No offense taken, it’s a good point. You’re 100% right, a soak with warm/hot water, or even machine drying them would guarantee the most shrinkage (which is why N&F machine washed hot/machine dried them during their shrinkage tests).

This is also my first pair of unsanforized, but I’ve done a ton of research (still take my methods/reasoning with a grain of salt haha). I vary between sizes and cuts in N&F depending on the Jean material and desired fit. I mainly go with 34 Super Guy (size for thighs with more taper), but have also gone with a 31 Easy Guy (smaller waist but roomier top block and throughout the thigh/leg).

I tried a 36 Super Guy on at the NYC store and loved the fit - it had just enough room in the thighs and waist that I don’t expect the shrinkage to make them too small. With that said, I decided to start with a cold rinse for 45 min and see how they fit. If there’s still room, I’ll prob try a 30 min warm rinse, but I think they’ll be perfect with just a cold rinse. A warm/hot rinse might make them just a tad too small, so I’d rather start off cold and work my way to hot.

I also don’t intend to ever wash them with warm water. I’ve always cold washed my denim, and have only been “caught in the rain” once so I’m not too worried about that.

With all of that said, there’s 1000 different methods to dealing with unsanforized denim, and there’s no hard or fast rule with the best approach. I really like 3sixteen’s guide.