Not to be left out of the parade of designers launching exorbitantly overpriced fashion items in the middle of a downward spiraling financial crisis, Tom Ford is seizing the moment to roll out his new $990 jeans. While it's true, they hardly rival the $43,000 Brioni suit launched this month -- for blue jeans they're still sky high. So what exactly is so special about these jeans ? Does the term jeans still apply when you're talking about $990 denim trousers?

Well, Tom Ford has made a few notable upgrades to the high dollar pantalones. Ford's Jeans are made from Japanese selvedge denim, "that feels and looks raw, but has been pre-washed and pre-shrunken so the indigo doesn't rub off." Ok, so they don't fade. That's about what we'd expect from thousand dollar jeans.

Other highlights include pockets lined with the same type of silk material that Ford uses to line his suits and -- to top it all off -- an 18karat gold plated front button (so if times get real bad, you can at least melt down the button).

Apparently, the jeans are pretty much regular, unembellished bluejeans, available in two styles: boot cut or straight-leg -- and a choice of two colors: white or black.

[via Jezebel]