Thought I'd share an alteration I often make to my jeans. My figure is a bit thick around the middle; combine that with short-waisted, and jeans always stop just shy of a good fit, being a bit snug on the high hip and tight through the waist. Add a nice lunch, and breathing becomes problematic. One solution is to add a bit of elastic to the back waist and just below the waist. Method: remove the back belt loop, release the the jean waistband from the jeans,a good three or four inches either side of the center back seam, then cut the band down the middle. Open the back flat-felled seam a good 2 to 3 inches down. (Usually done by pulling on the underside lock stitch.) I use a safety razor on all these steps, as it only takes a minute. Don't do this unless you have a deft hand, and angle the blade towards the belt loop itself, not the jean fabric. Now finish--overcast-- the edges of the cut waistband. Remove any topstitching first, so you get a flat overedge. Overcast, zig-zag, or serge to prevent fraying, or, if you don't mind the bulk, you can turn under a scant 1/4 inch of each end, then topstitch and/or steam press in prep for the next step. For the insert on dark colored jeans, I use black elastic; I try for a combo width, the top piece being the same width as the jeans waist (usually-but not always- one and one-half inches wide.), the bottom piece (or additional pieces, as needed) as wide an elastic as I can readily find. Right now, I am using 2" wide elastic, because that is what the fabric shop stocked. I cut two to three pieces, butt the sides together, and zig-zag stitch, making one very wide insert. The top piece of elastic should be at least 1/2 inch longer, on each end, than the bottom piece, sort of a modified T effect, wider at the top, each successive piece cut narrower to accommodate the 'Vee' insert you are creating. After zig-zagging the elastic, I then serge the elastic edges. Next, insert the longer raw elastic ends into the jean waist. Pin in place. (readjust later) Adjust the opened center back seam over the lower part of the elastic, so that you are making a 'Vee' of the back seam. Keep the left side with the topstitched seam as intact as possible, but you may find that you have to turn the seam under a bit more near the top, to get the seam to align with the end of the waistband. You want a nice, smooth finished look, so do try to keep edges/seams as a continuous visual line. For the right-hand seam, after you determine the length of the opening, you'll have to clip the seam to make it flip towards the underside, and lay properly. You will want to flip the raw edge under, so that it looks the same as the left side--nice and finished, no raw edges showing. To do this, try to clip as far to the low end of the open seam as possible, and almost to--but not through-the fold. Again, you won't be able to turn it to the underside unless you clip it. Pin all seams in place on the elastic,insert the elastic into the waistband on the underside, then top-stitch the seams into a 'Vee" on the elastic. The last steps are: stitching the waistband back onto the jeans, and re-attaching the belt loop. Here I will note that if an insert wider than approx 1&1/2 to 2 inches is needed, it is possible to put the inserts at the jean sides instead of at center back. Cea
- posted
18 years ago