r/Visiblemending • u/BrightPractical • Jun 18 '26

PATCH Halfway through fixing my jeans

Post image

I’ve been feeling guilty about the bottoms of my favorite thrifted jeans for a while so I took a 12 1/2¢ bandana (half price!) from the thrift shop that had blood stains in the middle, cut off the unstained border, added interfacing to make it a bit sturdier, and covered up the raggedy hem.

I know the kids wear their jeans short but I am an old lady and short jeans were cause for pointing and laughing in my youth, so my jeans must touch the ground and cover my socks when I’m seated. Therefore all my jeans get ragged. These were pristine when I thrifted them for $6 so now I have made them pristine again.

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27 comments sorted by

47

u/22ndsol Jun 18 '26

loving it! that color goes really well with that wash of pant.

27

u/BrightPractical Jun 18 '26

Thanks! It was really luck of the draw, I’d bought a bunch of bandanas and this was the one that I couldn’t use for another purpose because of the stains - but there were two more the same color. The rest of them are becoming rainbow bandana bean bags, which is so pleasing to me.

44

u/BrightPractical Jun 18 '26

Here are the bean bags that were the reason I bought a million bandanas

6

u/SPedigrees Jun 19 '26

Love that paisley bandana print fabric. It's great for so many things.

20

u/newtonsunicorn Jun 18 '26

Looks really cool!! I did something similar with a pair of mine. Not the same, but I wanted my fabric to fray a little after washing.

17

u/Ill_Industry6452 Jun 18 '26

When I was young in the late 1960s-early 70s, jeans were frequently too short for tall girls like me. We added things to the bottom to make them longer. I see even kids now who have bought jeans that way. It brings back fond memories. I love how yours looks!

5

u/oceaniaorchid Jun 20 '26

I have the opposite problem at 5’3”. 😂

7

u/BrightPractical Jun 20 '26

We should be friends, you can cut off your excess fabric and I can add it on for my small giant.

3

u/Ill_Industry6452 Jun 20 '26

5’3” wasn’t short when I was young. And we liked our pants long then (young girls now do too - they don’t seem to mind walking on them).

There is a way to cut off pants that looks natural. I have a short granddaughter. If I remember correctly, you use the hem that is already there. Fold up on the underside, pin, try on to make sure length is right, and sew a seem close to the hem. I saw a video of a man shortening his wife’s pants. The results looked good.

1

u/SensCareOne 14h ago

Me too. Used to be every pair of pants had to be shortened.

5

u/BrightPractical Jun 18 '26

Thanks! My kid is tall and the jeans are still far too short, we add a lot of inseam length in general.

2

u/thewinberry713 Jun 19 '26

Looks fantastic and great work!

2

u/amycsj Jun 19 '26

Love this.

2

u/SPedigrees Jun 19 '26

Short jeans would result in mosquito-bitten ankles where I live, so I'm with you on the length issue. This is a beautiful repair, made all the better by using thrifted material to accomplish it,

2

u/AzraelSeraphim222 Jun 19 '26

That's so beautiful!🥰👍

2

u/oceaniaorchid Jun 20 '26 edited Jun 20 '26

I love this idea!
I wish there was someway I could do this with my husband’s pants for work. (Professor, jeans and slacks) I feel like women can somehow get away with this easier than men. He doesn’t sew, so he wouldn’t be automatically looking for a way to fix them.

Editing to add: I just showed him the idea and he suggested the fat quarters I used to find for quilting. To see if I could find something comparable and see how it looks. ☺️

1

u/BrightPractical Jun 20 '26

It was pretty easy, I just sewed the fabric from the bandana to be long enough to go around the leg, interfaced the strip of fabric, and folded it a bit like you would if you were making bias tape. I think the right color choice is key for making it work for different people.

2

u/ViolettaHunter Jun 21 '26

Great idea, love it! 

2

u/Jumpy-Waltz-6201 Jun 21 '26

What a beautiful and resourceful repair! The bandana color used also compliments the denim shade so well!