I was in the market for a good new pair of jeans. After much touch-and-go with my usual brand, I finally gave Tellason a try. In brief: I’m very pleased.

Levi-Strauss has bummed me out over the last few years, catering to short-term trends while abandoning decades-long customers like me. But some selections from their Vintage Clothing collection have given me a little hope.

My favorite pair of rigid, selvedge, raw denim Levi’s has been replaced by an imposter that insists on stretching.

Since Levi’s abandoned what I liked about them, I needed a Plan B for jeans. I think I found a good one.

Like all raw and rigid denim, new shrink-to-fit jeans will shrink if/when washed. With that, a question remains: What size to buy?

In terms of overall value, clothing is like food: the further you take it from its natural state, the weirder it gets and the worse it is for you (and everyone else).