Levi’s for fall: distressed, dirty washes, colored denim
With so many companies specializing in denim these days, I sometimes forget about one of the first — Levi Strauss.
Levi unveiled its fall collections for men and women, and you can expect carefully destroyed denim, featuring holes and washes resembling dirty work clothes, pants with seams and front pockets, colored denim (turquoise for guys) and relaxed fits, reports Fashion Wire Daily. There were even some pleated and tapered leg jeans or acid washed denim.
Denim-on-denim, a big trend this spring, will continue for both men and women on into fall. Oversized chambray work shirts paired with a skinnier version of the boyfriend jean showed up in the women’s collection, while the men’s version translated to a dark denim workshirt and dark rolled denim pants – very rock n’ roll, Fashion Wire Daily said.
Part 2: Oprah’s favorite jeans
CJ by Cookie Johnson ... Oprah's favorite jeans
Here’s more on Oprah’s favorite jeans. The brand is CJ by Cookie Johnson, wife of NBA great Magic Johnson.
I mentioned the jeans in an earlier post, but I have since found the story on oprah.com. I think you’ll enjoy the interview with Johnson. She talks about three questions every woman should ask herself when trying on jeans. The jeans are pricey, $141 to $198, but the creative director for O, The Oprah Magazine, has found a budget-conscious alternative that he thinks delivers great fit and style. You may be surprised to learn what it is.
How much did you pay for those jeans?
Some aspects of the fashion industry continue to do well. Women’s jeans sales in the United States rose 4.6 percent to $8.03 billion and sales of men’s jeans stayed steady at $5.32 billion, according to the NPD Group.
“I think what we’re beginning to see is that denim has life of its own,” Marshal Cohen, NPD’s chief industry analyst, told WWD. “I don’t want to say recession-proof, but it was able to sustain whatever growth it had.”
Now for the surprising part. The average price women paid for jeans declined 1.6 percent o $23.44 from $23.83 last year, according to NPD.
Here are the Top 10 women’s jeans brands by sales for 2009
1. Levi’s
2. Riders/Blu by Lee
3. Lee
4. Gloria Vanderbilt
5. Calvin Klein
6. Lucky Brand
7. Seven For All Mankind
8. Levi Strauss Signature
9. Liz Claiborne
10. Wrangler
That doesn’t mean women are turning away from premium denim. According to a report by NPD in April, sales of women’s jeans priced more othan $100 were up 16 percent in 2008 compared with 2007. Some of those brands started feeling the pinch the first quarter of this year as sales declined. You can expect mark downs to continue, so if you’re in the market for a new pair of jeans, shop now.
Top 10 men’s jeans brands by sales, 2009
1. Levi’s
2. Wrangler
3. levi Strauss Signature
4. Lee
5. South Pole
6. Calvin Klein
7. Polo/Ralph Luaren
8. Rustler
9. Rocawear
10. Riders/Blue by Lee
Hem tape for jeans
Bristols 6 hem tape
Who among us doesn’t have a pair of jeans frayed along the hem because they’re too long. Oh, sure, they’re the perfect length for boots or pumps, but when they’re worn with flats, they kiss the ground.
Now comes a quick anedeasy fix — Bristols 6 Hem Tape for Denim, a double-stick tape specially designed to temporarily alter the length of jeans . That means you can test run a new length before taking the scissors to those designer jeans. Or you can use it when you want to wear flats and remove it when you’re wearing heels.
What’s more, the hem can be used on most fabrics and it won’t leave behind a sticky residue.
Each vintage-inspired Denim Tape purse pack contains 18 pre-cut pieces.
Cost is $12. To order, go here.
Designer clothes, mega home furnishings at T.J. Maxx/HomeGoods
I was in Dallas over the weekend so I breezed into the T.J. Maxx/HomeGoods store in Richardson. HomeGoods has mega garden, home furnishings, decorating, wall decor, etc. Imagine T.J. Maxx on steroids. When is Oklahoma City going to 
get a HomeGoods store?
The connecting T.J. Maxx is just as appealing and unlike any in Oklahoma. This store has a very impressive selection of designer clothes. Some of the top brands I noticed this visit included Badgley Mischka, Celine, Marc Jacobs, Vera Wang, Lilly Pulitzer, Rebecca Taylor and Vince, plus jeans by True Religion, Hudson, J Brand and Paige.
