Paul T LVC 1947 501 A few people have asked about the fall 06 1947 Levi's.
I thought these were pretty good jeans. My 1933 501s did fade too fast for me, but I did wash these more than any jeans I've had before. The 1901 repros, which have quite a dark finish, with Japanese fabric, fade beautifully and keep their indigo. WIth the 47s, I gave them a quick rinse - which got rid of some of the shrinkage - and machine-washed them around six months in. I don't think they've lost much indigo compared with, for example, my Euro Lees which have an authentic vintage-style fade.
HEre they are next to new 1947s, I think from this season.
And here, for comparison's sake, is a pair of original 40s 501s whihc went for a good price on eBay recently. These 30s and 40s jeans have a very black look to them... I think the reissues are pretty close.
I think if i'd washed the 47s more they would have been fine. I personally like the dark look so was in no hurry for them to fade. Next time around I would soak them overnight; because there was still a fair amount of starch and sizing present, the denim was brittle, so there are breaks in the cotton partiuclarly around the honeycombs.