Frugal Jeans Recommendation?

[nico08]

Hi.

I bought a few of Walmart's Faded Glory jeans and within no time, the crotch has ripped as have the belt loops and the pant is thread bare near a back pocket. I have only had them for a few months.

The same thing happened when I purchased from the Levi Signature line, crotch ripping and belt loops breaking within months.

I did not wash these jeans excessively or use them in any rough and tough sort of way.

I would like a recommendation on a frugal brand of jean. I would pay some additional money if there was a high likelihood the jeans would last. Frugal does not always mean cheapest. But cheap and good quality is always good

Before you recommend Costco, Sam's, BJs, etc, I cannot justify the cost of membership, so they are not really an option, although I have heard some have had success with their jeans.

Also, thrift stores are not an option because I am a rather unique size which is not readily found in department stores, let alone thrift stores.

So tell me what brands that you have gotten a lot of wear out of with little cost.

If it makes a difference, I am a man and I wear jeans after work on the weekdays and on the weekends. We can wear jeans on Friday, but I would want them to be nicer than my everyday jeans. Thanks.

 

[REWahoo]

I've had good luck with Austin jeans, sold by Academy Sporting Goods. They are available in store only, not online. They have a sale on them a few times a year.

 

[Accidental Retiree]

Well, as a long-time dedicated Nordstrom shopper, I recently went into Target and tried their Denizen by Levis jeans for women. I liked the first 2 pair so much that I went back and bought 2 more pair. They run around $25/pair, but I get a discount with my Target card.

I have had them only 6 weeks or so, so I can't tell you how long they'll last, but I like them a LOT.

 

[unclemick]

Bill Bill logger fit. I buy waist 2 inches oversize and wear logging suspenders. Copied my BIL (40 yrs a mining engineer) - I figure he knows his jeans.

I bought mine 3 yrs ago in Swain's General Store in Port Angeles WA so they need to wear some more years to see how they stand up. My BIL says the secret is not to wash until they are free standing on their own two legs.

heh heh heh - Big Bill Workwear can be Googled.

 

[samclem]

Rustler jeans bought at K-Mart, Walmart, etc. They are made by the company that makes Wrangler and they are inexpensive (really inexpensive: $13 a pair or so for the last ones I bought). They are like Levis were many years ago: deep blue and stiff when you first buy them, they soon soften up and give good service. They go through the normal blue jean lifecycle:
- Dark, intact, and good for wearing to nice informal stuff (6 months)
- Slightly faded at the rub spots, "daily wearers" (2 years)
- Blown out knee or frayed hem: Lawn mowing pants (indefinite life--pushed out of this bin by later pants coming down from the Major Leagues)
- Painting pants/shop pants

Sneakers got through a similar lifecycle (about 3 years from start to finish)

 

[brewer12345]

MACKLEMORE & RYAN LEWIS - THRIFT SHOP FEAT. WANZ (OFFICIAL VIDEO) - YouTube

 

[nico08]

Funny- thanks for sharing

 

[CCdaCE]

This superior products thread recommended Duluth Trading Co. jeans. I must've bought too good of a belt. All the newer pairs of my Lee jeans, the loops ripped off. I never had that happen when I bought jeans years ago. The lastest batch don't seem to hold up. So, I'm thinking of trying some other types.

But, I haven't pulled the trigger, yet, so I can't comment on quality.

Incidently, here's the belt.

-CC

 

[Amethyst]

I wear jeans a lot, including to work on mid shifts and weekends. I wonder what you are doing in your jeans to cause such destruction in such a short time (crotch rip?!). I do a lot of walking and sitting, and my jeans last a long time (except corduroys - the nap wears quickly off the tops of the thighs for some reason, so I no longer buy those). I do not wear jeans for outdoor work; not enough flexibility. For yard work, I wear sweat pants and sweat shirts. In summer, I wear old, worn sweat pants and a long-sleeved T-shirt to do outdoor work.

I refuse to pay more than $30.00 for jeans, so I have pairs from Penneys Arizona and Eddie Bauer (lower end) to Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, and Brooks Brothers (higher end), all bought on sale. Also have some Levi's, although I don't really like the fit. Of them all, I'd say Eddie Bauers wear the hardest. I have two black pairs from 1992, bought at the EB outlet store for $9.99, which have been worn constantly, and don't have a frayed spot anywhere.

Amethyst

 

[braumeister]

LL Bean.
I've worn them for years and they have been extremely durable.

 

[Lakedog]

LL Bean.
I've worn them for years and they have been extremely durable.

