Craft Recycled: 5 Ways to Alter and Repair Your Jeans
I love shopping for jeans at the thrift store. Some of my favorite pairs of jeans have come from the thrift store and cost me less than $5. The thing that can be frustrating is when you find a pair of jeans that would be perfect except for one little detail. Maybe they have a small tear, are a bit too long, or fit great in the hips but have a cheesy bell bottom thing happening. Never fear! Whip out that sewing machine, crafty friends, because you can easily fix these problems and turn those thrifted jeans into your favorite pair.
1. Hemming
Hemming is probably the most basic repair you can do, and there are a couple of ways to go about it. The easiest is to cut off the pants, fold them to the length you want, and sew the seam, but you can also hem your jeans and keep the original hem, if you like the look of it. Here are tutes for both methods:
2. Lengthening
Shortening jeans is very Sewing 101, and it's not that hard to add a little length to jeans that are a little too short. Julie over at Crafting a Green World shows you a simple way to lengthen too-short jeans.
3. Patching
Confession: I love a patch! Sometimes I add patches to things that aren't even torn, just to up the cute factor. Whether you want to add a splash of color or cover up a tear or stain, check out this tutorial on how to sew a patch. Easy peasy!
4. Reverse Applique
Reverse applique might sound daunting and fancy, but it's really not much harder than sewing a patch. Get more deets on reverse applique and how to use this method to repair torn jeans here!
5. DIY Skinny Jeans
Ever tried on a pair of pants at the thrift store that are super cute until you get to the knees, where they balloon out into bell bottoms? Fear not! You can turn those outdated duds into skinny jeans that fit like a glove. I love this skinny jeans tutorial from Cut Out + Keep for taking in those pant legs!
Have you done any creative repairs or alterations on old jeans from your closet or from the thrift store? I'd love to hear your ideas in the comments!
Image Credit: Thrift Store Jeans photo via Bigstock