Fixing Old Jeans & Repurposing Stuff

So , for some reason, both my husband and son have decided that their jeans should have giant holes in them. Maybe they didn't decide this, but the holes have appeared anyway. I could have just slapped giant patches on them or maybe they should have been thrown out...I'm kind of liking the current ripped jeans thing (that's been a current thing, many times in the past) & I like the idea of giving things new lives, so I decided to add patches in a new/old way.

When I was a child & my jeans or my brother's pants needed patching, my grandmother would iron the patches in so they were on the inside facing out (usually before the fabric was able to fray in the wash). This made them less obvious, virtually invisible, if done right, than the traditional patches thing on the outside, particulary when we were able to match the paches to the fabric color. I still had some of the outside type of patches, but these were emboidered patches, added for fashion statements & not often used to cover actual tears, especially once I found that they weren't as sturdy as the real thing.
I decided to use my grandmother's technique on my husband & son's jeans in a way that strengthens the jeans & keeps some of the great texture of the frayed fabric, while adding a new textural detail of its own.

Starting with some bits of vintage 60's denim fabric that I had lying around, I pinned the fabric to the inside of the pants & basted around the edges to hold to fabric on straight while I stitched. Any fabric could be used, you could even use lace or velvet, for a pretty contrast. Since these jeans belonged to my husband & son & they were signifcantly damaged, I decided to use more of a matching fabric. If you're trying to strengthen the area, as well as patch the hole/s, I'd suggest matching the fabric to the weight of the pants fabric. If you want to use lace on heavier pants, with large holes, you could try backing it with another fabric first, even if that fabric is sheer, for extra strength & to help keep the lace from tearing, when the pants are worn.

Once the patch had been basted to the inside of the fabric, I started stitching, back & forth across the patched area. This is amost like weaving extra stability into the area. The stitches don't have to be perfect or perfectly even. These patches look great stitched with a more 'primitive' look, it matches perfectly with the frayed edges of the fabric. I used a blue thread (also something vintage that I've had lying around forever), that is similar, but doesn't quite match the patch or the original jean fabric, to make the stitches stand out a bit, for texture, but not too much (for my husband & son). You could use a completely contrasting thread, to add another layer of texture to your design. Sewing the stitches in more than one direction, crossing over each other, strengthens the area, along with adding a design element.
I like how these patches turned out. It takes a while to do patches this way & I used up the better part of a day for each pair of jeans, but I think it's worth the effort. If you don't like hand stitching (I find it kind of relaxing), you could try machine stitching. The effect would be a little different, less primitive, but still interesting. Maybe you could even use different stitches or embroider a pattern over everything...

So, in the end I've saved four things from the trash heap: two pairs of jeans, some fabric scraps & an old spool of thread, plus came up with a technique I think I'll use again & in the process, made someting cool out of old stuff. I hope my husband & son appreciate them, but at least I like them :) SAM

More Spring Cleaning...

Spring is here & as I said in my "Spring Cleaning" feature on Handmade News, birds are chirping, flowers are blooming (well, some of them anyway), thoughts turn to love, new beginnings & ...spring cleaning? For me, this includes the April Stash Bust event, an opportunity to use up some of the supplies that I have lying about, traditional & non-traditional, to make new items from the old, without buying any new supplies for the month. Ok, so aside from the whole not buying supplies thing, I pretty much do this on a regular basis. I like to say that my items are made from the "lost, found, vintage & new." This is literally true. I have used items that I have found, things that belonged to a past time, things that others have lost or given away, saving them from oblivion & giving them a whole new life, a whole new story to tell, while paying tribute to the story that already existed. So, while I am 'destashing' this month, I kind of destash every month, every time I make something.

Project 1: Delft Necklace

1. Vintage Delft blue porcelain pendant with windmill design. This was something that my grandmother had, probably purchased in the sixties in Solvang, CA, a great little Dutch town that I loved visiting as a child.They had great little shops & bakeries. I got several Madame Alexander international dolls, in the doll & toys shops, great little mints (violet where my favorites), embroidery books, delicious cheeses & of course pastries, the many times that my parents & I visited this adorable town, scattered over the years that we lived in California. My grandmother would sometimes come with us. I'm not sure what this originally was, maybe a necklace or possibly a key chain. 

2. Copper color chain, something a bought, with no idea of exactly what I might use it for, but I liked the double loop design, the color & I couldn't leave it there on the clearance shelf. Who knows what might have happened to it.

3. Green seed beads. I bought these for my frog necklace, along with a number of other seed bead hanks. I love seed beads, they're so cute! My grandmother used to make peyote style project with them & taught me how. 

4. Round jade bead. Part of an old bracelet that came apart. I didn't want to put it back together, the way it was, so I use the beads for other things.

5. Blue wire. Bought to use for many things, but nothing in particular.

6. Copper clasp. Bought for something else but of course, you can't just buy one...

Project 2: Unicorn Locket necklace

1. Vintage Gold Unicorn Locket. This was something that I purchased, in the seventies. I loved the way the unicorn looked like it was part of an old tapestry & again, it was on clearance; I couldn't just let it sit on the shelf, without a home. It is gold plated.

2. Bone disks. Purchased, in bulk, for whatever project might call for them. 

3. Dark green glass bead. I loved the texture & the look of it. I thought I might make a necklace out of it, someday.

4. Dragon coin pendant. I liked the dragon & phoenix design, there's what looks like Chinese writing on the other side.

5. Shiny green ceramic bead. They where shiny. I liked the colors...

6. Black satin ribbon, knotted & crocheted. 

7. Pewter color chain. Another clearance item I liked the color & the shape of the links.

8. Gold color wire, copper & silver color findings.

Both pieces close in the front, for easy use & visual appeal. They are long enough, though that they can fit over your head.

I have two more pieces, a choker & a wallet, so I'll call this part one & publish a part 2. Since it's still fairly early in the month, maybe there'll be a part 3? I hope you enjoyed this look into my "destashing!" 

As for my stash, I'd like to quote a little bit of a Rage Against the Machine song "There'll be no shelter here, the front line is everywhere."