When you put on your brand new jeans without pre-washing and find out they fit perfectly and comfortably on every corner of your curve, it’s a good thing.
But if your jeans snuggled up right after the first wash, that doesn’t mean you’ve gained weight just because of a few cookies you ate at afternoon tea two days ago. The good news is that your jeans have shrunk after washing, not because you gained a couple of pounds.
An interesting experience for most jeans wearers is that these pants stretch to mold to your shape when worn. Think about what happens to your hair braids. The braid will be loosened gradually as you run, walk, or jump.
Cotton jeans material works in the same way. However, immediately after exposure to water, hot steam or high humidity, cotton jeans will shrink right away, possibly even reaching about 10 percent of their original shrinkage.
People have these same issues all the time. This allows you to better control how well your jeans fit on your body based on steaming, washing, or dry cleaning the materials.
Is that all? Nope, we still have a problem! Do jeans shrink in length or width?
I’ve got to find out now!
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Do jeans shrink in length or width?
Indeed, jeans shrink pretty dramatically right from the first wash. You may not be able to sense whether the jeans will retract horizontally much better than vertically or vice versa.
Due to the fact that your pants are made entirely from cotton jeans in every position (except for the inner pocket or leather back patch), jeans will shrink all the way out.
Perhaps the most obvious change that you may notice is the great shrinkage at the hems. Your jeans somewhat turn out to be something unexpected, like ankle jeans with a pretty short (even up to 3 inches shorter) hem.
But that’s not all. When it comes to shrinking in length and width, there are several transformations in other parts of the jeans as well.
Here you go!
Where do jeans shrink in length?
The majority of us realize that jeans are becoming shorter and shorter over time. This is the most striking change the wearer can notice. But it is also the result of shrinkage in the structure of jeans in length, which includes:
Cotton denim yarn
If you pay close attention, you will notice that cotton jeans fibers are structured for a certain purpose, including their ability to shrink. Jeans that are woven from cotton denim fibers vertically will tend to shrink in length better. This is due to the shrinkage of the fabric fibers in the direction of its weave.
Conversely, if the jeans’ cotton fibers are arranged horizontally, they will be more likely to retract in width.
These days, 4-way stretch jeans are presented to say that they often shrink all the way out at the same time, instead of either vertically or horizontally like the two mentioned types.
Front and back rises
If you’ve ever had the feeling that jeans after washing fit almost like a mid-rise while what you bought is a high-rise, that’s also normal. This is because their front and back rises shrink after washing, causing the space between the crotch and waistband to narrow.
But don’t worry, jeans will stretch again when you sit for hours in your office chair. At this point, don’t complain about why they are so sagging!
Vertical seams
The vertical seams of jeans include the crotch seam, inline seams, or any seams that run the longitudinal seams of jeans. Due to the fact that these stitches are applied to the base of the jeans, when the fabric shrinks, the stitches will also shrink accordingly.
It’s no surprise if, after your jeans are completely dried up, you notice the side seams compress and warp instead of looking smooth like they were when you first bought them.
Where do jeans shrink in width?
Aside from horizontal-woven cotton jeans, most jeans will also shrink in width in some of the following locations:
Waistband
If you have to sacrifice waistband fit for your butts and thighs like I do, the waistband roominess can be noticeably improved in just a few washes.
This is because the waistband will compress horizontally after the cotton jeans are exposed to water. Therefore, it will be able to fit your waist and hips better.
However, this won’t happen forever, as stretchy jeans will stretch when you wear them more often. You may still need a belt to fix the problem with the waistband afterwards.
Jeans yoke on the back and front
A jean yoke is a seam that runs across and around jeans. Some jeans will come with a front yoke or not, but all jeans are structured with a back yoke. It is usually located above the back pockets and has a downward V-shape.
This detail helps to fix the crotch seam more firmly while helping to adjust the pants shape, especially for skinny or boot-cut jeans. Due to the design of the pants, the yoke tends to shrink in width as well.
The width of the hips, thighs, and leg openings
The shrinkage in jeans also lies in the fact that you will feel a certain tightness in your hips and thighs after wearing freshly washed jeans. This is more pronounced in 4-way stretch jeans or horizontal woven cotton jeans.
Not out of that trend, the width of the leg opening is also affected a bit when jeans shrink in width. Some of my straight jeans have even turned into light skinny jeans after I haven’t worn them for a while.
Why do jeans shrink?
Jean shrinks for many reasons. Here are why:
Jean fabric construction
Jeans are made mainly from cotton jean fabrics. Some jeans optimize 100% cotton in their content, while others will add stretchy materials like Spandex or Lycra into the fabric structure, which is what we call a cotton blend.
This is because cotton jeans use completely natural cotton plant fibers. Due to the nature of cotton plants to wilt and shrink when exposed to heat, the fabric produced from them also inherits this characteristic.
It’s no surprise that 100% cotton jeans have the highest shrinkage. However, they are also less stretchy and sag than stretchy jeans. Some tests show that 100% cotton jeans can retract up to 20%.
This is a point worth noting when you buy 100% cotton jeans. Over time, you will probably need to size up your jeans to make them fit your shape better.
