Great fades don’t always come from rarefied denim, sometimes they just need some patience, determination, and a little help from grandma. At least, that was the case for Ryker’s above pair of Uniqlo raws.

Purchased for just 50 bucks in Seattle, Washington, Ryker wore these ‘Qlos hard straight out of the gate, traveling and working in them for the first year. The fades didn’t come as fast as they’d like so Ryker added a bit of bleach to the first wash to make the indigo loss pop. And pop it did, as Ryker continued to wear them for two more years, leading to blinding white fades in the seat, calves, and knees.

With fading comes fraying, so Ryker did some boro-style repairs on the back pocket and their grandma stepped up with her sewing machine to reinforce the back panels. Bravo, Ryker, au naturale or not, these are fades to be proud of.