Tips for sewing and recycling old blue jeans whether you want to update your old blue jeans and get a little more mileage out of them, or create a different use for them.
Levis Strauss probably had no idea that his simple concept -- the tried and true pair of blue jeans would still be in vogue a century later. If you have a serious attachment to your old blues, don't throw them out! Since the denim look will never fade, try one the ways listed to breathe new life into your beloved jeans.
For faded jeans that never look clean, use a denim dye bath to try to restore them to their original condition. Or soak your jeans in a black dye bath for a completely different look. The results may range from charcoal grey to a stony, concrete hue pair of jeans, depending on how much dye solution used. Press on appliques or patches to cover up blue jeans with holes and hard to remove stains. Embroidery a design on your old jeans or use stick on patches and cut designs out of them to add to your jeans. If your jeans have crept up well above your ankles or you own a pair of flaired bottom jeans that are no longer in style, cut them at the knee for a pair of shorts. Go ragged edge or for a neater look, add a hem. If the needle and thread approach isn't your forte, use velcro or hemming tape.
If there is no way, no how you can wear your old jeans, create new uses for them. For example, fashion a book bag or purse by cutting the jeans just above and across the inseam. Turn the front and back panels of the jeans inward to create a seam and stitch together. Fashion a strap out of material from the pant legs and attach to the carryall. Accessorize your unique creation with beads, buttons, decals or leave plain. Use fabric remnants and cut out squares from your blue jeans to design a quilt. Too difficult? Try making a simple book cover with a portion of your jeans and use the pocket to store pens and pencils. For another simple idea, frame your toddler's denim overalls that he/she has outgrown and use as an artpiece and family heirloom.
There are many other uses for jeans that are waiting to be discovered so go out and try some that have been mentioned or create a new look of your own.
