Do you have an old pair of jeans you NEVER get around to wearing? Or maybe one of your favourite pairs has a mark on the knee that puts you off wearing them but you love them too much to get rid of them. Well, why not try making them into the perfect pair of denim shorts for this summer?! Not only does this create a new lease of life for a pair of jeans you may have otherwise thrown away, but it’s also a great summer activity and really gets your creativity flowing. Maybe you could get all your friends together to rework your old jeans into a new pair of summer shorts together as a fun way of getting together!
Which Jeans to Choose
There are a couple of things to bear in mind when choosing which jeans you want to turn into a lovely pair of shorts. Firstly, it’s good to go for a pair of jeans that you’ve not worn in a while or even a pair that are marked or damaged, but that if you cut the bottoms off would be perfectly fine.
You also need to think about how you want your shorts to fit. For example, if you want a baggier pair of shorts, the jeans you choose do need to be loose fitting as jeans if they’re going to be baggy as shorts. The best thing to do is try them on and eye up where you’d cut them off and try to picture what they’d be like once you chop the legs off.
How to Make Your Shorts
- A step you may not have thought to do is if the jeans you are working with are fairly new or haven’t been washed many times, run them through the washer and dryer, so you have their true size and fit once they’ve been washed.
- The best way to decide where you’re going to make the cut is to have the jeans on, then decide how short you want them to be and use a pencil or chalk to make a rough mark as to where you want the shorts' hem to be.
- Once you’ve marked how long you want your FINAL shorts to be, think about adding a few centimetres or even inches if you know you’re going to make them into roll-ups or fray the edges. Even if you’re not planning on a fancy edge, maybe leave a half a centimetre that you’ll be able to fold under and create a hem, unless you want them to be raw hemmed of course. Once you’ve decided how much material to add to the final length, use a ruler to create a more prominent and precise cut line for yourself to cut along.
- It’s time to get cutting! Cut along the second line you’ve created to turn your jeans into shorts.
- Once you’ve made the cut, finish off by either rolling up the edges, using something to fray the edges for a grungy look or fold inwards and sew along the edge to create a neat hem.
- Get creative! You can customise your shorts by decorating them with bleach, fabric paint, patches, diamantes, fringing or studs (or if you’re feeling extra crazy, do them all!).
- Wear your amazing new shorts out and about and when someone compliments you on them boast about the fact you made them yourself!
