machine on a gentle cycle.

3.) Do not put them in the dryer. DO use cold water when washing! You can wash them by themselves or only with very dark-colored clothing.

4.) Keep them turned inside out when ideally hanging them in the shade.

That's it! Happy washing!