While you'll more than likely find a pair of jeans in every single Briton's wardrobe across the UK, many won't have stopped to question a delicate feature on them - or be simply oblivious to the small pieces of metal embedded into their pockets. These studs, otherwise known as rivets, weren't added for the purpose of decoration, as many would assume, but actually serve quite an important job.
Wondering why you'll find them on almost every pair of jeans, one Reddit user asked: "These are on all jeans. Do they serve a purpose, practical or otherwise? If not, why are they there?"
These rivets are typically found on the front and pack pockets of jeans, and are made by pressing of hammering a washer onto a metal stud through the denim itself. Their use on pockets actually dates back to 1872, when tailor Jacob Davis from Nevada, would add them onto the pockets of hard-working miners and pitmen.
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The Mirror reports that he had been buying fabric from Levi Strauss to create clothing when he discovered adding copper rivets helped to strengthen pockets when the miners were filling them with heavy tools. Wanting to share his discovery, David wrote a letter to Levi Strauss and went on to form a partnership with them.
He received a patent for an "improvement in fastening pocket openings". Since then, rivets have become a common feature on jeans, appearing in places where the most strain is put on the fabric to prevent seams from splitting. Commenting on the revelation, one Reddit user said: "I was today years old," while another, joked: "Pretty sure their main purpose is scratching my cell phone."
But this isn't the only time Levi made moves in jean development as they have been credited for creating the small, tight pockets on jeans. In the late 19th century, the pocket was stitched into Levi's 'waist overall jeans' and was made just big enough to store a pocket watch inside. The design was patented by Strauss and J.W Davis in May 1873 as an 'Improvement in Fastening Pocket Openings'.
Tacey Panek, Levi Strauss & Co's historian, told Insider: "The oldest pair of waist overalls in the Levi Strauss & Co. Archives (from 1879) includes the watch pocket. Our 19th century overalls had a single back pocket on the right side of the pant beneath the leather patch."
But as people are now more likely to use a smart watch than a pocket watch, it may seem a bit pointless still having it there. However, it came in useful during the Second World War.
Panek, added: "One interesting fact about the watch pocket is that during WWII the two corner rivets were removed as a way to conserve metal for the war effort. The rivets returned to the watch pocket after the war.
"It was riveted in the top two corners and included our recognisable arch design, called the Arcuate, stitched with a single needle sewing machine. The watch pocket was an original element of our blue jeans, like the rivets on our pockets, button fly, arched back pocket stitching and leather patch.
"To preserve the integrity of the early design, Levi Strauss & Co. maintains the watch pocket."
