For Wille’s birthday I got him a couple of total surprise gifts, a denim jacket and a pair of jeans. The jeans are raw dry selvage and for them to age the best and get that cool molded after your body look without being a pair of ladies stretch pants is to wait A LONG time (at least six months of regular wear) until you launder them.
If you’re like me you launder your clothes all the time and probably more often than necessary and the concept of not washing the jeans at least every week or so after wearing them feels a bit off. I realized I needed some sort of airing facility at least so I went around to hunt for a hook of some sort.
It was a lucky hunt (pun intended) when I found this rhino hippo hook for a song in a local shop. There were other species available but the rhino hippo was white so…
I mounted him on the balcony off the den next to Wille’s rooms where the Thin Finns can hang while being aired out.
From the inside we can see that they’re there so we don’t forget.
We air them inside out so they won’t fade in the event of sunshine and also because it lets the inside breathe.
I realize that Mr. Rhino Hippo was probably intended for a kid’s room but I think he looks pretty good and happy there. At least’ I’ve given him a view.
I think that's a hippo with an open mouth
Posted by: katie | July 26, 2012 at 07:09 AM
It's definitely a hippo, but in the packaging I thought it was a birdie on a weird perch at first!
Posted by: Melissa of craftgasm | July 26, 2012 at 07:22 AM
wow Finlay this is hippo ....
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Posted by: Ashaepicsoni | July 26, 2012 at 07:35 AM
I agree -- first I thought it was a birdy on a Rhino's head - then realized its perhaps a hippo ready to eat something! What a great idea to use for the jeans. Folks here in Switzerland air out suit jackets on the balcony all the time. Could be because the cleaning costs are so sky high!
Posted by: Susan | July 26, 2012 at 07:36 AM
HIPPO! Thanks :)
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | July 26, 2012 at 08:13 AM
Lovely! What a good idea!
Posted by: May / amycapdet | July 26, 2012 at 08:40 AM
Cool hippo - hope the jeans are still considered cool by the time they 'fit'!
Posted by: Hxx | July 26, 2012 at 08:55 AM
It's so cute!! I want one! :)
Posted by: Maddelaine.Green | July 26, 2012 at 09:41 AM
I've never heard of these jeans.
Posted by: Luna | July 26, 2012 at 10:03 AM
I love Nudie!
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | July 26, 2012 at 10:12 AM
A hippo ?? I thought it was a squirrel !... Nice jeans though...
Posted by: Ebru | July 26, 2012 at 10:22 AM
For that cool price this jeans has to be perfect from the day one ;-)))
Besides that I have a similiar solution for balcony to air some jackets etc.
Posted by: jja | July 26, 2012 at 11:58 AM
"In the event of sunshine" - bahaha! No chance of that this summer! :(
Posted by: Judith | July 26, 2012 at 12:31 PM
Me neither, Luna...
Posted by: Marcia Lavanda | July 26, 2012 at 01:30 PM
Benita - I read somewhere once that putting your jeans in the freezer 'cleans' them as well as washing. I imagine by 'clean' it means kills the germs but not the dirt - ha!
Posted by: Monica | July 26, 2012 at 01:35 PM
Ooh, good to know, didn't think of that!
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | July 26, 2012 at 01:41 PM
Surfing from blog to blog I ended up at "Chez Larsson". I have to say that I love your style and I will be surely returning often as my husband and I have just bought a house in the Paris outskirt, which will need some renovation. I'm sure "Chez Larsson" will offer lots of inspiration.
(PS: Does your all white kitchen comes from Ikea ? You may have said it but I didn't scroll through all the pages...yet!)
Posted by: Sandrine | July 26, 2012 at 01:48 PM
Here's a link to instructions for 'cleaning' jeans by putting them in the freezer.
I've never tried it. I'll stick with soap and water.
Posted by: Caro | July 26, 2012 at 02:34 PM
Yes, the whole thing's IKEA!
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | July 26, 2012 at 03:03 PM
Do those jeans turn his legs blue? I read about that problem and experienced it myself with a new pair that I washed every time I wore them (I am much too old to follow that 6 month trend) They still give off dye!
Posted by: Heather | July 26, 2012 at 04:17 PM
So cute and practical, fun yet unobtrusive! It will look great even when not being used to air out jeans, and will probably come in handy for unforseen uses! My next house will not be stucco from edge to edge, top to bottom--too much of a pain to add a useful hook outdoors, or mend a loose gate.
Posted by: Lisa Flaherty | July 26, 2012 at 04:53 PM
HILARIOUS!!!!
Posted by: katie | July 26, 2012 at 05:33 PM
Noted! Thanks.
Will go for an all white too!!
Posted by: Sandrine | July 26, 2012 at 06:05 PM
They don't but the outside does give off a little bit of dye so Wille doesn't sit on the white sofa in the den without putting a blanket first. And I didn't ask him to, he figured that out himself :).
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | July 26, 2012 at 06:46 PM
What we do for our children! Oi!
Posted by: KariMc | July 26, 2012 at 07:11 PM
So cute! What a fun idea!
Posted by: Danielle | July 26, 2012 at 07:25 PM
Have you shown us pictures of the den inside? That's at the top of the steps? And Wille's bed is in the little room over the former Benita bedroom nook? And then there is a bigger room where the shelves are and the door to the balcony? Hmmm, I think I'd better go look up the floor plan huh? Anyway the hook is a nice addition. Not little kiddie, kinda funky and cool.
Posted by: Missy | July 26, 2012 at 09:25 PM
I love it! And yes to freezing jeans. Apartment Therapy even made a video about it: http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/how-to-freeze-your-jeans-143246
Posted by: Marlena | July 27, 2012 at 12:12 AM
My boyfriend and I both have selvage denim jeans. We wash them almost never. I'd say once a year maybe. Granted, I usually only wear them on the weekends but I find they get plenty aired out just hanging in my closet.
Posted by: Amy R | July 27, 2012 at 03:25 AM
I'm definitely trying it !
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | July 27, 2012 at 08:11 AM
Yes, this is what it looks like: http://chezlarsson.com/myblog/2011/06/the-den.html
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | July 27, 2012 at 08:13 AM
Nudie is à swedish brand i think, perhaps not that big abroad.
Posted by: Moi | July 27, 2012 at 08:21 AM
Hahaha, I popped in to suggest freezing the jeans and then brushing them, but have been beaten to it! Love the hook, wish they were available here!
Posted by: Kim | July 30, 2012 at 03:00 AM
You beat me to it, Monica!
Put them in the freezer then shake them out (out side) like a rug. Allegedly, all the "yuck" comes off this way. A very seemingly-knowledgable salesperson in a store told me this trick.
Posted by: Meredeth (xgirl0) | July 30, 2012 at 07:07 AM
Haha, vilken härlig krok. Och ja, den passar ju perfekt där och inte bara i ett barnrum. Vilken härlig blogg du har.
Posted by: Monica Karlstein – Hemmafixbloggen | July 31, 2012 at 06:45 PM