Sourcing Jeans

Jeans.

I will need a lot for my art installation idea.  I think probably I can beg people to give me their old jeans, but before I start asking - I do need to figure out if I can physically sew denim in bulk at this stage of my life.  My hands are weak and I have poor coordination of my fingers.  My vision is not what it once was.  My back and legs get tired and strained when overtaxed.  I gave up sewing nearly a decade ago.

But first - I figured I need a dozen or so pairs of jeans to get me started - something for trial and error.  Something that is free or cheap.  

I started checking with Yard Sales - people want a crazy amount of money for jeans.

I started checking Thrift Stores - Goodwill prices jeans at $11.99.  Not feasible.

Family Services and MRM are about half that - between $8 and 10.  Umm No

I stumbled into luck at the Salvation Army - which had items with certain tags on sale for 75% off.  That meant I could pick up some jeans for $1.50 each, since their price is $6

So, I brought home a dozen pairs of jeans from Salvation Army, washed and dried them.

Then, I needed to set up my studio for sewing.  It has been set up for mixed media work for the past decade.  I had quite a lot of work to do before I could even make a cut or take a stitch.