I realize I'm no fashion plate, hipster, or dandy. However, I generally look acceptable, and get compliments from time to time. So, I don't think a little fashion advice is completely unwarranted. Specifically, young men pay way the hell too much money for jeans. Now, my primary advice is "They're just jeans, buddy"- meaning that if you take too much stock in what brand, dye or cut they are, you're investing more energy in them than they will produce in positive ways for you.
That having said- I do think that Selvedge, dark dye premium jeans look masculine and spiffy. Usually, they look best in a classic photograph of some heroic young man from the late 1950's through the mid 1960's. I think it's spectacularly ridiculous for me to try to look like one of those heroes. But, the lesson is there- go for a classic cut and fit, and treat them like trousers more than pants, and you'll look like you're wearing nice jeans.
There are quite a few "classic" jean makers out there. I've tried several, and, really, the best are the older brands- Levi, Lee, Wrangler, or the particular brand I'm getting around to- Sears' Roebuck jeans. They'll price right below Levi, but above most Wranglers, and about the same as Lee. However, if you get them in the slim cut, dark dye, and a bit too long, they look pretty much identical to the 200 dollar selvedge denim at the hipster store. As a matter of fact, people have asked me about mine, thinking they were imported Japanese denim. Nope- fourteen dollar denim on sale at Sears.
That's the sweet spot, you see? They're just jeans. Mass market, bought from the OG big Box store.
...And yet, that's what these guys in the 200 dollar hipster jeans are trying to evoke, right? Something that your grandfather would've bought from the Sears catalog? Worth considering, right?
