John’s Specialty Jeans Brings a Personal Touch to Adaptive Clothing
October 14, 2022
Hilary Muehlberger
John’s Specialty Jeans provides wheelchair users with custom jeans ordered not just to fit, but also to accommodate any disability-specific needs.
Two lifelong friends, Darlene Martin and Cindy Harris-Gillham, founded the company in 2020 after a long history of working together at USA Jeans. Their journey with custom-fitted jeans for wheelchair users started 25 years ago when a young man injured in a bull riding accident called looking for a pair of jeans that fit right when he was seated. The two set to work designing the perfect pattern for him.
Since then, they have developed a range of customizable jeans for wheelchair users, including options like modified fronts to make it easier to access a colostomy bag or indwelling catheter. The jeans are designed to rise higher in the back so you can tuck in your shirt and not have to worry about your pants riding down. Martin and Harris-Gillham use the softest, most durable denim they can find and hand stitch the pants to ensure that seams aren’t in places that might cause skin problems. Plus, John’s Specialty Jeans can adjust sizing on individual parts of their pants — front and rear waist height, waist circumference, leg taper and more — to make sure they look and wear how you want them to. “We make the jeans to fit each person,” says Harris-Gillham.
Longtime customer Patrick Simmons says that Martin and Harris-Gillham are doing more than making jeans — they helped him feel like himself again. After Simmons was injured and left Craig Hospital in 1994, he lived in sweatpants. “It just didn’t feel normal. I was a jeans-wearing guy, and it was nice to find something that brought back some sort of normalcy,” he says. He’s stayed a customer because he hasn’t found adaptive options that compare. “It’s hard to find stuff that works well, lasts a long time and still looks good, and they provide that,” he says.
John’s Specialty Jeans offers customizable jeans starting at $105, and pullups, sweats, slacks and shorts ranging from $75 to 105. All products are hand-sewn in Oklahoma and shipped worldwide. Visit the company’s website to learn more about its offerings. If you have any questions or would like to order, call 918/379-5052.
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Darlene makes great jeans and is a super nice person to work with.
I been getting jeans and slacks from these ladies for many years.!! They are the only company I order from. The work is unmatched, the material is always top quality, The price is reasonable. Consider how hard it is to find proper fitting and custom clothing for such a variety of body types in the disabled community. They can do it all, and right here in the USA. Its just so hard to find any seamtress anymore that match their work. Everywhere I go, I’m wearing their jeans or slacks. Working in an office environment for years and I felt so confident and self assured in great clothes made by them, I still do! Always will. Great article.
I’ve been buying jeans, shorts and twill pants from Darlene and Lacinda (John’s Specialty Jeans formerly USA Jeans) for about 15 years. Brands like Lee and Levi and Dockers don’t fit me as comfortable anymore. These are custom sized clothes. I will be lost without them because no one else makes pants that fit and have the added features like them. I lost track of them between USA Jeans and now John’s Specialty Jeans and hope they don’t have to quit. I talked with them two weeks ago about the shorts I’m ordering.
In the 1990’s I first heard about the German clothing company “Rollimoden” with the high waist in the back, loved them but the U.S. store in Rancho Bernardo, CA closed around 2002. That’s when I found Darlene and Lacinda and was thankful because they make clothes that fit terrific. (SCI since 1965)
Another option for great adaptive jeans is ABL Denim in Los Angeles. I have several pairs of their denims and find them perfect for me as I am wheelchair-bound paraplegic and need pants that are designed for sitting.
I think we all need pants for sitting hahaha.
I’m also a happy customer, most of the adaptive jeans available use ‘fashion weight’ denim, which doesn’t hold up in the various machine and welding shops in the maker space I spend most of my time at. JSJ will make jeans in heavy weight denim that lasts much better. Quality is excellent, service is great, they are really willing to go the ‘extra mile’ to make what you need. They have even altered my first pair that had gotten a bit snug (I expanded) for a very reasonable price.