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We can't vouch for the fit of the Dirtball Green Jean, but the America-made denim line does seem to have the eco-friendly bases covered better than most. It touts 100% recyclable material in its NC-made fabric—cotton from the cutting room floor and polyester from recycled water bottles. It also touts its various American-made elements and final sew in SC. The jean comes in regular, rigid, khaki, and enzymed.

You'll need to pledge $85 or more to get a pair via Kickstarter. With less than a week to go, the campaign has a long way to go.

While they are named for the Black Maria hearses that transported the corpses of coal miners during the early 20th century, the new sulfur-dyed denim from Left Field NYC likely isn't meant to be worn during long stings of hard labor—or by the dead. Rather, the black versions of the straight-leg Greaser jeans and slim-fit Chelsea jeans from Left Field will see us through hard times on the streets and in bars of our chosen cities. They've got a tough look. They're made in the USA from Japanese selvedge denim with a sulfur yarn-dyed warp and deep black weft. Complimenting the black-on-black weave are custom, all-black American tacks, rivets, and buttons, and red bandana pocket bags.

Get 'em for $230 at Left Field NYC.

For a little under a decade, the Boulder-based cult denim label Kicking Mule Workshop—or KMW for short—has made a name for itself by simply crafting basic goods of the highest quality. At KMW, the best fabrics and leathers from all over the world meet an unmatched eye for the details of the craft.

So when Kicking Mule quietly closed its workshop earlier this year, many believed it was the end of a promising label. Luckily, KMW is offering a final production run through Context Clothing, the Madison, Wisconsin store that’s been stocking it from the beginning. You’ll find cardholders and belts made in Japan, a loopwheel fleece sweatshirt, and their slim-fit 1980 selvedge jeans—all at drastically reduced prices.

Visit Context Clothing for more information.

Call it a great PR move, call it a step in an interesting direction, call it whatever you will, it's happening. A month ago, Levi's announced a new collection of denim incorporating post-consumer waste. The Levi's Waste<Less line is made up of 20% recycled product, namely plastic bottles, food trays, etc. Your pair of jeans from the collection will contain about 8 12-20oz. bottles. Thus, the Spring 2013 Levi’s Waste<Less collection will utilize over 3.5 million recycled bottles. Sounds like good karma.

To make the jeans, recycled PET plastic is sorted by color, crushed into flakes, then made into a polyester fiber, blended with cotton fiber, and woven into traditional cotton yarn by Cone Denim. The colored recycled material adds a unique undertone to the final product—which we'll be interested to see, touch, and try on in person.  

Skinny jeans, straight fit 504s, trucker jackers, and women's boyfriend skinny jeans will all be available in the Waste<Less line beginning in January 2013.

levis.com