Oh, what a bummer! The new pair of trousers looked perfect in the shop, but after wearing them a few times you realise that the jeans no longer fit . To ensure that the good and possibly expensive item does not end up in the bad buy category , heed our SOS tips for your jeans problem.
1. Jeans too wide
tighten jeans
running in
If your jeans are too big for you and they are made of pure cotton, adjusting them is no problem. Simply ignore the care label and wash the trousers at 60°C. Then put them in the dryer on the highest setting . If your trousers are too big and have stretch, this trick won’t work! It would only ruin the fit of the men’s or women’s jeans.
Tighten with rubber
If the pants are too wide, especially around the lower leg, you can stretch a piece of hair tie or household elastic around the hem and then fold the leg over once so that your little helper becomes invisible. Use the elastic to gather the excess material together and ensure a tight fit.
wearing a belt
If your new jeans are just too wide at the waist, the advice is very simple: wear a belt. With it, you can easily conceal several centimeters of excess denim and your pants will no longer slip down when you walk.
Just don’t get in the bathtub
If you want to tighten your jeans, please don’t listen to silly advice like “sit in the bath with the jeans on and let them dry on your body”. The pants will take many, many hours to dry on you and you could end up with a urinary tract infection or even a bladder infection .
2. Jeans too tight
hair tie as an extension
Have you gained weight or have you estimated your dress size too optimistically? No problem. If the waistband is squeezing your stomach, use a trick from maternity fashion ! Loop a small hair tie through the buttonhole and put the loop around the button . This will give you a few centimeters if your jeans are too tight and the trick will remain invisible thanks to the top.
Stretching wet fabric
For a permanent solution, you need to stretch the women’s or men’s jeans while they are wet, for example by stretching the waistband onto a clothes hanger . The material must dry completely in this position. This way you can also stretch the thigh or calf of the jeans if you have a suitable shape to put in.
3. Jeans too long
leg roll
If your jeans are too long, you can fold them over until you reach the desired length. This tip works great for skinny jeans , but unfortunately not for looser fits.
cutting off the leg
Alternatively, you can use scissors – but they have to be really sharp so that you can cut through the thick outer seam to adjust the trousers to your leg length. You can leave the hem open and frayed , because this look is on trend anyway. But remember that the hem will gradually fray more, especially when washed.
4. Jeans too short
Harmonious shortening
If your jeans are too short, you can use the same tricks as if they were too long: either roll up the pants until they reach ankle or 7/8 length, or grab your scissors and shorten them to a harmonious length – Bermuda shorts or hot pants are also possible if you don’t mind the jeans being too bad for that.
open the hem
With patience, fiddling and the right needle, it is possible to open the seam of the jeans . This will give you several centimeters more, as the end of the trousers is usually folded over several times. The color contrast created by the seam opening looks very fashionable!
Convert into winter trousers
If you don’t want to change your jeans irrevocably, only wear them in the cooler seasons when you can combine the pants with boots . The high shaft conceals the fact that your legwear lacks length.
Jeans broken tips
5. Jeans broken
Wear as destroyed jeans
If you get caught on a sharp corner or spill your nail polish, your jeans are ruined. Tears or holes are often not a problem because you can make them bigger and then wear the pants as ripped jeans. You can cover up small stains with rhinestones or rivets .
Use as decoration
If nothing else works, use the jeans as decoration . You can sew and craft cool things out of denim, like blankets, coasters or pin boards . However, you should only tackle a DIY project like this if it’s an old pair of jeans that no longer fits you.
