RUGGED. SIMPLE. RESPONSIBLE. COTTON.
Rugged
Raw, 11 ounce, deep denim that's made to move.
Our jeans don't go through any artificial washes, sandblasting, or cosmetic tearing, so they last longer and hold up against any adventure. And we've made our denim strong enough to withstand the test of time, yet soft enough to wear everywhere.
Each production run is a small batch to ensure that every pair of SOURCE Denim jeans meets our strength and quality standards. And we sew our signature chestnut brown stitches with some of the strongest thread out there.
Real copper rivets, and not fashion nipple rivets, reinforce each stress point of a pair of SOURCE Denim jeans to make sure the seams hold strong and steady. And we've put six (that's right, six) belt loops that are reinforced into the waistband, so they can hold everything from carabiners, cams, to water bottles.
SIMPLE
Buy less. Wear more.
We built a pair of jeans that we hope are the only pair of jeans you'll ever need. The M1501 features a timeless, straight fit that is fitted to look professional yet relaxed enough to allow for movement and mobility, with a color that transitions seamlessly between work and play. And we keep it simple, with no branding elements on the jeans besides two white stitches on the back pocket. Even our care labels are printed directly on the pocket bags, to cut down on excess material usage.
SOURCE denim is naturally stain and odor resistant, so you can wear these jeans 5 times longer between washes compared to ordinary denim (or don't wash them at all...they are raw, after all).
RESPONSIBLE
What does it really mean to be sustainable and environmentally responsible?
For us, it means that we've taken over a year and half to go deep into the materials and processes that go into our jeans. And at the end of it all, we selected what we believe to be the best materials and the best partners for SOURCE Denim based on each one's pollution profile, water, energy, and chemical usage.
It goes without saying that the most sustainable jeans are secondhand jeans, so be sure to hit up the thrift stores before looking into new purchases. Or if you're really dedicated, just go au naturale. But sometimes a person just wants a pair of new jeans, without worrying about what their denim is doing to the planet. And that's why SOURCE Denim was created.
Our partners in denim production work with Greenpeace to develop the most environmentally positive way to produce beautiful, durable denim fabric. 100% cotton denim is woven and dyed with the assistance of chitosan, a byproduct of food processing. This completely biodegradable and natural biopolymer replaces the harsh and harmful chemicals in the sizing and dyeing process of the denim. By allowing cotton to adhere to dyes better than conventional fixing agents and completely eliminating the need for sizing, sizing removal, mercerization, and drying at each step, SOURCE Denim uses 60% less water, 50% fewer chemicals, and 40% less energy than ordinary denim. And because it is a food waste product, it can be safely washed away or composted without worrying about polluting the water stream.
We use pre-reduced synthetic indigo dyes sourced close to our denim factories. Pre-reduced dyes use 60% less hydrosulfite and caustic soda than conventional denim dyes, and remove the need for forced reduction agents, chemicals, and excessive water use as is often necessitated by natural indigo.
And SOURCE Denim is proud to be almost at 100% in meeting the international commitment to Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals by 2020, well beyond other denim companies in the industry.
Find out more about what SOURCE is doing about denim's dirty supply chain.
100% COTTON
No saggy knees, ripped crotches and loose waistbands.
SOURCE Denim is made with 100% cotton, with no elastic or spandex, so they withstand all of life's rough moments without stretching out. And there's nothing better than the feel of 100% natural fiber. As an extra bonus, being 100% cotton means that SOURCE Denim is biodegradable at the end of its life cycle (though that's in, like, a hundred years, so nothing you have to worry about.)
20% of our cotton comes from Better Cotton Initiative farms in West Africa, which train cotton farmers how to use farming inputs such as water and fertilizer more efficiently and effectively, minimizing the amount of wasted water, fertilizer, and labor. The other 80% of our cotton comes from the USA and Greece.
We get a lot of questions about whether SOURCE Denim is made with organic cotton. Realizing that growing organic cotton often takes more water, more land, and more labor, we opted to produce our first few batches with a mix of BCI and conventional cotton, and turning our focus towards detoxifying the weaving and dyeing process of denim production. That being said, we are constantly striving to improve the materials in our denim, and look forward to incorporating organics, hemp, and recycled cotton in future batches of SOURCE Denim.
Learn more about our cotton choices on our Dirt on Denim page!