Local man treasures vintage, button-fly Levis
24.05.12
Michael MacDonnell values his vintage Levis as a legacy.
"When I write my will," said MacDonnell, "I am going to leave
these to my son. I want them to be kept as a family heirloom."
Interesting word, heirloom.
MacDonnell, who works as a USDA grader stationed at Foster
Farms, always treasured the first button-fly jeans he ever got when
he was 17, as a 1983 Christmas gift from his older stepbrother.
"He wore that type of jean, and they had a nice fade to them,"
said MacDonnell, who lived in San Jose, Calif., at the time. "I
like the old-fashioned look of the buttons, and I also like the
fade pattern. I have a strong appreciation for things made the
old-fashioned way."
For a baby boomer, handling the Levis is like being jettisoned
back in time. They're soft and pale blue now, with darker smudged
blue along the ridges of the outside seams.
"I like that two-toned look," MacDonnell said.
In his job, he scrutinizes chickens for the government, being
certain that they are free of bone fragments and blood clots, that
they deserve a Grade A rating. "I have an eye for detail,"
MacDonnell said. "That's probably why I appreciate button-fly
jeans."
Source: Longview Daily News