How to cut up old Jeans to Maximise Jeans Fabric

Between us we throw away so many old pairs of jeans every year. When, actually most of the fabric is perfectly usable. So, follow this tutorial and find the best way to cut jeans to maximise fabric. Plus you get all the trimmings to use on your projects too. Or you could even sell them to other crafters (yes that is a thing)!

I have used scissors throughout this so anyone can do this. One word of caution – think about what projects you are going to make before you start. Some projects need the leg as it is, like my mobile phone stand. Some, like my apron, need the whole waist section down to the crotch.

If, you want large pieces of denim fabric and / or the trimmings then this is for you. So, let’s get started.

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You will need:

• Old jeans
• Scissors (good enough to cut through thick denim, I recommend dressmaking scissors)

Remove the Jeans Hems & Thick Leg Seam

Whenever you are cutting up old jeans take care as a lot of the fabric is bulky and there will be metal fittings. This method avoids cutting those things as much as possible.

Start by laying your jeans out flat on your table and cut the two hems off the legs. Cut close to the bulk but not through it.

Select one leg and look at the seams. Usually one is an ordinary seam and one is a bulky seam. Starting at the bottom of the leg cut up along one side of the bulky seams. Cut close to the seam but take care not to cut it. It will be very bulky at the crotch but keep going. Once you get to the other end of the seam, cut along the other side of the seam.

You should end up with 2 flat legs with a normal seam up the middle of them and a long strip of seam.

Removing the Top Section of the Jeans

Next turn your jeans over so that you are looking at the back of them. Cut up alongside the back seam until you reach another seam. There may be a panel set into the back of the jeans (there may not). If there is, just cut to there. If not, cut all the way to the waistband. You can cut this seam off or leave it attached to the top section.

Turn the jeans over and start cutting up alongside the fly opening. Basically, now you are going to cut around all the detailing on the top of the jeans to keep it all together and separated from the main denim fabric.

When you get to the waistband turn and cut alongside it leaving any belt loops attached to the waistband. When you reach the pocket cut alongside it to the side seam.

At some point you will need to deal with the actual pocket fabric. I simply cut it away from the side seam of the leg and left it attached to the waistband section for now.

Cut over the side seam and then cut up to the first seam across the back of the jeans. Cut alongside that to the other side seam. Cut down the side seam to the pocket and then cut alongside the pocket.

When you reach the fly opening simply cut down alongside that and down the front seam.

You should now have separated the waistband section from the legs.

Finally

You now have 2 large pieces of denim with just the back pockets on. Many projects would work well leaving those pockets on but you can also remove them using small scissors or a seam ripper. If you remove the back pockets the denim underneath is likely to be a different colour because of fading. This can look really effective in some projects.

So now you should have the following items for your efforts:

• 2 large pieces of denim from the legs
• Top waistband section
• 2 seam hoops from the hem
• 1 long length of seam from the legs
• Possibly pockets if you removed them

I hope that you have found this useful. The internet is full of projects using old jeans but sometimes it is helpful to get some guidance on the best way to cut your jeans up to maximise your return.

Do let me know in the comments below what projects you are using your jeans fabric for. All the sewing projects on this site can be found under sewing!

Save this tutorial on your favourite Pinterest board so that you can find it when you next have a pair of old jeans to cut up!