Stevie Dance on Developing the “Dream Jean”
Stevie Dance gets a little poetic about pants. Just listen to her describe her ideal denim: “Those jeans that have their own life, that feel like you have owned them forever, that work with everything you wear and grow with you. Those jeans that zip you in or hang perfectly down low and loose. Those jeans that feel like you inherited them, but still have the potential life span in them to last you decades.”
Dance is the fashion director at Pop magazine and founder of the Feel Studio, a denim line so focused on perfection, it offers only one style. Below, she explains how she went from collecting vintage jeans to creating her own.
On her vision of the perfect jean: Heavy weight, non-stretch, rigid, genderless, responsibly made (or vintage sourced), seasonless, with a neutral patina—that’s the jam. That’s what the Feel Studio is all about.
On what motivated her to launch her own line: Before the Feel Studio, I exclusively wore vintage jeans from the late ’60s. But then I got sick of repairing busted-out knees or butts, or spending too much on a pair that were stained and short in the leg but otherwise beloved. I wanted to be able to pack a bag for any trip and only need to pack one pair of pants—the dream jean.
So I went about making myself a pair within this framework—a jean worthy of replacing my piles of “almost right” vintage ones, that fit that same mindset of trendless and durable and authentic weighted cotton denim, but could last a decade or more from purchase and were handled responsibly. Our singular signature style, the Genuine Jean, is the result.
The Genuine Jean
thefeelstudioinc.com
$425.00
On the her favorite cuts of denim: At the Feel Studio, we do one singular style of straight-leg jean (and we offer this in two leg lengths), but it’s how you pick your size and wear it that truly defines how you make it your own. I think having exhaustive styles to pick from is disingenuous. Perfect denim—it feels singular to me.
Her go-to denim resources:
9th St. Vintage – Handsewn repairs on all things vintage, or if you need beautiful patchwork done by hand. See Meri—she is my original denim whisperer.
Shopboy – A meticulous tailor who works well with denim and has great taste when advising on fit.
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