DIESEL Left, Diesel rust-whiskered "dirty denim" jeans with large, patch pockets, $255, at Holt Renfrew, Due West, The Showroom, TNT, Over The Rainbow. Right, Diesel soft "soiled" denim shorts with white washed-out handmade whiskers, $190, at Holt Renfrew, Over The Rainbow. Soft striped denim blazer with rust whiskers, $275, at Holt Renfrew, Over The Rainbow and TNT. l

 
Buying a pair of blue jeans can be as complicated as ordering a Starbuck's latte.

Will that be tall or short, single or double, low fat or no fat? When seeking out denim today the tough decisions go way beyond a choice of zipper or button-fly, flare or boot-cut.

Jean-lovers are faced with translating all sorts of laboratory lingo. Do you want: sandblasted, stonewashed or soiled, decorated or distressed, hand-filed, bleached, busted up or whiskered (as in faded lines, not the hairs on your chinny, chin, chin).

"In the old days denim was washed, pressed and packaged. Now denim may go through five or six different procedures from start to finish. Some steps are done by hand, making the process labour-intense," says Jarrid Adler, the Canadian distributor for Fornarina, a luxury Italian jeans line new in Canada rivalling brands like Diesel, Seven and Miss Sixty.

"The jeans market is changing so quickly now and there's so much out there," adds Adler. "There are certain trends that people maintain (classic five-pockets and Lopez low rises) but it has become so individual that people may take one piece from one line and one piece from another and mix it all up. The only thing that's congruent is that there's a denim motif through everthing."

Jeanswear companies are catering to such diverse appetites by cranking out denim for all seasons and reasons.

According to research by Cotton Inc. the average consumer owns seven pairs of jeans: a utilitarian style for getting down and dirty; a baggy fit for relaxing on weekends; a low-rise, stretch denim fem-fit to wear with this season's trendy ruffled and peasant blouses; jeans in a fancy fashion wash or decorated or distressed for clubbing; a pair of crisp dark denims for dressier occasions; and a classic five-pocket jean to wear 24/7.

One of the newest players in the denim market this season is Manitoba-based Brawd Inc. which has just relaunched H.A.S.H. Jeans (He And She Hipsters) with a fresh look and new attitude.

Those of a certain age, circa 1970, will remember He and She's tight-fitting, hipslung, bell-bottoms with a trademark starred pocket that took denim out of the workfields and into the discos.

"Today, we've completely modernized the look, says Brawd Inc. president Sean McCoshen, of the more than 52-H.A.S.H. styles that hit stores this season. "The denim is softer and more highly textured and we've changed the fit by curving the waistbands and lowering the rises. There are cuffed-flares, split-seam flares, boot-cuts, and lots of stretch denim offering a tighter leg and narrowed knee with a more contoured flare."

McCoshen says H.A.S.H. Jeans for men and women, priced under $100, complement his Brawd line of more high-fashion, sexy styles for women, priced from $99 to $160.