How to Wash a Jean Jacket

Co-authored by Safir Ali

Last Updated: August 25, 2021 References

A jean jacket is a fun, versatile piece of clothing that you can wear almost anywhere—from a baseball game to a weekend brunch to a trip to the farmers market. Cleaning your denim jacket properly ensures it lasts for years of adventures to come. In fact, you don’t even have to wash your denim unless it’s really dirty. Keep reading to find out the answers to some of the most common questions people have about washing jean jackets!

Question 1 of 7:

Are you supposed to wash denim jackets?

Only if it’s absolutely necessary. Denim is a natural fiber and it breaks down after repeated washes, so avoid washing your jean jacket unless it’s unavoidable. For example, wait until there are large, noticeable stains from food or liquids to wash it. Or, wash your denim jacket once a month if you use it heavily or if you just can’t get behind the idea of not washing it regularly.^{[1]
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- How often you should wash denim is a huge debate among denim aficionados. Some people claim you should never wash denim, while others say you should wash it at least once a month. The general consensus is that the less you wash denim, the longer it lasts.
- Another reason to wash your denim jacket less frequently is that it develops more character this way. The original color stays brighter, while the areas it creases in develop unique fades. The less you wash it, the more one-of-a-kind your jacket becomes!

Question 2 of 7:

What do I do if my jean jacket smells bad?

Spritz it with fabric freshener or a mixture of distilled white vinegar and water. Use any commercial fabric freshener spray that you like the scent of. Or, mix 1 part vinegar with 1 part water in a clean spray bottle. Evenly mist your jacket all over to kill odours and freshen it right up!^{[2]
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- You can also hang your denim jacket up outside or near a window to help air it out and diminish odour-causing bacteria.
- You might have heard of people sticking their denim in the freezer to kill odours and bacteria. While this might temporarily make your jean jacket smell better, it most likely only makes the bacteria dormant, so avoid using this technique—it’s a bit of a myth.

Question 3 of 7:

How do you spot treat stains on a denim jacket?

Spot clean tiny stains between washes by blotting them out with water. Use a clean cloth or a cotton swab to dab stains out. Try adding a drop of mild liquid dish detergent for stubborn stains, such as from mustard.^{[3]
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- Avoid rubbing your denim jacket with water because you can end up removing a lot of the color from that one spot, especially if you’ve never washed it before. You can also just spread the stain and make it set into the denim more if you rub it.

Question 4 of 7:

Can you put a denim jacket in the washing machine?

Yes, you can. To do so, start by removing anything from the pockets and buttoning or zipping your denim jacket up, then turn it inside out. Put the jean jacket in your washing machine on a short, delicate cycle and use a color-preserving detergent. Hang your denim jacket up or lay it flat to air dry it after the wash cycle.^{[4]
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- Turning your jacket inside out with the buttons and zippers closed reduces abrasion during the wash cycle, so it doesn't get wear and tear in odd places.
- Using a color-preserving laundry detergent minimizes the amount of indigo that the denim loses during the wash.
- If you want to speed up the drying time, tumble dry your jean jacket on the lowest heat setting or on the air dry setting. Remove the jacket while it’s still damp and let it finish air drying. This helps denim garments retain their shape.
- Wash your denim jacket separately from other items to avoid wear and tear on your other, more delicate clothes. If you want to wash multiple denim garments together, only wash them with like colors.

Question 5 of 7:

Do denim jackets shrink in the wash?

Yes, if you wash and dry them in hot temperatures. Always use cold water to wash denim jackets. Air dry denim or tumble dry it on the lowest temperature setting and remove it while it’s still damp to avoid shrinking.^{[5]
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- To help your jean jacket retain its shape after a wash, lay it flat and smooth out any wrinkles and tug it into shape. Then, put it on a clothes hanger and hang it up to air dry.
- If your jean jacket has any spandex or elastane in the fabric, it’s best to never tumble dry it. The dryer can damage the synthetic materials and make it lose its stretchiness.

Question 6 of 7:

When can I wash my raw denim jacket?

Whenever it gets dirty enough that you don’t enjoy wearing it. This is naturally very subjective, but try to wash raw denim even less than you would wash a standard denim jacket. Wait until your raw denim jacket smells or has really noticeable caked-on dirt and stains to wash it.^{[6]
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- Raw denim refers to denim that doesn’t undergo the standard washing and treatment procedures that most commercial denim garments do before they hit the shelves.
- A raw denim jacket feels stiffer than a pre-washed jean jacket, but it breaks in over time and conforms to your body.
- Raw denim is also all a solid color at first. As you wear and break in a raw denim jacket it develops unique fades and you end up with a really custom garment.
- How often you should wash raw denim is another big debate in the denim community, but if you wash your raw denim jacket too soon after it's new or too often, it won’t develop those coveted fades that raw denim is known for!
- Another rule of thumb you can follow is to wash a raw denim jacket for the first time 6 months after you start wearing it.

Question 7 of 7:

How do you clean raw denim without machine washing it?

You can soak it in cold water. Fill a bathtub or a large basin of some kind with cold water. Add a cap full of a color-preserving laundry detergent to the water and stir it in with your hand. Turn your denim jacket inside out and submerge it in the water. Let it soak for up to 45 minutes, then rinse it thoroughly with clean, cool water until there's no more soap residue. Hang the jacket up to air dry.^{[7]
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- Never soak a raw denim jacket in hot water. Raw denim is even more prone to shrinking than standard denim.
- If you do want to machine wash your raw denim jacket instead of soaking it, always use a cold, gentle cycle. Turn off the spin cycle to avoid wear and fading in unwanted places.
- As with regular denim, you can use a fabric freshener spray or a mixture of equal parts water and white vinegar in a spray bottle to get rid of mild odours and freshen up your raw denim jacket without washing it.

Community Q&A

Question

Do I need to wash a brand new blue jean jacket before I wear it for the first time?

Gavin Donnelly

Community Answer

You definitely don't need to. However, if it has any chemical smells or you just want to make sure it's clean before you wear it for the first time, you can wash it on a cold, gentle cycle in your washing machine, then hang it up to air dry it. If your new jean jacket is raw denim, you can soak it for about 45 minutes in cold water with a little color-preserving laundry detergent, then rinse and air dry it before you wear it for the first time.