Used look
Also known as: distressed look, worn look
Deliberately aged look of new textiles featuring abrasions, holes, frayed edges and wash effects - especially on jeans, denim jackets and streetwear shirts.
Description
The used look is a finishing process that deliberately makes new goods look as if they had been worn for years. The technique emerged in the 1970s with the rise of the rock and punk movements and went mainstream in the 90s and 2000s during the denim-boutique wave. Classic applications are jeans, denim jackets, T-shirts and sweaters; today the used look is also applied to workwear collections and streetwear basics.
Key techniques include: sandblasting (fading by sand blasting - now largely banned due to silicosis risk), laser (modern, non-toxic alternative), manual sanding (whiskers, honeycombs), enzyme washing, stone washing with pumice and mechanical cutting or tearing. Premium brands combine these processes by hand for a realistic, individual look; cheap goods rely on standardised series effects.
Environmentally the used look is controversial: the wet processes consume a lot of water and chemicals, and the artificial ageing reduces real garment lifespan. Certified brands (Bluesign®, Levi's Water<Less) try to cut resource use.
Properties
| Issuer | Not a label - finishing process |
|---|---|
| Scope | Artificial ageing via laser, enzymes, stone wash |
| Label | Jeans, denim jackets, streetwear shirts |
Related product categories
Sources & references
2- Wikipedia: Distressing (garments) Wikipedia — Freie Enzyklopädie https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distressing
- Wikipedia: Stone washing Wikipedia — Freie Enzyklopädie https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_washing
