Turning My Torn Jeans Into Something Pretty
If there’s one thing I hate, it’s seeing good clothes and good fabric scraps go to waste! A while back, I had to repair my one pair of overalls. So I went nuts with some yellow and orange fabric I had on hand and restored their structural integrity.
Shortly after that, I split the knee on an otherwise perfectly-good pair of jeans. I had fun with those, wrapping the fabric in a twisting pattern from the back of the ankle across the knee to the crotch…which was also beginning to wear out, around to one of the back pockets.
I then noticed that the side pockets on both sides were beginning to pull off. I did a quick stitch job with some backing jean material but didn’t decorate them. The second time I wore these decorated jeans (around the house, thank goodness!), the inside crotch area split on the other leg.
Great. I packed them away because I was busy with other projects. Recently, I discovered them tucked away along with some scraps of fabric that weren’t good for much more than crazy quilting. I’d also gotten a new bag of similar scraps, so I decided to see what I could do about the other side.
The tough part about a project like this is making it look good. It’s not just about style, it’s about functionality. The tears have to be covered and reinforced. I also have to look out for possible future tears!!
The project is almost done now, so I thought I’d write about it. I’ll post more pics of me wearing them when I’m done.
So here’s a look at the front and back.
As you can see, the right leg fabric pattern winds around. The other side has a thick band around the top of the leg.
In all this, I noticed that the side pockets were pulling away again, so I tried to come up with creative ways to work them into the pattern. On the right side, I only covered the top flap so it didn’t get too heavy compared to the twist. I also sewed a bit of fabric over the actual spots where it was pulling away.
On the left side, I covered the entire pocket, but did it in a single color – blue – so that the pocket would separate itself a bit from the rest of the pants. The pocket fit very well into the band I was already planning. For both pocket flaps, I arranged the fabric in stripes instead of a crazy pattern. I thought that would make it stand out a bit more, but not in a displeasing way.
Finally, I noticed that the back pockets were pulling off the tiniest bit at the top. To preclude any problems, I reinforced the corners and added stripes of material to cover the reinforcing work. The top of each isn’t attached to the jeans, leaving it an open pocket. It’s a bit higher and wider than the pocket, covering up all evidence of reinforcement.
I’m hoping to finish the project very soon. It’s been long enough coming and I can’t wait to see how it turns out!