Reformation Gives Denim Laser Focus
The only way to create a brand with amazing denim, is to hire someone with a passion for all the blue details.
For the Los Angeles, California based Reformation, that person is Jordan Nodarse.
The fashion brand and retailer is focused on offering the industry denim that’s been made more thoughtfully and more mindful of the environment, and Jordan, the company’s director of denim and special projects, has been working with the world’s leading mills and innovators to make sure Reformation delivers.
Carved in Blue caught up with Reformation’s Jordan to get the scoop on the brand’s dedication to jeans.
Carved in Blue: Can you tell us more about your role at Reformation?
Jordan: I’m the director of denim and special projects. I focus on making great quality jeans for women that are both price and eco-conscious. We develop special fabrics with some of the leading eco-conscious mills in the world that include fibers such as recycled cotton, and TENCEL™ branded lyocell fibers and TENCEL™ Lyocell with Refibra™ Technology. In addition to making our fabrics more conscious, we also practice water, chemical and energy reducing techniques with the production of all our jeans.
Carved in Blue: There seems to be a real synergy among the team at Reformation. What is it about the company that is most appealing to you?
Jordan: It’s great to work with a company that has the same goals as you do: “make an impact with great product.” I’m very lucky to work closely with many departments including our sustainability department. They approve all factories, mills and fabrics that I work with. It’s a very crucial role in our company. The challenge in creating alternate ways of making authentic jeans more eco-conscious has been the most appealing to me and what brought me to work here. Reformation has strict guidelines on what materials/fabrics we are allowed to use. For instance, cotton, due to its large use of water and chemicals to grow, is not an approved fiber for us. However, since jeans are made primarily of cotton, we had to explore new ways of reducing our virgin cotton content. Therefore, I reached out to many mills around the world like Candiani, Isko and Bossa to re-design the way we make denim. One year after we have launched our denim program, we are proud to introduce fabrics that include recycled cotton, TENCEL™ Lyocell fibers, Refibra™ Technology and reducing our virgin cotton content down to as little as 17 percent virgin cotton in our denim. This is all made possible with amazing team work!
Carved in Blue: When did you first realize your love of denim? 
Jordan: I was an ’80s child, so my mom had me decked out in Gap, Levi’s, and Jordache. I naturally grew up with a love for denim, however, it wasn’t until 2002 when Hedi Slimane was making Dior Homme skinny jeans that I really found my craving for making jeans. That’s when I started buying old Levi’s and cutting out the caballo inseam and sewing back up the inseam with my mom’s single needle sewing machine. (I must have broken her machine three or four times!) I had $6 skinny jeans versus paying $400 for the Dior Homme skinnies. I thought I was a genius until I wore the jeans a couple times and the awful home sewing machine stitch I put in the inseam would constantly fall apart. That’s about the time I learned about seams and construction. I bought a few industrial machines a year later and have been making jeans ever since.
Carved in Blue: What’s your take on sustainability?
Jordan: I like to use the phrase “conscious fashion” more than sustainability. I feel that being sustainable is just healthy business practices and utilizing resources efficiently. When a brand is conscious, then they are aware of their impact in the supply chain and its effects on the people and earth. This includes monitoring your water usage, auditing not just your factories but all the mills and fiber manufacturers that are behind the fabrics you use. After all, 60 percent to 80 percent of the water and energy usage in a single garment comes from the fabric. All this information can be found on our website along with our yearly sustainability report. The final step outside of the manufacturing process is offsetting the damage already done by working with organizations and initiatives that help repair the earth where its damaged the most. To completely neutralize our footprint, Reformation launched The Wet Program, which donates 1,000 gallons of credits to the Nation Forest Foundation’s clean water projects for every pair of Ref Jeans sold.
Carved in Blue: What is missing from the denim industry today?
Jordan: Primarily, conscious manufacturing. It’s very easy for brands to transition to a safer and more water/chemical/energy saving manufacturing process. For instance, on the fabric side, using more recycled cotton (excluding recycled products like RPET & recycled nylon/polyamide due to fiber shedding in home laundry) and water reducing fibers like Lenzing’s TENCEL™ Lyocell and Refibra™ Technology. Then on the garment washing side, not using the old belly style drum washing machines and switching to vapor spraying front load wash machines, as well as using neutral based cold water enzymes in place of PP, bleach, and any chemicals that require the use of hot water. These are huge steps and only require a small change in price, were talking under a $1 per unit. Look for factories that have Tonello ECOfree, and core systems, or Yilmak and Tolkar vapor spray machines. Also, Jeanologia and VAV make some great add-ons to these machines, like their nanobubble technology and laser machines.
Carved in Blue: When does a jean stop being a jean?
Jordan: Jeans are one of the most amazing pieces of clothing because they can be transformed time and time again. They have many afterlives. You can tailor them into a new fit, you can take them apart and make a completely new style out of them, or you can even recycle them back into a new yarn that will make a brand new pair of jeans. It’s a truly closed loop cycle.
Carved in Blue: What was your first pair of jeans?
Jordan: My first pair of jeans was probably Baby Gap jeans, but my first pair of jeans that I remember falling in love with was a pair of Levi’s medium stone wash jeans. Wore them to death!
Carved in Blue: What is your favorite city for inspiration?
Jordan: Bangkok, Thailand. I think the humidity makes some of the best naturally worn in jeans. I love going to the Chatuchak market and buying old worn in vintage jeans. Also, the Siam Gypsy Junction Night Market is amazing. It has a Western-themed town that is built under a train bridge. It’s truly one of the most unique markets I’ve been to in the world. You can find everything from old 1960’s paintings of the late King Bhumibol to some of the most unique vintage clothes that have no value to most of the locals but us Americans love it!
Carved in Blue: What does Carved in Blue mean to you?
Jordan: It’s a great place for up to date information on the most current denim innovations as well as a great tool to find leaders in the industry that are making great strides in conscious manufacturing. In a deeper meaning, I like to think Carved in Blue stands for each individual’s personal love for denim and how they carve out their style to show it each day.
For more information visit (https://www.thereformation.com/categories/jeans)