One Hour Convert and Have a Beer
Because #jennyandjulielearntosew and . . . well, jeans to a skirt are fun and easy. Jenny, I think, requested the directions. And . . . a couple of other people I know. A handful of years ago I started doing this upcycle, and every couple of years I hack a new one.
I call this one a "One Hour Convert" as it takes about an hour . . . that's with the beer. So, it's a perfect little piece of instant gratification and . . . a good use of jeans a smidge too snug, with too high a waist, too low of one, etc.
This tutorial falls under my hashtag #ivebeendrinkingandsewing, as some have noticed this summer. Eh, American legal ease of society tells me I need to say the following: Drink at your own risk. Be responsible. I do not condone being a lush. Though, I also do not drink nearly as much as I think about it or probably should. That being said, one or two drinks and I'm good to go on the occasions I have them.
That hashtag is also the name of my upcoming pattern umbrella, as in I'm taking the plunge and launching it this month/early next month. There will be more on that one soon. I promise a little yoga bag and some wine.
Have some fun reading, even if you don't sew. Trust me.
Need:
old pair of jeans (washed and pressed--ya know, once they get a smidge tight in the waist)
denim needle for the machine
2 yards of fabric (washed and pressed--I like linen or quilting cotton best . . . I realize someone, somewhere is having a coronary that I'm using linen so callously. Oh well.)
thread, matching should be obvious (universal . . . top stitching will be unpleasant to work with)
cutting scissors (shears)
pinking shears
pins
pin cushion
stitch ripper (because you just might)
beer
seam gauge
straight edge ruler
tailor's chalk, tailor's pencil, or tailor's marker (I heart the chalk)
First up:
Lay the pants flat. Duh. Open and pour your beer into a nice glass. Have a sip. Yes, a glass. You're making a skirt, so up the class of the beer. I prefer the Peche Lambic (let's not talk about my sweet taste du jour) while making this. Feel free to insert your own IPA, light, or cheap brew. No one will judge.
Find the mid section of the crotch. Here I am pointing at it, and I've placed a pin in there. The pin is just to remind you, but I do recommend it if you are nervous about cutting at this point.
Now, leave the pin and pick up your shears. Start on either the right or left, doesn't really matter, and start cutting from the bottom up. Here, follow the thick seam edge of your jeans over to the opposite leg. Note: Do not attempt to cut through the seam! Cut along the edge.
I invested in some nice shears a year or so ago . . . Fiskers, or other brands, of fabric scissors will also do. Trust me, for years I used Fiskers.
Notice my nice mani.
Your pants should now look something like this:
Sexy, I know.
Now, cut again along the other side of the seam you just cut. You'll have a long strip . . . the eco friendly person in me should tell you to re-purpose it for tomato plants, hold a car tire together, lasso a runaway plane . . . I tied a bag of refuge with mine.
Beer. Sip some.
Remember that pin in your crotch? Go back to it. And . . . have a sip of beer . . . take the pin out. It was there to remind you, that's all.
Ha . . . pin in your crotch. I'm sorry. My besties were mostly boys my whole life, and I still get a kick of stupid 13 year old humor. Male style.
Here, you need to make it lie flat. Take your shears and cut along that seam line for about an inch to an inch and a half. On my curvy pants it is an inch and a half. Just clip a little and test it . . . go slow and you will be alright. You don't want to clip more than you need to, so just be brave and careful. A little at a time.
Notice the pin again? I put the pin in the bottom of my zipper so--if need be--I wouldn't trim into the zipper. One of my first ones I thought you had to cut all the way up. Don't do that.
Now, do the same on the back, where it curves under. Again, you are making it flat. Though, this time . . . cut about two inches.
Overlap to make sure it is flat.
Cut along the folded edge opposite the selvage. You should look something like this:
Now, is the fun part. I recommend a bit of beer now. Take one piece of fabric and fold long edge to long edge. Use a pin, mark the center. Lay the fabric flat, right side up. Jeans, right side up, on top. Though, you have to open the jeans, as you only want to work with the front side right now.
