Z Supply All Day Knit Denim Jacket: Does It Wear Like Denim?

A knit “denim” jacket is a contradiction on paper. Denim is structural. Knit is pliable. Put them in the same sentence and you usually get a garment that disappoints at both jobs. Z Supply’s All Day version actually makes the case for why the hybrid works, mostly.

I bought mine three months ago and wore it hard through the fall shoulder season. This is the one Z Supply piece I was most skeptical about before buying, and I’m going to tell you what I learned. It sits within my larger Affordable Fashion Brands research, and if you want a full category view, the Z Supply Jacket Review covers the entire Z Supply outerwear lineup side by side.

What “knit denim” actually is

Knit denim is not denim that’s been knitted. That would be impossible. It’s a knit fabric engineered to look and drape like denim: usually a cotton-poly-spandex jersey with an indigo twist in the yarn, constructed on a circular knit machine instead of a woven loom. The result looks like denim from five feet away and feels like a heavy jersey in your hand.

The benefit is stretch, comfort, and softness from day one — no break-in period, no stiffness in the sleeves, no board-like cuff. The cost is structural integrity. Real denim holds its shape. Knit denim flexes, stretches, and recovers — mostly. After enough wear, the cuffs can droop and the hem can curl. The engineering tradeoff is the whole story of the category.

The All Day jacket’s construction

Z Supply cuts the All Day in a classic trucker jacket silhouette — chest pockets with flap closures, button front, cropped length, and tab-adjusters at the waist. From across the room it reads as a normal denim trucker. In hand, the knit gives it away immediately. The fabric has weight, but it has give, and the cuffs fold rather than hold a crease.

Construction quality is surprisingly solid. Seams are double-stitched on the stress points. The buttons are real metal, not plastic disguised as metal. The pocket flap tabs are functional, not sewn shut. The only construction shortcut I noticed is the interior finishing — unfinished seam allowances inside, which isn’t a dealbreaker but is the kind of detail you notice when you’re checking.

Fit and sizing

I’m 5’7″, 34-inch bust, size medium in Z Supply. I bought the medium and the fit is what I’d call “intentionally cropped.” The body hits at my natural waist rather than the hip, which looks deliberate with high-rise jeans and slightly awkward with low-rise bottoms. The sleeves are full-length with a slight slouch at the wrist when I push them up.

Shoulders are roomy. The knit drapes rather than sits firmly, so the overall silhouette is softer than a structured denim jacket. If you want a crisp, shoulder-pad-sharp trucker look, this is not that jacket. If you want a lived-in slouchy layer that reads denim from a distance, it fits the brief.

Sizing runs true across the range. Don’t size down for a fitted look — the stretch will give you a too-tight shoulder before it gives you a fitted body. Stick with your regular Z Supply size.

Wear test after three months

Here’s what I learned over twelve weeks and about eight washes:

The comfort is real. I wore this jacket to a coffee meeting, a walking commute, and a cross-country flight. I never once wanted to take it off because my shoulders were tired of holding denim. That’s the pitch and it delivers.

The color held up. I was worried the knit-denim indigo would wash out or bleed, and it did neither. I wash it cold and hang-dry, and the color is basically identical to day one.

The cuffs softened. After about a month the cuffs lost whatever minimal structure they started with and now sit permanently soft. This didn’t bother me — I push the sleeves up anyway — but if you want the cuff to hold a clean line, you’ll be disappointed.

Warmth is in between a sweatshirt and a real denim jacket. I used it as a fall layering piece over tees and light sweaters. On a 60-degree day it’s right; on a 45-degree day I needed something heavier under or over it. This is not a cold-weather jacket.

Honest negative: the hem curled slightly after about six weeks of wear. Not dramatically — you can still wear it untucked without looking wonky — but the edge is no longer perfectly straight. A steam flattens it temporarily and then it curls back. This is the structural limit of knit denim.

Current stock direct: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=z+supply+clothing&tag=tumbleweed03b-20 Amazon has some listings for the All Day line, mixed with other Z Supply knit denim pieces: Z Supply Knit Denim Jacket. on Amazon

The verdict

Buy this jacket if you want the look of a denim trucker and the comfort of a sweatshirt, and you understand the tradeoff going in. It’s a shoulder-season layer that flies through airport security, folds into a tote bag, and comes out wearable on the other side. I wore mine far more than I expected to in the three months I’ve owned it.

Don’t buy it expecting real denim. If you want a structured, crisp trucker that holds its shape for five years, this isn’t the garment. A real denim jacket from any number of brands will outlast this one and look sharper while doing it. The All Day’s whole argument is that you might actually wear a comfortable hybrid more often than you’d wear a structural piece you keep meaning to reach for. For me, that’s been true. Your calculation may differ.

FAQ

Is the Z Supply All Day knit denim jacket machine washable?

Yes. I wash mine cold and hang-dry. Tumble-drying on high would likely accelerate the cuff softening and hem curling I’ve described, so air-drying is the safer move for longevity.

Is it warm enough for fall?

It’s a shoulder-season layer — fine for 55 to 65 degrees over a tee. Below that you’ll want something heavier under or over it. It’s not designed as a cold-weather jacket and shouldn’t be bought as one.

Is the All Day jacket true to size?

Yes. Stick with your regular Z Supply size. Sizing down for a tighter fit gives you a too-tight shoulder before it gives you a fitted body, because the knit stretches where it doesn’t need to.