I'm not the author, of course, but my experience is that you launder jeans a lot if they have been exposed to the fishing trade. Also, the dried salt is abrasive and accelerates wear while you are wearing them. Weathering also affects denim by fading, and eventually rots the fabric. Altogether, Borgan has ended up with soft jeans, which cling to his manly figure, thus the silhouette is quite different from that of a man wearing crisp new jeans. Hope this helps. By the by, I've just finished rereading Carousel Tides and enjoyed it even more than the first time through.