Cotton-blend jeans that contain more than 20% other materials will have a smaller shrinkage, ranging from 1–4%. Stretchy jeans, like skinny jeans, do not have as much constriction as skinny jeans, in my opinion.
This may be due to the high elongation of the material during use. Therefore, there is a balance between shrinkage and elongation of the material, making them less deformed after a period of use.
Humidity and heat
The main factors that cause jeans to shrink are heat and humidity. In some cases, 100% cotton jeans start to shrink the fabric as soon as they encounter either high humidity or hot steam.
If this is what you want, washing jeans in cold water by hand will tend to reduce the shrinkage of the material by a few percent if this is what you want.
If you need to clean jeans in a high heat mode washing machine due to the hygiene issue (in case your jeans are washable with the washing machine), a temperature lower than 40 degrees Celsius would not cause significant shrinkage in your jeans.
Compression or no use so far
I once saw a bag of jeans that were vacuum sealed with a nylon bag and left in storage for several years. After letting them out of the nylon bag, these jeans almost reach the length of a toddler’s pants and look sort of hilarious.
Therefore, the vacuum environment and compression are also causes of cotton jeans yarn shrinkage.
Besides, putting your jeans in the bottom of your closet for a long time without wearing them also works the same way in terms of jeans’ shrinkage. They can be compressed due to the weight of the clothes on top, reducing the volume of the fabric.
No worries, you just need to wear them more often. The jeans will return to the shape you want.
How do I keep my jeans from shrinking?
I have received quite a few questions from readers who are lovers of 100% cotton jeans. They are often concerned with the problem of how to avoid their jeans shrinking because the material tends to constrict more and more after washing, making the pants drop a size or 1.5 afterward.
Here is your answer!
A little wash every month
I know that those who have asked these questions above are all tough guys, since most women often don’t quite enjoy 100% cotton jeans. These are usually males, big guys with muscles (maybe) who like to travel around for work.
In some cases, they work in heavily abused environments such as construction sites, factories, or metal production. That’s why they go with 100% cotton jeans with a stable and sturdy construction to resist high heat and abrasion while providing better protection.
For that reason, the demand for washing the jeans at the end of the day is pretty significant since their sweat and dirt have already stuck to the jean fibers all day long as the wearers go. But daily and frequent washing will cause 100% cotton jeans to shrink very badly (even more than 10%).
So the solution is that you should shop for a couple of pairs of jeans (about 7 or more) if these are your daily work pants. This will help reduce the frequency of using every pair of jeans. As a result, your jeans will not need to be cleaned every day. Since you wear them once a week, jeans tend to last longer with less tear and wear.
Cold water should be used to wash jeans
Yes, water and dampness will definitely constrict the jean fabrics. But shrinkage can be greatly reduced when washed in cold water (shrinkage can be as low as 1-2%). The higher the temperature, the faster the fabric shrinks. That’s why you should wash your jeans in cold water all the time.
You can take full advantage of this feature to locally shrink certain areas of your jeans as you wish, such as the waistband or thighs. You just need to heat the waistband over hot steam and it will constrict significantly.
Do not dye jeans more often
Dyeing the jeans often causes the pants to quickly constrict due to heat. Dyeing jeans is made easier with commercially available staining kits with specific instructions.
The bottom line, though, is that you’ll have to cook (yes, cook) the jeans in the dye solution for about 30 minutes or so. Exposure to heat for such a long time will cause the jeans to shrink significantly.
Air dry is the best
I personally love how the dryer was invented in this lifetime. They really help solve the problem of drying clothes in the rainy season, especially when you live in a high-rise apartment with no sunshine. However, drying the jeans with the dryer is a very bad idea.
The temperature in the dryer can range from 125 to 135 degrees F, which means your jeans are heated all the way through. Cotton jeans will shrink quickly. However, not all jeans work in the same way.
Since fabric technology is getting better and better, some jeans have the instruction “Dryer Acceptable” printed on the tag of the pants, and you know what you can do with it.
When hanging jeans, smooth out the wrinkles
Regardless of whether you hand wash or machine wash, jeans always look wrinkled and more wrinkled after being squeezed dry. If you don’t smooth them out before hanging them up, they will stay in place until they dry and turn out to be shrunk.
Don’t be that mess! You can smooth out wrinkles in jeans while they are still damp with your hands. This will reduce the risk of constriction and wrinkling as the jeans dry.
Going with pre-shrunk jeans
Pre-shrunk is a technique of washing a fabric or garment during the manufacturing process. This minimizes shrinkage of the jeans, as they are supposed to be after we buy them and wash them for the very first time.
Most jeans these days don’t really get this applied, resulting in them shrinking considerably after the first wash. You should look at the pants tag to see if they are pre-shunked. If so, it’s a good thing.
Dry clean
Yep, you can dry clean your jeans and it won’t cause any shrinkage to the jeans overall. This method can easily be applied to small stains or odors on freshly washed jeans that have not been thoroughly cleaned.
Instead of you washing them again with water, you can simply clean the small spots on your pants locally and they are all safe from shrinkage.
Some last words:
It’s normal for jeans to shrink after being exposed to water and heat, as long as the process doesn’t cause any other damage to the material. Whether your jeans shrink in length or width, you can all take advantage of this feature to make them fit you better with our advice. I hope things work well for you!