Denim fashion: how it originated and what are the trends of 2023

Denim is one of the hottest trends of 2023 and is still one of the most beloved fabrics worn by all generations: men, women, children, anyone at least once will have had a pair of jeans, a miniskirt or a denim jacket in their closet.

But what is the reason for all this popularity? Comfortable and versatile, it fits any style and it is a must-have for casual wear lovers.

A bit of history

It’s already a certainty that denim will never go out of style, but how many of you know its origins? Perhaps not everyone knows that the fabric first made its appearance in Europe, specifically in the city of Nimes, France – hence the name “de Nimes” which later became “denim.”

Initially, the material was used to make workers’ work clothes because of its strong and durable fibers.

But it was from Italy that the fabric spread widely, becoming famous all the way to America: it comes from Genoa, where sailors and longshoremen wore it daily, going so far as to export it around the world under the name “bleu de Genes,” meaning “blue of Genoa,” which later became today’s “blue jeans.”

In America, jeans became popular starting in 1853, when a young German entrepreneur, Levi Strauss, decided to leave the country to join his brothers in New York, who were active in the garment industry. The Strausses even went so far as to patent a specific model of jeans, the 501, also known as the “Watch Pocket,” made specifically for gold prospectors and miners who needed a pocket for their pocket watches.

Denim: symbol of social revolution

It was only in the early 1900s that denim began to be used in contexts that were not strictly work-related. Bringing jeans into the limelight was film star Marlon Brando, who wore them in the movie The Wild One, in which he starred. At that time movie stars had a great hold on the public, which is why people began to imitate their ways of doing and even dressing.

Beginning in the 1960s, denim became a real trend, especially among young people and rock stars, as a symbol of revolt against social conventions, which imposed precise clothing standards on boys and girls.

Its rise continued into the next decade, particularly among the hippie movement, until the 1980s, when it began to be taken up by fashion houses, which began to use it in their own collections.

Denim and high fashion: the trends of 2023

Fashion designers began experimenting with denim during the 1970s, but by the end of the 20th century, denim had emerged as a true luxury item.

For Spring/Summer 2023, luxury brands have focused heavily on denim, proposing alternative solutions, reinterpreting the way this fabric is worn and adapting it to accessories as well. Like it or not, the fashion of the early 2000s is officially back in the spotlight, with designers offering denim boots and bags.

The used effect is undoubtedly the one has resorted to most times on the runway: Diesel, Givenchy, MiuMiu, Balenciaga have presented collections in which soiled and worn denim prevails, to give a “lived-in” effect, conveying the idea of a cozy, comfortable and above all fashionable denim. A jeans that is for the wearer a second skin in which to always feel comfortable.

The more daring, can opt for denim total looks, to be worn both during the day and in the evening: long dresses, trench coats, coordinated sets – such as high-waisted jeans and crop shirt – are among the must-haves of women’s fashion this season, ideal for the coming spring.

If you have a romantic soul, on the other hand, you can be inspired by Ermanno Scervino‘s proposals, which in the S/S 23 collection proposes sheath dresses, skirts, and jackets completely covered in transparent sequins.

Denim and recycling

Being a highly resistant and malleable fabric, denim can be easily reused even several times over time. An old pair of jeans could become a shopper, a hat, an original piece of furniture. You can find so many ways to give a second life to your garments; you can experiment and be creative as much as you can before you decide to throughout your jeans.

There are also different organizations like:

• “The Blue Jeans Go Green™” program which collects denim (made from cotton) so that it can be recycled back to its original fiber state and transformed into something new. [1]
• “Re-Think your jeans” is a collaborative circular economy project. The Re-Think Your Jeans box is currently placed in about 50 NaturaSì stores and 3 Muji stores in Italy, as well as many B-Corp and corporate that have taken part in the project. Old denim cotton clothes are collected into the Re-think your jeans box. Then they will be selected by And Circular to be frayed and reduced to a fiber within the textile district Prato.  This material will then be transformed by Pinori Filati into a new yarn, with which will be produced new sustainable garments. [2]

We are so proud for initiatives like these because with small steps every one of us can contribute for a sustainable future and all together can make a change.

LET’S BE THE CHANGE WE WANT TO SEE.

 

 

Sources

[1] https://bluejeansgogreen.org/

[2] https://rifo-lab.com/en/pages/riciclo-vecchi-jeans