DIY Network

Blue Jean Skirt Create a terrific twirly skirt from your old jeans. From "B. Original" episode DBOR-202

Your favorite jeans can live again as this swirly, twirly skirt!

Michele Beschen has found it—a way to give new life to those jeans that you just can’t bear to throw out.

It seems like everyone has a pair: jeans you don’t wear any more but can’t bear to toss out because they’re too pretty or have too much sentimental value. Well, dig them out of the closet and get ready to wear them again: If they still fit at the waist, you can B. Original and convert them into a fabulous swirly skirt.

This project sports a lot more style than the blue jean skirts of decades gone by, but it’s still loaded with retro charm from using your own vintage denims. Scroll down for Michele Beschen’s how-to, and B. Original with your wardrobe.

advertisement

	Figure A
	Figure B

Swirly, Twirly Blue Jean Skirt

• Select a pair of jeans that fits you at the waist—it doesn’t matter if they fit elsewhere.

• Use a seam ripper to remove the inseam and the hems (figure A).

• Lay out the jeans on a flat work surface. Measure the empty triangular space in the jeans, transfer the measurements to two pieces of plain muslin, and cut the muslin to fit with a 1/2’ seam allowance. You’ll use these muslin patterns to fill in the spaces with additional denim.
  
  
• Cut the legs from some other jeans, making sure the legs are long enough to completely fill in the muslin pattern.

• Use the seam ripper to remove the inseams from these legs, but leave the outside seams intact.

• Cut a triangle out of the center of each of these denim pieces. Cut each triangle so the seam runs straight down the center of the smaller triangle (figure B).

• Center these triangles, right-side up, on the muslin patterns (figure C). Pin in place.
  

  Figure C

  Figure D

  
  

  Figure E

• Use leftover denim from the leg sections or other pairs of jeans to fill in around the triangles. Pin these pieces to the muslin patterns, right-side up. Also pin them to the first triangle pieces. These pieces will pin wrong sides together (figure D), with enough overlap to give a 1/2" seam allowance.
  
  
• Go over the pattern pieces and make sure the denim pieces line up with the muslin patterns. Leaving a 1/2" seam allowance all the way around, trim away excess fabric.

• Sew together the pieces attached to the muslin, sewing 1/4" to 1/2" in. You will end up with two large triangles of denim, each of which has a smaller triangle inside it (figure E). Since you're sewing wrong sides together, the seams will be exposed.

• Remove the muslin pattern.

• Lay out the split jeans with one of these large triangles. Pin the large triangle into place, right side facing out, staring at the bottom of the garment. As you reach the top, feed the seams back underneath, and stitch everything into place. Repeat for the back piece (figure F).

Figure F

Stitch it all together for a one-of-a-kind look!