+1

 

[Dawg52]

Carhartt. Not the cheapest but they fit well and are as durable as any I've had. I actually found these at a local Ag plant and feed coop. You can find them at places like Cabelas. I do have a couple of pairs of Wrangler jeans. They are cheaper and are ok, but not as good as the Carhartt imo.

 

[martyb]

I've worn nothing but Levi's jeans for more than 35 years, so that's my only experience. I try to find them on sale, but honestly, I just buy them when I need them. I wear them to work every day of the week, and after work too, unless I'm wearing shorts. They just hold up very well and last a long time. Washed very frequently, I feel like I get what I pay for. I mostly buy the Levi's 550's in blue. Not the cheapest jeans out there of course, but I think I get my money's worth, and in my opinion, that's really what counts.

 

[poorcarver]

Woolrich cargo pants from Amazon. Unless I am dressing for dinner or in formal clothes I never wear anything else. I buy two pairs at a time and they wear for years.

 

[Nemo2]

Probably the best pair of jeans I've ever had, (and still have), are these, (purchased in pristine condition at a thrift store 'somewhere', (damned if I can remember where), over 10 years ago) - I still wear them as my 'best' jeans, (is than an oxymoron?), and have never seen them anywhere, nor can I find them online:

 

[nico08]

Wow- over ten years of wearing? I would say you got your money worth!!!

 

[HFWR]

Rustler and Kirkland (yeah, I know, Costco...), though I still prefer Levi's.

 

[Nemo2]

Wow- over ten years of wearing? I would say you got your money worth!!!

Not constant wearing though......'dress jeans'.....I've gone through others in the interim.....but I'd sure like to find out where those are sold.

 

[MRG]

This superior products thread recommended Duluth Trading Co. jeans. I must've bought too good of a belt. All the newer pairs of my Lee jeans, the loops ripped off. I never had that happen when I bought jeans years ago. The lastest batch don't seem to hold up. So, I'm thinking of trying some other types.

But, I haven't pulled the trigger, yet, so I can't comment on quality.

Incidently, here's the belt.

-CC

I second or third Deluth ball room jeans. They don't wear out. One caveat, if you w*rk around equipment they can snag on, I would be very careful. My buddy's life was saved due to cheap jeans getting ripped off of him, he got jeans caught up in a arbor powered by 100 hp diesel. Had he been wearing something heavy, may have been an even worse day! As it was he was bruised up, lost his pants in front of the wrong bunch of guys!
MRG

 

[Major Tom]

I've worn nothing but Levi's jeans for more than 35 years, so that's my only experience. I try to find them on sale, but honestly, I just buy them when I need them. I wear them to work every day of the week, and after work too, unless I'm wearing shorts. They just hold up very well and last a long time. Washed very frequently, I feel like I get what I pay for. I mostly buy the Levi's 550's in blue. Not the cheapest jeans out there of course, but I think I get my money's worth, and in my opinion, that's really what counts.

Same here, with pre-shrunk 501's being the style I keep coming back to. They are certainly not the cheapest but like martyb, I think I am getting my money's worth. At any one time, I have about 3 pairs in rotation and at a very rough guess, each pair lasts about 7 years, which would make for a life of a little over 2 years for one pair, if worn daily. If I patched the knees, I could make them last longer, but I don't do that.

The other suggestions here are interesting and I may look into some of them. It would be good to find an equally hard-wearing jean for less money, though considering how long mine last, I'm not exactly breaking the bank.

 

[bltkmt]

Diamond Gusset jeans - very comfortable and durable!

Welcome to our store : Diamond Gusset Jean Co.

 

[bjorn2bwild]

I bought two pair of Kmart Basic Editions jeans 8 years ago. One pair went to work, the other to leisure. The working stiffs made it about 5years, the leisure pair is looking quite dapper. Could be a lesson there.

Seam stress can alter the equation -

or

 

[ERhoosier]

Wrangler

 

[Badger]

Wrangler

+1
I've been wearing the standard Wrangler jeans since 1967. Not the same pair although they do last a long time for me. I even have a couple of pairs that I wore for a few years and eventually outgrew the waist. I live in jeans and tend to buy the model that isn't quite so prewashed prefering to let them naturally fade to my measurements. I buy them at the military exchange or K-mart for around $15-16.

Cheers!

 

[NoiseBoy]

Lee Riders available at Farm & Fleet stores in the Midwest. Think I pay around $20 a pair. Found them to be very durable, but more to the point, they fit me and at a nice price. Farm & Fleet has at least a half a dozen different brands and styles of blue jeans, so if you have one in your area I'd recommend checking them out.

Note - I don't put my jeans in the dryer. Believe it helps the jeans last longer and the rest of my clothes are happier too because they aren't getting spun around waiting on the jeans to get dry.