The sad ballad of my sassy jeans.

[I am the Lizard Queen!!]

So, this is something I am genuinely curious about, and I know you guys will have the answer for me. You retail ninjas!!!
For Christmas this year, my Mom bought me two pairs of very cute and sassy jeans. One pair was too big, so I set them aside with the receipt to exchange sizes, but the second pair made me look H-O-T! (all things being relative, of course!).
I wore the second pair for about 5 hours on Boxing day, not doing anything overly active or unusual; in fact I was mainly downloading books on my new Kindle (yay!!). And possibly drinking wine.....and listening to my Dad talk about politics. And drinking more wine.

That evening I put them in the laundry. When I went to wash them I noticed that throughout the legs there were fairly large, frayed puffs of elastic coming through the seams (they had a tiny bit of stretch to them so I assume there was something wrong with the elastic that was used). The jeans were definitely not too small, so it wasn't like they were being stretched too much, they were just not properly made.
So, I debate washing them before I exchange them, just because I can't stand the thought of returning something dirty that's been covering my bottom and expecting someone else to touch them and handle them, but I finally decide it's probably better to be able to show them what happened before they were even washed once.
When I get to the store the girl is very nice, although she did seem kind of flustered about doing an exchange. I apologize to her for not washing them, and tell her I feel weird about handing someone my dirty clothes and this is her response
"Oh, it's a good thing you didn't wash them. If you had there would be nothing we could do for you."
I say "Really? Even though I had only worn them once, if I had washed them properly, according the instructions and then noticed the elastic coming out, I wouldn't be able to exchange them?"
Her response... "Nope. You would have been out of luck."

So, I'm just wondering.... is this actually true? All bets are off once you wash an item of clothing, even if it is clearly faulty? This seems wrong to me. I can understand not being able to exchange things that a person wears and washes and then simply changes their mind about, but this seemed like overkill.
Just a side note; these were not cheap jeans. If I had worn them once, washed them properly, then noticed the seams and not been able to exchange them, I would have been pretty upset. It was just dumb luck that I noticed the seams at all.
I just let it go, but in the back of mind I was thinking that I would have had to become and SC in this scenario and taken it to a manager.
Am I nuts???? yes? no?
(It's ok if the answer is 'yes. You are nuts!". I'm just wondering whether I need to be going over all new clothing with a magnifying glass before I put anything in the wash.)

Thoughts?

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

So, I'm just wondering.... is this actually true? All bets are off once you wash an item of clothing, even if it is clearly faulty?

Most likely. It's considered used at that point.

You might've considered taking a lint roller to any problem areas. This is what the people who rent clothing do. They know the store won't take it back if they can tell it's been washed.

[Kheldarson]

It's a catch-22 thing, really.

On the one hand, you're probably still in their return period and have an issue that should legitimately be solved by them (a pair of jeans not lasting one wash? wut?).

On the other, at least here in the US, they don't have to take returns at all, if they don't want to. Most companies, of course, do as a courtesy, but they don't have to at all.

So maybe it's a rule of that company/store? Or maybe the clerk was just full of it. Dunno.

Honestly, I wouldn't worry over it in the long run, but if you do get presented with a similar scenario, calmly ask for a further explanation of why, and if the clerk can't explain why, ask for a manager to do so.

[I am the Lizard Queen!!]

Hmmm. Interesting.
Thanks for the input guys! I was just curious if there was hard and fast rule. It just seemed insane to me that a 90$ pair of jeans couldn't be exchanged after 5 hours of gentle wear and then a single wash cycle (also gentle!) when the seams were coming apart. Maybe I should just permanently wear pajama pants!!
Mmm..flannel Santas......

[Lace Neil Singer]

Where I come from, if an item is damaged then a store has to give a refund. You do have to present a receipt, but regardless of washing etc, as long as you're within the rules (some stores have a limited time for refunds), the store can't refuse you.

[Aislin]

Well the issue with washing is if you damage the garment by not following the washing instructions then try an claim the item was defective.

[Kanalah]

Used to be when you bought new clothes, you'd wash them before wearing for the first time.

Or is that just my family?

[MoonCat]

Used to be when you bought new clothes, you'd wash them before wearing for the first time.

Or is that just my family?

I know people who do that. Some say it's to get rid of certain chemicals (I think it's called sizing?), others say it's because "you don't know who tried them on." If something looks dirty, I don't buy it. Other than that, I don't worry about it.

[rapana1]

On the care label of pretty much any cotton garment, especially denim, you are usually advised to wash before first wear. This is usually to remove any loose dye, and as Mooncat said, the sizing which is added in the final stages of the fabric's manufacturing process.

[dalesys]

I bought some new tight jeans
I bought some new tight jeans
Wriggle wriggle wriggle wriggle
Str-etch... exhale gasp
Ptok! The zipper broke

Tight Jeans Round
from Big Times In A Small Town: The Vineyard Tapes

[lvsssycat]

I always wash clothes before wearing.

I read an article in Reader's Digest probly 20 years ago about a little boy who went to the emergency room for something or another. The hospital couldn't figure it out and sent him home. The boy ended up in the er again the next day and the nurse noticed that he had the same pants on and asked the parents if they had washed them. Turns out there was some kind of chemical on the pants from processing.

Anyone else ever hear of this?

[Sunshine]

My father and lil ray both have contact dermatitus. We wash everything before its worn.

[Food Lady]

You should wash clothes before wearing, as they have pesticides on them. They have to survive shipment bug-free. Also, sizing.
If you wash an item once and it falls apart, I am doing a refund for you. If you bring me a faulty garment you have washed or not, it doesn't matter. You are getting your refund. I have handled worse things than a pair of jeans you wore for 5 hours.

[greek_jester]

Used to be when you bought new clothes, you'd wash them before wearing for the first time.

Or is that just my family?

Depends on the person, & on the garment. My sister gets a rash with certain colours (black, red, dark blue) if they're not washed first to get any excess dye off of the material.

Myself, I do it because I've seen (& smelt!) some of the people who try on clothes, so I prefer to make sure they're clean before I wear them out.

[Flying Grype]

I would contact corporate and ask what the policy is, in case the clerk was full of it. Jeans are not supposed to fall apart on contact with water or soap. :P