Shrink to fit part 2

So a while back I wrote a blog about a pair of Levi 501 raw jeans i bought.  It has now been a while since I got the jeans and thought I would post an update.  They are by far the best fitting jeans I have ever owned and they are really starting to have a pretty unique character to them.  They are getting faded according to what I do with them and all of that, which is fun.  Fun to have clothes that tell a bit of a story about my life.  Anyway, not to get all warm and fuzzy about my pants, here are some pictures.

I think I have washed them four times now - more than most people with jeans like this may do.  I still have to say that I am always just amazed that they don't really look dirty and they don't smell at all.  Sometimes I think they start to look like they have a slight tint to them and that is when I would wash them and it is funny because when I do they still bleed a little bit of color.

Just recently you can start to see where my cell phone usually is in the right pocket.  Front view:

 They have cool crinkle lines behind the knees, too.  Back view:

Shrink to fit!

So a friend was educating me on jeans recently, and was telling me about raw denim.  Apparently there is denim out there that has not been pre-shrunk or anything like that - a whole new world to a non-fashion person like myself.  Most who wear them try to go as long as they can, usually aiming for like 6 months (!?), without washing their pants.  The result is a very well fitting pair of distressed jeans that reflect the person who wears them in their appearance.  Now, this appeals to me because I absolutely hate buying jeans that look like they are already worn or approaching worn-out.  But not the not washing part.  To keep them from smelling there are various strategies such as putting them in the freezer!  Kinda crazy...

At the end of the day, I was interested because I like the idea of a pair of jeans being able to reflect me and what I do on a regular basis.  The nice fit also appeals to me.  I ended up buying a pair of Levis 501 shrink to fit jeans.  These are fairly affordable, not pre-shrunk or distressed or anything and are meant to shrink and fit you specifically.

Here are mine pre-shrink phase:

They are supposed to shrink about an inch in the waist and about 2 - 3 inches in length.  Here is the fun part: you sit in a bathtub of hot water for about 30 mins - with them ON.  Tip: if you try it, keep water to drink close by as you will sweat like crazy.  Then you let them dry - with them still ON.  To speed things up I went for a ride on the motorcycle with them wet and they dried in literally 20 or 30 mins.

Here they are after shrink:

You can tell by the floor just how much they shrank, kind of crazy.  But now they fit fairly well.  They are really stiff still so once that stops they will probably fit better.  I have worn them for a little over a week now without washing them and they actually really don't smell - yet.  I suppose I will try and go as long as I can to try and get them to break in well and look cool.  Or something.  Still seems weird.  I'll keep you posted.