Does the classic five-pocket need to be flattered by haute couture imitations?

Denim not. Left, Balenciaga and right, Valentino. Photos: respective brands

Something is happening to the jeans we have been wearing almost all our lives. And it has nothing to do with the last laundering technique to yield the most natural well-worn look. Denim jeans are making their way to haute couture, and they are not even denim to begin with. Last autumn/winter season, Bottega Veneta introduced a pret-a-porter pair that appeared to be made of denim but was, in fact, constructed from leather. Now, jeans have gone up the fashion value chain. First, Balenciaga offered tromp l’oeil versions that were hand-painted with oils on canvas. Then, there was Valentino, where jeans that look like what you might already own from afar, were, in one pair, silk gazar covered with micro-beads that were dyed with 80 different shades of indigo to mimick the texture of denim, including the wash.

In the old days, no one could imagine luxury jeans, or thought them necessary. There was no such thing as high-end cotton denim as there were high-end silks. But things started to change when the denim five-pocket and other styles were sold as ‘designer’ jeans. There was even the Versace Jeans Couture line. And soon every luxury brand considered denim jeans crucial to their merchandise lineup. But haute couture was never visibly part of that approach to product development, until Chitose Abe, as guest designer for the couture of Jean Paul Gaultier, introduced them in the collection in 2021. But, the question still remained: Does denim have a place in a practice that has always worked with the most expensive fabrics? Perhaps Balenciaga and Valentino had the solution. The pants can look like denim, but aren’t. As befit haute couture, not the real real.