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My Vintage Denim Journey

Jacqs wearing a burgundy floral blouse with vintage denim and black clogs

By Jacqs Dobbins | 10.29.2018

I have a problem—an obsession maybe—with vintage denim. It started years ago when I began to see all these really cool bloggers in perfectly distressed, butt-enhancing vintage Levi’s. I needed a pair. And my search was not successful.

After being unable to find a single pair that I liked after a year of looking, I decided to try that big-name in modern vintage denim, Re/Done. And still no success. They didn’t fit right. They squeezed my thighs in a vice-like grip and flattened my ass. I decidedly did not look like those Instagrammers.

So I gave up for a while. I bought modern wedgie-fit Levi’s and called it good, thinking that maybe my body wasn’t built for vintage denim. But earlier this year my obsession was reignited. Vintage and vintage-inspired jeans were everywhere. It seemed like all the ethical fashion bloggers and Instagrammers I followed had a pair of Levi’s or look-alikes. Once again, I needed a pair. But this time around I was more dedicated. I would not give up.

I started online, buying three different pairs of Levi’s, none of which fit me. I sold them and kept looking. Visiting San Francisco, I searched in as many vintage stores as I could get to and still didn’t find my perfect pair. After months of hunting, I found myself once again on the verge of giving up. It was too much. I was too obsessed. I needed to move on.

And then, one day Sara and I were strolling through our favorite vintage furniture store and noticed they had expanded. Now there was a “skill shop” in back selling yarn, thread, dyes…and four pairs of vintage Levi’s. Naturally, I jumped on them and quickly tried on every single pair. And, like the magic they are, one of the them fit. Yes, they needed to be hemmed and taken in (like most pants I buy), but they hugged my thighs and cupped my butt perfectly. And they were only $50. Needless to say, I bought them at lightning speed and spent the rest of the day on a high.

That random skill shop made all my vintage denim dreams come true. And lucky for me, they keep restocking. I now have two more pairs and I couldn’t be happier—unless I could wear them to work every day, but rules are rules.

Close up of Jacqs' butt showing off vintage Levi's