Best of 2009: Shop

Shop. Online or offline, where did you spend most of your money this year?

I have been meaning to write a review of my experiences with IndiDenim an online custom jean shop. Well actually, IndiDenim also has a brick-and-mortar store in California, and they sell not only custom-made jeans for men an women, but also custom men's shirts.

A pair of made-to-fit jeans from IndiDenim runs a steep $150 plus, but can you really put a price on jeans that don't gap at the waist or smash your booty?

The ordering process was made as simple as possible by a very easy-to-use series of order form pages on the IndiDenim site. Despite the written and pictorial instructions, I still had a hard time taking my rise and inseam measurements. I way, way, way over estimate my inseam measurement for the first pair of jeans I ordered--Luckily, they were very easy to exchange, though I did have to eat the extra shipping costs. If you can, I would recommend going to a tailor to have your measurements taken. If not, and you do botch the sizes (like I did) th first time around, at least IndiDenim's return/exchange policy allows for some wiggle room, pun intended.

Anyway...I ordered two pairs of jeans. Designing your own jeans using all of IndiDenims stiching, embelleshing and other design choices is fun, but takes some practice. My first pair of jeans, are a little too mom-jeans for my taste (at no fault of IndiDenim), but my second pair turned out perfectly. They are dresssy enough for casual days at the office, for work happy hours and for family dinners, yet they are super comfortable and stylish.

Though I've only worn and washed my jeans so many times in the few months since I bought them, they seem to be really durable. The fabric is quality and the stitching well-done.

It took a long time to get my new jeans--especially the ones that had to be exchanged, altered, and re-shipped--but no longer than the IndiDenim site indicated.

Also, they save your measurements and designs, so reordering is easy. This will certainly come in handy the next time I order from IndiDenim--and there will be a next time!

I was going to include pictures with this review, you know, of me all bent-over, showing off my no-gap, but then I decided against it.