I have received so many requests for a tutorial on how to make a skirt from 2 pair of jeans, I thought it would be a perfect way to begin my sewing tutorials! I hope you enjoy it! And remember "It's sew easy!" (You can click on the pictures to make them bigger!)
2. First take the pair of jeans that will be used for the triangle inserts. Cut open the legs along the inside seam.
3. Cut off the bottom hem on each leg.
4. Cut both legs off of the jeans cutting up as high as possible. You want to be able to use as much material as possible.
5. Take one leg and fold in half along the seam, press it flat. (One side will be wider then the other.)
6. Trim the top and bottom of the leg. Save your scraps if you are adding appliques later!
7. Now cut your triangle. Beginning at the widest end, cut in a diagonal up the leg. Mine is about 9" at the bottom and 4" at the top. Cutting the triangle while it's folded in half will help you keep the seam centered in the triangle. :) Save your scraps if you are adding appliques later! (You may have noticed that the bottom of my triangle is actually the top of the leg. That's OK!)
8. Repeat steps 5-7 on the second leg so you have 2 triangles, set them aside. (oops! No picture!)
9. Take second pair of jeans and cut up the leg of the inseam all the way to the bottom of the other leg. (I prefer to cut out the inseam and roll over the leg because it's quicker. You can rip out the inseam with your seam ripper or scissors if you prefer.)
10. Cut off the bottom hem on both legs.
11. Cut out the inseam hem. (DON'T do this step if you ripped out the seam with your seam ripper!)
12. On the front side of the jeans take a seam ripper (or scissors) and cut the threads up to the zipper to open the seam. This will help it lay flat.
13. Place one of the triangles RIGHT SIDE UP, flat on your ironing board (or table) with a No Slip Ruler
underneath the triangle. (You can use a cutting board from your kitchen if you don't have a cutting ruler.) The ruler helps you pin the top layers together without pinning the layer underneath!
14. Place the front of the open jeans over the triangle, RIGHT SIDE UP. (if you don't have an ironing board, make sure your plastic ruler is BETWEEN the triangle and bottom layer of the legs!)
15. Begin at the bottom and roll under the side of the leg about 1/2".
16. Overlap the folded leg over the bottom of the triangle about 1". (sorry it's so dark!)
17. Start pinning! This part may take a while. Go slow! I pin 3-4 pins of the bottom of each side of the triangle to get it started. Then making sure the triangle is centered, keep rolling and pinning up each leg towards the point. It's OK to roll more then 1/2" under to make sure it's flat, but make sure you don't roll less then that.
18. FINALLY! It's time to sew!! Let's begin with a straight stich.
19. Starting at the top, place your needle right under the zipper where you stopped cutting the thread. Sew along the stich line to the point and down towards the triangle. I sew about 1" past the triangle point to help stabilize the layers. Then turn around and sew back up to the zipper along the second stitch line.
20. To sew in the triangle I like to use a fancy stitch, but you can use a zig zag or 2 straight stiches if you want to. The reason I change stiches to sew in the triangle is because a single straight stitch is not always enough to keep the jeans from fraying and falling apart in the wash (I learned this one the hard way) .
21. Begin at the bottom of the skirt on the right hand side of the triangle, and sew up towards the top. I like to sew fairly close to the edge.
22. Sew up to the point of the triangle, turn the jeans, and sew back down the other side.
23. The front is finished, now we will work on the back. Using your seam ripper or scissors, cut the threads of the back seam. I like to go up to the pockets or a little higher. This helps the skirt lay flatter across the back.
24. Repeat steps 13-17 for the back. Don't forget to lay your ruler or cutting board between the layers so you are only pinning the triangle and back side of pants together. Take your time! Sew the seam above the point with the straight stitch first. Then change to your fancy stitch and sew the triangle down.
25. Turn the skirt inside out and trim the excess material about 1/2" from the seam. Save your scraps if you are adding appliques later!
26. Turn the skirt right side out. Now we're going to roll a hem. I roll my hem as I sew, but if you are not comfortable with this you can roll and pin it first. Begin rolling your hem towards the wrong side. I generally roll over between 1/4" - 1/2". Roll over twice so there are no frayed edges showing.
27. Sew the hem down, all the way around the skirt. You can use any stitch you like. Colored thread and fancy stitches look really nice around the hem and adds a little charm to your skirt
28. Press the seams and hem down making sure they are all nice and flat.
29. Voila! You've made your very own skirt out of 2 pair of jeans!
I hope you enjoyed my tutorial and give it a try yourself! I would love to see your finished skirts if you want to post them below!! Stay tuned for my applique tutorial and more!
I'm linking up today with The Modest Mom, Deep Roots At Home, Frugally Sustainable, Raising Homemakers, A Wise Woman Builds Her Home, Our Simple Country Life, Raising Mighty Arrows, Our Simple Farm and The Crafty Nest, Far Above Rubies, Feminine Adventures, Little Inspiration
Happy Sewing!! In case you were wondering Sarahsewta is my Etsy shop! :)
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I'm so excited to have you visit Treasures of Faith! I hope you are encouraged and inspired by what you read! Thank you for taking the time to comment! I love reading what you have to say! We are here to encourage each other so please keep your comments kind! Have a blessed day! ~Sarah