Unsanforized denim, often called shrink-to-fit, skips the mechanical pre-shrinking step that most modern denim goes through before being cut into a garment. The fabric keeps more of the tension it had on the loom, which means it still has significant shrinkage left in it when you buy the jeans.
In practice, this changes how you choose a size. Unsanforized jeans are usually bought a size or more larger than your normal fit, worn briefly to let them mold to your body, then soaked and washed so the fabric shrinks down, commonly by roughly 5 to 10 percent in length and waist. The result, when done carefully, is a pair of jeans shaped closely to the wearer, though the first wash needs to be planned rather than left to chance.
Because the sizing process takes extra care, unsanforized jeans are mostly chosen by people already familiar with raw denim who want a more involved break in. Compare this with regular sanforized denim, and see our jeans size guide before buying if you are unsure which approach suits you.
