Sometimes that hole in your favorite jeans isn’t an attempt at a fashion statement – it’s just annoying happenstance! Luckily, how to repair jeans isn’t as daunting as it may appear.

You’re casually getting dressed in the morning – totally jazzed about putting on your favorite jeans – when you hear that unmistakable ripping noise. “It’s OK,” you tell yourself. “Maybe the rip is in an acceptable place,” you say. But nope, it’s right under your bum. So, what’s a girl to do? Get crafty, that’s what.

Just because your favorite pair of oh-so-perfectly worn-in jeans now has an unsightly hole doesn’t mean you have to toss the pants into the scrap pile. You can simply repair your baby blues. Don’t know how to repair jeans? We’ve got you covered (pun intended).

How to Repair Jeans

What you need

Matching thread
Scrap fabric
Lightweight fusible*
Scissors (or a pinking shears if you have one)
Sewing machine that can also sew in reverse (some really old machines can’t),
Iron and ironing board
*Fusible is a lightweight non-woven webbing that when ironed between fabric, holds two pieces together.

Method

Put your favorite jeans around the ironing board and cut off the frayed edges of the fabric. (You need a clean edge to allow your scrap fabric to blend with the rest of your jeans.) Next, turn the pair of jeans inside out and lay them back on the board. Cut the scrap fabric (make sure the scrap is large enough to cover the damaged area and add a little extra to extend into an unworn portion of your worn-in jeans). Reinforce any weakened areas. Tear off the little bits of your fusible to make a ring around the hole. (Be careful to not get any over the edge, or you’ll see it on the outside.) Then, center your scrap over the hole or tear. Once your fabric is centered, iron the backside of the scrap, using the steam setting. Hold it for a few seconds to make sure the fusible adheres.

For more on how to finish this DIY project and for detailed sewing directions, visit the original article, “The DIY Tailor: An Easy Way to Fix Holes in Your Jeans and Other Garments,” on ManMadeDIY.

Now, if your pair of jeans is too far gone, consider buying a new or “previously loved” pair from a company that will repair those jeans for free.

Nudie Jeans, a company that makes sustainable jeans, offers to repair your pair of “broken in” jeans for free at any of their store-front locations. If you don’t live near one of Nudie Jeans’ stores, worry not. The company will send you a free, DIY repair kit. In addition to extending the life of you jeans, Nudie also uses organic cotton and vegetable-tanned leather in the process of making its jeans. The company also describes where it sources its materials and pays its workers fair wages. (Read more about Nudie Jeans here.)

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Resource

“Nudie Jeans’ repair shops should be the new standard for sustainable fashion,” via Treehugger

Image: Francisco Osorio

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