If you’ve worked in food services, especially in the fast-food industry, odds are that you have worn denim jeans to work, either by choice or by obligation. I’ve worked quite a few fast-food jobs in my short life, and I’ve even worked in the dining halls on campus, and almost every job I’ve had so far has required employees wear jeans to work.
Although my least-favorite aspect of every job I’ve had has been the uniforms — especially those involving baseball caps — blue jeans have always felt right to me, and I’ve found it hard to complain about a job that makes me wear something that, given the choice, I would probably wear anyways.
The story of how blue jeans became the most universal casual staple in wardrobes around the globe is a long and interesting tale of innovative materials, immigrant entrepreneurs and movie stars. From the fabric’s unintentional beginnings in Nimes, France, to its career-launching impact on Bavarian immigrant Levi Strauss, to its raging success here in the U.S. and all over the world for decades since; denim has deep cultural roots and international significance.
Made mainstream in America by big names like James Dean and Marilyn Monroe, denim jeans today have become as cliched as they are iconic. Though a classic fashion statement, jeans were originally designed to be more durable and flexible than the pants men were wearing at the time to work in mines and ride on horseback.
In other words, the blue jeans we wear to sit in class, go to the movies, and fall asleep on the couch were designed as work pants, intended to withstand harsh environments and long journeys. It seems fitting that I would wear a pair of pants crafted from such sturdy woven cotton to tackle the harrowing task of serving lattes to professors.
As a college student, 90 percent of my outfits involve denim, usually in the form of blue jeans. Despite their distinct color, jeans have become so culturally normative they match with just about anything (sometimes even more denim).
They are, for many of us, the most comfortable item in the closet. They are appropriate for a wide variety of occasions. They transcend class, gender, style and body type. In a way, jeans aren’t just the uniform for pizza delivery drivers and cafe baristas. In a way, blue jeans are the uniform for the human experience.
Kayla Beard is a senior studying journalism at Ohio University. How have blue jeans effected your life? Let Kayla know by emailing her at kb851412@ohio.edu.
