clone my jeans
July 24, 2013 2:53 PM   Subscribe

has anyone used one of the sites where you send them a pair of jeans and they send you back a pair that they've cloned using the original pair?

the backstory: i love the boyfriend jeans from j.jill. the last time i reordered, however, the waist area of the jeans and the fabric are totally different, and i don't like them as much. i know there are sites that do jean cloning (and my google searches just think i've misspelled jean), but i don't know what they are. have you used a site like this? which one? what was your experience? were you happy with them? thanks!
posted by koroshiya to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (6 answers total) 13 users marked this as a favorite
 
I can't speak to a website that offers cloning, never having tried that, but I will tell you, as a home sewer who frequently makes the same patterns over and over, that it is very hard to get the same fit more than once, unless you have exactly the same fabric. Yes, you can have the same style, but if it was the fit and fabric that was important to you, then you may not be satisfied with what you get.

You may have more success setting up an automated search on ebay for the jeans, and wait for what you bought originally. I currently have a pair of jeans that haven't been in stores since 2007, they were in new condition when I bought them and were a replacement for identical jeans I wore out.
posted by nanook at 3:05 PM on July 24, 2013 [1 favorite]




This isn't what you asked at all, but I'd try poking around some large thrift stores to see if you can find a clone of your favorite pair. I have tons of luck finding jeans at secondhand shops, including the exact styles that were my favorite in years gone by.
posted by jabes at 3:18 PM on July 24, 2013 [1 favorite]


Best answer: I've not "cloned" a pair of jeans, but I have gotten jeans from makeyourownjeans.com based on multiple specific measurements and I was satisfied with the experience. In terms of measurements, the jeans were spot-on vs. the numbers provided. The tailoring is decent.

The one observation I might make is that it seems that at least for their "by-the-numbers" service they start out with a limited number of blanks where the non-adjustable parts of the assembly (front pockets, horizontal stitching on waistband, button hole, fly, etc.) is already done on each panel and then the panels are stitched together to match the adjustable measurements such as waist/hip/thigh, depth of the rise, taper or lack of taper in the legs, and finally length. In other words, it's probably most accurate to describe the jeans as "semi-custom," in that certain aspects of the fit are made to measure but other parts of the basic styling are standardized.

With that in mind, I'm not sure how much flexibility they have in their system to alter style aspects beyond the aspects that are customizable on a "by the numbers" pair of custom jeans, such as height of the waistband, length of zipper, or a pocket style that is different from the custom pocket options they offer.
posted by drlith at 3:43 AM on July 25, 2013 [1 favorite]


Best answer: I used makeyourownjeans.com a few years ago. The product seemed quite a bit bigger than what I sent them, though I didn't measure to compare. I'd try it again - iirc the price was pretty reasonable.
posted by lakeroon at 7:58 AM on July 25, 2013


Response by poster: thanks, everyone! i will continue to check thrift stores and ebay, but i may give the make your own jeans place a shot.
posted by koroshiya at 4:00 PM on July 25, 2013


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