Making A Ripped / Distressed Jean Shorts Out Of An Old Pants | D.I.Y.

I have this knee-length denim pants that I don't wear anymore . The main reason is I find it ugly ? and it is not so wearable for me cause I am a hoochie right now ? HAHA , JUST KIDDING , it's just a slight change in my choice of fashion , I prefer wearing full-length pants or short shorts now .At the moment I wanted to get rid of this pants , the colour and the cutting of this pants caught my attention. I think I could modify it a little bit to give it a new lease of life ! So , I did it !

This was how the pants originally looked like . 
quite baggy too in a weird way .

These are what you have to get 

To cut the pants to a shorter length

•  A pair of scissors 
• A pencil/chalk
• A shorts (optional)
• A pair of tongs

To rip/distress the shorts 

• A pair of tweezers 
• A needle
• A pair of scissors 

Step One | Lay It Down

Aim : To proceed to the next step .

Once you lay your pants on a flat surface , this is what you see ,

you will see a cross at the middle , or you will see the line , where two pieces of fabrics meet (beside the red line I've drawn) 

Step Two | Hide The Line 

Aim : you will get the same length (front and back ) when you wear this pants , taking into account for the space to accomodate your buns .

Pull the front piece of the fabric down , until the line ( mentioned earlier ) is hidden when you see it perpendicularly (90 degrees) from the top .

Don't forget to hide the line at the sides too .

Hiding the line , DOES NOT  mean that you have to put the line behind

I meant to fold it along the line

By the time you're done , you will see a big grin =D at the waistline of the pants 

Step Three | Mark the Hemlines 

Aim : To determine the length of your pants , a slut or a prude , just kidding .

There are two ways to do it , but since you stick to the steps mentioned previously , this is the ideal way to do it  . 

Take your own shorts and lay it on top of the old pants , taking that as a reference , decide your desired length , take a pencil or a chalk , draw a line .

The line should be a little elevated as it goes to the side ( away from your leg gap /body )

As for me , I draw the hemline longer than my shorts because , 

• I want some space to make the hemline to look distressed / ripped (next step )
• It's kinda skimpy for me to have that emerald blue shorts 

Step Four | Chop It Off

Aim : to see if you have logic

What's next ? you know it , don't you ? grab a pair of scissors and do what you are supposed to do !

Use both of your hands , another hand to hold the fabric , so you will a perfect cut ! In this case , my right hand is holding my camera =)

Step Five | Messy Hemlines

Aim : apply physics principles , Inertia . 

After you've done cutting the excess fabrics , it's time to make the hemlines look better !

Grab a pair of tongs , place it inwards across the hemline around one inch and pull out (outwards) the tongs with suitable amount of force .

If you want the treads to cascade vertically down (blue circle) your pants , apply more force , quickly 

If you want the treads to stay hanging out of your pants (red circle) , apply lesser force , in a slower manner .

Step Six | Clean Cuts 

Aim : to make you look like a beggar /homeless

I started to ruin my pocket first , just the pocket , the fabric underneath is left untouched ! 

Fold the fabric , so you can cut it , you can either just make a slit of length , less than 5 cm  or 

the safer way is , make a very small slit first , unfold it and continue the slit from there ( the slit will be straighter and neater )

Make a few slits , 1 or 2 cm between the previous slit you have made , so there shall be a few slits that are parallel to each other , each with different length , to make it messier 

Step Seven | Threads Out ! 

Aim : To make you look more like a beggar /homeless

So , there are two ways to do this , and both will bring you two (type) different results 

Here's something you have to know ( just in case , you're oblivious ! )

• Jeans are made in the way their treads are horizontal and vertical , like a net or a mesh .
• here are the two types of results you will get from the two different ways .

Type One

  

To proceed in the first way (type one ) , the area you have to work on is the space between the two     slits

  

 Use a needle to prick out the horizontal threads (near the slits)  , perpendicular to the                            slits , downwards, just a little , until you see some threads come out .

                   Grab your tweezers and pull out the vertical threads , carefully and slowly , the horizontal                    threads are really delicate , make sure you don't snap them ! 

                   You can use a needle to loosen up the vertical threads , so that it will be faster when you                      pull out the vertical threads

                  A few more threads to go and it's almost done ! 

Type Two

Basically , this is the lazier and simpler way .

To do this , its better if the space between the slits are wider .

Just use a needle to prick the top and bottom of the slit to pull out some horizontal threads

DO NOT pull out the vertical threads .

And you're done ! Have fun and good luck  =D  It's super easy 

All photos are taken with Nikon D5200 by myself without edits nor filters(because im lazy ) 

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Peace out (\/)

Love,
Kaylyn Ang