Remember that pin? place your crotch on it. The crotch of your pants, if you need a literal translation. Ha ha.
I align the top edge of my fabric with the bottom of the crotch zipper, which leaves about two or so inches of stitched jean seam before getting to the cut crotch seam you did a bit earlier.
Pin. Slowly, and do one side and then the other. Make sure your fabric and jeans lie flat, there are no wrinkles . . . have some beer.
Tip of the day? I pin the inside corner of my legs to the edge of the fabric. Why? Gives the skirt a slight flounce making walking, ya know, do-able and enjoyable.
Edge pinned.
The crotch cut, or well the flap . . . because you cut that seam and made a flap. Ha. Pin and pin. You will have a bit of extra fabric flapping in the back . . . that is fine. Remember, how I said I align my fabric with the bottom of the zipper? That is because in a couple of steps we trim post sewing. Why? You will rather cut two inches off then try and keep fabric edges aligned in blind spots.
If you have a print make sure you have it straight. This was a large print, so it made lining everything up rather easy.
Do not sew like this. No one does, and I have never figured out why they show weird shit like this in the movies. Don't. Just don't.
This. Also a don't. Unless you enjoy uneven seams, puckers, and garments that looked like monkeys made them.
Keep if flat. Go slow. Look close at my pressure foot. Read on. And I chipped that manicure sewing for you. You're welcome.
Not really. I think I chipped it dicking around with the dog.
Sew the denim to the fabric . . . I'm lazy--or really just efficient--and use the edge of my presser foot as my seam gauge. I line it up along the denim, and I make sure it follows that denim that way. Use a zig zag or decorative stitch here. I have some fancy decorative stitches, so I use them. Though, the first one of these I made I used a combo of zig zag, straight, and decorative with three rows of stitching. Essentially, you can pick your pleasure. It doesn't have to be perfect . . . if you want it to look funky, then let it roll.
Don't be afraid to manhandle it. That's my arm, under the skirt, flattening it, as I sew. Looks far more complex than it is. I'm also making sure to not sew the back to the front.
When you get to the seam, go slow. If your machine flips you the sewing bird, use the hand wheel. I go up, and down it, and then carry on to my other side. If you break a needle, just replace it, have some beer, and carry on.
Make sure you sew up the original seam about an inch. Why? It is a little open here, and you will want to close that. I have a pin in my fabric to show you only. There really is no need to pin, as the fabric has been sewn with the previous step. You will do this on the back too!
Yea, now you know why you needed that denim needle all along.
Look what you have? A half finished beauty. I'm awful, I know. Have some beer and carry on.
Look at that? Inside is something, eh? Look close . . . you can see a stretch with darker thread. A) I did that for you or B) I used the true remnant of a bobbin to make a visual cue for ya. You decide.
Now, use your pinking shears and trim on the outside edge. In my lazy but efficient way I use the pinking shears as a gauge, and the flat side of the shears aligns well to make about a 1/4" allowance. Pinking shears, used here, are about the only real use I have for them. And curved edges in lieu of the notching. True, true.
Trim that hunk by the zipper . . . see, no more bunch there now.
Have some beer. Not too much though, as you have the hem left.
Repeat for the back. Pinning and manhandling and sewing. Pinning the back is the same, though you might take long as the front is already together at this point.
Now you need to trim the bottom, or--ahem--hem it. Okay, so we aren't really hemming here. Instead, we are trimming and kind of tacking the edge so it won't fray all they way to your hips.
Lay the skirt flat. Now, draw a line between the left leg corner of the jeans and the right leg corner. To be blunt, without description: you are drawing a straight line across your fabric, as the fabric is longer than your original pants.
I always trim mine to the stitch line on the original hem of the pants. You can leave the pants hem on, but I think it looks odd with it left on.
Cut. Cut the hem line off too.
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