Brotherhood of the traveling jeans launching 'world tour'
Most parents have probably complained to their teenagers for wearing the same pair of jeans for a week straight or more.
But what about wearing the same pair for a whole month?
Or a whole year?
Mike Bach, an 18-year-old from Elgin, is going to find out.
Bach, who loves high-quality denim jeans, plans to wear the same pair of jeans from The Stronghold for all of June.
It's part of a "world tour" that he organized in which 12 different guys, including guys in six other countries, will each wear the jeans for a month and document the results on superfuture.com, a Web site devoted to fashion and "denim heads."
"Each pair is like an individual piece of art when you're done with it," said Bach, an Elgin Community College student who plans to major in fashion when he attends Columbia College in Chicago this fall. "People have done it before, but I thought it would be a fun thing to organize."
The jeans Bach will be wearing are different from your typical Levi's.
First of all, they cost $295. The Stronghold, which is based out of Venice, Calif., is a brand known for its durability.
Finally, the jeans are The Stronghold's hickory stripe - a pattern of tight, vertical white and blue stripes - which could draw some comments from friends and co-workers.
"I'm sure people will be like, 'Did you wear those yesterday?' Then I'll explain it,'" he said, noting he will wash the pants regularly.
After Bach's turn is over, he is going to express ship the jeans to a guy in Sweden. From there, they will travel to Texas, Connecticut, Georgia, Chicago, Canada, Hong Kong, the Philippines and Argentina.
A member of the Peace Corps also will wear the jeans, but exactly where has not been determined. Finally, a student at Penn State who is known for being tough on his jeans will be the 12th person.
Bach, who found participants on a discussion board on superfuture.com, acknowledged he's thought about the jeans getting lost or destroyed during the tour.
"It could happen, but I'm not really that worried," said Bach, a 2008 graduate of St. Edward High School in Elgin. "It's a risk I have to take."
The jeans purchased by the 6-foot, 3-inch Bach have a 31-inch waist and 37-inch inseam. Finding participants with a similar waist size was tougher than the length because people could just roll the jeans up.
Jimmy Crow, a 42-year-old from Nacogdoches, Texas, is supposed to wear the jeans next February.
Crow said he participated in a jeans world tour a few years ago. He also owns a pair of Stronghold jeans and said the Bach's jeans will look very different a year from now. Crow said some people personalize the jeans and even sign their names inside.
"I'll wear them every day. The only thing it costs us is sending it to the next person," Crow said. "I know (the jeans) will hold up. They'll be very, very different when (Bach) gets them back."
So what will the jeans will look like a year from now - probably something like a hole in each knee and a third hole in a rear pocket from wallet wear?
"That sounds about right," Bach said.