Cooperative Living August 2022 - 28

K I D S ! C L I P A ND K E E P YOUR KIDS
KIDS! CLIP AND KEEP
OUR K I D S KORN E R C O LUMN S I N A T HR E E - R I NG B I ND E R A ND YOU ' L L H A V E A NO T E B OOK C HO C K F U L L O F F UN I D E A S A ND A C T I V I T I E S F OR T H E F U T UR E !
ORNER COLUMNS IN
THREE-RING BINDER AND
OU'LL HAVE
NOTEBOOK CHOCK FULL OF FUN IDEAS AND ACTIVITIES FOR THE FUTURE!
KIDS KORNER
Blue Jeans ... America's Perfect
Story and artwork by Anne M. Dellinger, Contributing Columnist
B
to
to
ack-to-school sales are in full swing. That's a
sure sign that it's time to start on your first
homework assignment ... collecting essential
school supplies and tidying up your wardrobe.
This year's list of necessities will probably look
a lot like last year's: * notebooks * pens * markers
* new T-shirts * new jacket * new, larger shoes
and socks.
You'll likely be needing a new pair of jeans, too.
After all, jeans have almost certainly been part of your
school attire every year since preschool days, so ...
new school year = newpair ofjeans,
especially if your old ones are becoming " high water "
pants!
Not only are jeans casual, comfy and cool, they
are very historic. Did you know that every time you
pull them on, you are wearing " pants from the past? "
similar piece ofclothingmade famous in the 1800s. It's
harhar
Well, not exactly, but your jeans are modeled on a
d
Wel no
believe
av any
some
th
some imaginary
th
l
but
to the
in
are modeled on a
the
at pants from a bygone
hrou
The jeans hang ng out the
have any connection to the jeans in your closet todtoday.
To better understand how this happened, follow
imaginary clotheslines down through the ages.
nderstand ow this happened, follow
h
the
The jeans hanging out there can reveal a fascinating
history of their use, trends and crazes.
And, amazingly, jeans are still making fashion
anging out there can reveal a fascinating
vea
fa
inating
history as they continue to show up on clotheslines
(or more likely, in clothes dryers) of the 21st century.
The long, true blue story about jeans
It all began during Gold Rush days when miners
complained about their clothes getting ripped and
torn while working.
Levi Strauss,
a Bavarian
immigrant
businessman, and
Jacob Davis, a
tailor, partnered up
to fix the problem. They believed the workers' brown,
" duck cloth " canvas pants could be strengthened by
adding metal fasteners called rivets to the pockets
and other stress points. Their little brass, button-like
devices worked and became a hit with the miners.
Their idea was patented on May 20, 1873, making
this the official beginning, and birthday, of sturdy
American jeans.
26 ● Cooperative Living ●
August 2022
s
era could ever
er
's
F
I
T
Later in 1873, the partners switched the brown
canvas to a more flexible fabric, blue denim, to go
with the rivet idea and voila ... the Levi's 501 working
man's jean was created. Little did they know that their
" waist overalls " design would influence American
wardrobes for more than a century ... and still counting.
Now, fast forward through the decades.
1920s-1930s
Wild West Fashion
The waist overalls
continued as standard
work clothes until
Hollywood began
producing movies about the Wild West. When actors
like John Wayne and Gary Cooper were seen wearing
Levi's, suddenly blue jeans became something more
exciting than rugged workwear. As people became
fascinated with cowboys, blue denim jeans began
slipping into the mainstream culture, turning Levi's
into a brand name with a designer label.
1950s Cool Blue
Denim blue jeans
boxy style blue jeans. Rebellious teenage boys began
as
ymb
l
classroom because they
en b
(I you h
f
av
av
er
er
dnot go well at school. ome
ed
re too " anti-e
"
"
" Ha
" Ha
ppy D
ay
became " cool. " Pop culture,
bad-boy movie stars like
James Dean and Marlon
Brando popularized cuffed,
eenage boys began
adopting these jeans as a symbol ofdisobedience against
disrespectful and did not go well at school. Some
classroom because they were too anti-establishment.
against
authority. Their outspokenness was often viewed as
school boards even banned blue jeans from them the
(If
e ev watched
ishment. "
"
"
ays " reruns,uns,
you know that Fonzie represents the cool, defiant teen
of the '50s.)
1960s -1970s Peace,
Love and Flower Power
By the 1960s, blue
By the
ean
the straight leg pants into casual bell-bottoms and
hip-hugger styles that were often decorated with paint,
t
styles that were often decorated with paint,t,
styles th
er
en decora
Ge
pa
patches and embroidery. Denim jackets, vests and skirts
became fashion trends.
co-opliving.com
co-opliv
" jeans. " The Hippie
nera io
ansform
y the 1960s, blue
jeans were just called
e Hippieippie
nera ion transformed

http://www.co-opliving.com

Cooperative Living August 2022

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