We’ll take some of those brands in our T.J. Maxx store, too.
I must getting mellow because I’m wanting yellow … jeans, that is
Lee straight leg jeans in Sunlight Yellow.
Generally I stay away from color on the lower half of my body. Prints, too. I don’t need purple pansies drawing attention to my rear, an area that I prefer to minimize.
Lately, though, I’ve been thinking about yellow jeans. I’ve been in local stores a lot the past couple of weeks and everywhere I turn I see colorful jeans. Hot pink, sunburst yellow, grass green.
Now I’ll be the first to tell you that I’m not going to slip into jeans that drip neon color. In fact, I usually try to buy the darkest wash possible.
I’m just ready for something different. It is spring, after all. Many of the colorful jeans I’m seeing are super-skinny legs. Ahh, yes, legs. That’s another area I try to minimize, thus a closet full of dark jeans and black pants.
Anyway, I may have found the answer. For spring, Lee is offering soft yellow jeans in a straight leg style. Lee says you can treat soft yellow almost as a neutral. It looks great paired with green, brown, black and red.
It’s possible these jeans will give me the color I want without hugging everything from my ankles up. Here’s another plus: Lee Colorwash straight leg jeans in Sunlight Yellow retail for $44.
Such a deal! And, honeslty, that’s about all I’m willing to pay for a pair of yellow jeans because this yearning for color probably will pass soon.
Katie Holmes wears her Joe’s jeans well … and often
Katie Holmes carries Suri as she leaves dance class. Guess what Katie's wearing? Her favorite Joe's jeans in the Muse fit.
No sooner is a celebrity spotted than the public relations machine rolls out an e-mail letting the fashion press know what brand purse she’s carrying or what designer shoes he’s wearing. Here’s comes the latest update.
Katie Holmes, spotted as she was leaving her daughter’s weekly dance lesson in Santa Monica, was wearing Joe’s jeans — the Muse fit in the Jolie wash. Word is Katie was spotted in the same Joe’s jeans just last week in the same location.
Hey, I wear my favorite jeans often, too.
Katie Holmes’ Joe’s jeans retail for $158. For more information, go online to www.joesjeans.com.
Stacy London teams up with Riders by Lee
Stacy London, co-host of television’s “What Not to Wear,” has partnered with the Riders by Lee brand. She’s uniting with Riders as the foundation to its marketing initiatives in 2009.
London has become known as an authority on fit and personal style. She shares the Riders by Lee brand’s core belief that women can look and feel their best and express their own personal style. Riders by Lee jeans, casuals and tops retail for less than $20.
“Great style is about understanding fit and following a flattering look that works for you,” London said. “The qulaity, innovative fit solutions, fashionable selection and amazingly low price point Riders by Lee offers means all women can have clothes that make them feel confident, beautiful and reach their personal best.”
Riders by Lee styles are designed to fit real women’s body shapes with innovative details such as the instantly slimming tummy-control panel to the Comfort No-Gap waistband.
Oh, boy, I want a pair of boyfriend jeans
I want a pair of boyfriend jeans. I wrote about them in Thursday’s YOU! section, and now I’ve got the urge to slip into a pair. Problem is, I’m not sure they’ll look good on me. And I know I’ll be disappointed if they don’t. The good news is if they look bad, I’ll never try on another pair –at least not until my slim, trim new body comes in. I ordered it months ago, but it’s such a popular model that it’s on back order!
I must say I’m a little hesitant about the look in general. It won’t be flattering on every woman, but I do think these jeans will be perfect for after work, for errands, etc. Anyway, read my story on boyfriend jeans, check out the related video and let me know what you think.
Teens for Jeans drive kicks off
One third out of all homeless people are younger than 18. Here’s a chance to help. The Teens for Jeans drive kicks off today through Feb. 22.
Launched by Aeropostale and teen nonprofit DoSomething.org, the drive encourages people to bring in any brand of their gently worn jeans to any Aeropostale store in the U.S. Aeropostale and DoSomething.org will make sure the jeans are donated to one of the 500 local youth shelters that have been selected as partners.
Last year, more than 125,000 pairs of jeans were donated.
There are Aeropostale stores in Central Mall in Lawton, Sooner Mall in Norman, Penn Square Mall, Quail Springs Mall, Shawnee Mall and in Tulsa at Promenade Mall and Woodland Hills.
