Vol 1: The Denim Letter From the Place That Made It
Jul 02, 2026
Live Update from the Workshop - Raleigh, North Carolina
Confirming your subscription has caused one or more Raleigh Denim employees to briefly abandon their sewing machines and perform an impromptu celebration that has been described by witnesses as "concerning but heartfelt."
One person may or may not be doing a victory lap around the cutting table. We’re not naming names.
Meanwhile, someone in the pattern room just did twenty squats in their selvage jeans to celebrate. They’ve been waiting for you. We all have.
Welcome to Raw Cut — the weekly letter about denim, craft, and the history stitched into the fabric of American-made goods. It lands in your inbox every Tuesday morning, right when you need something worth reading and your coffee needs something worth thinking about.
Here’s the short version:
1. A history lesson you'll actually enjoy. North Carolina was once the denim capital of the world. Almost nobody knows that. We're going to fix it — one issue at a time.
2. A running experiment in raw denim. We're wearing one pair of raw selvedge jeans for 365 days straight — and you vote on what they do each month. Farm work? Road trip? Construction site? You decide. The fade is yours too.
3. A weekly myth demolished. Everything you think you know about denim is probably wrong. We fix that every Tuesday. Spoiler: the dryer is not your friend.
One more thing worth knowing: Raw Cut is written by a former Physician Assistant who one day looked at her life, looked at a pair of perfectly faded raw selvedge jeans, and made a decision that confused everyone who knew her. Best decision she ever made.
Turns out the right pair of jeans does more for a person than most people give them credit for.
Well, the celebration in the workshop is reaching fever pitch. Our head jeansmith just fired up the industrial iron (which in jeansmith terms is basically a 21-gun salute).
That’s how happy we are you’re here. Your first issue lands Tuesday at 7am. Wear your best pair.
Don't put your jeans in the dryer.
— Kim
