Lee regular straight leg jeans fit me to a T.  Although I have a slim build, I always found that Levi's 501 jeans fit me too tight in the thighs (I rode my bicycle about 20 miles a day when I was younger, and still ride.)  I put up with this for years, until I tried on a pair of Lee jeans.  What a difference!  I was also impressed by the heavier and better quality material Lee jeans are made of.  They wear longer, don't seem to fade as fast, and are less expensive than Levi's as well.

I always turn my jeans inside out before washing and drying them to avoid fading, and to avoid shrinkage I wash them in cold water and dry them using the permanent press cycle.  If my dryer had a medium or medium low setting, I would use that.  It's also best to pull them out of the dryer just before they're completely dry.