An Awesome Jean Jacket Made From Old Jeans

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Pinterest makes it easy to find inspiration. You type in your search terms and instantly get lots of ideas. Sometimes though you just the same old ideas. That what happened last year when I wanted to refashion some old jeans. (UPDATE: Now there is a lot more different ideas in part due to refashioners 2016) I kept getting ideas for jean quilts or jean skirts until I saw this pin. A woven jean jacket made entirely out of old jeans.

For a pattern I just traced one off of a jean jacket I already had.

The Back Of The Jean Jacket

I liked the woven idea but didn’t to have everything woven. Instead, I decided to make the back woven and do something different for the front. I started with cutting strips of fabric approximately 1-2 inches wide; I began to weave them together. To keep from wasting material, I kept my pattern piece nearby and kept checking if it was big enough.

Once it was the right size, I cut out my back pattern piece; that was a bad idea. The strips kept shifting which was changing the shape of the back; I fixed it by pinning down everything convinced that once it was sewn in my jacket, it would be better. That’s when I made my second mistake. Even when it was sewn in the strips were shifting and making my the back look funny.  To fix that problem I sewed a piece of fabric behind the strips tacking it down on every inch or so.

If you want to make a jacket like this avoid my mistakes by cutting out your back pattern piece out of stable fabric first and then weaving your strips on top and once it is the right size tack it down and then trims off the extra pieces.

The Front Of The Jean Jacket

When cutting out strips for my back, I got an idea for the front. Make more pieces and sew them side by side which would create a subtle stripe effect. (Actually, I didn’t know it would turn out that way but am quite happy it did). The front went together relatively fast and with no real problems. The only thing I would change is that I finished off the edges of each strip and then top stitched them down. If I were to make another jacket, I would like to finish them off more professionally maybe with a flat felled seam or a bound bias seam.

The sleeves were quite normal, I made them 3/4 length and just cut them out with a seam slightly off centre.

Finishing The Jean Jacket

I didn’t want to do a zipper or buttons in my jacket. So to finish off the front placket I made a facing. I want a collar, but I had no idea how to sew one, and at this point I just want the jacket to be done. So I cheat and stole a collar from an old jean jacket and reattached it to mine. I then “hemmed” it by taking a waistband off the jeans and sewing it onto my jean jacket upside down. The sleeves I also avoided hemming and just rolled them up and stitched them down. To make the insides look a bit neater, I bias bound the edges by hand.

And finally, my jean jacket was complete. It had taken a few months, but I manage to make something I proud to wear. This jacket was also the first thing I sewed and dare to wear in public. It made a great addition to my closet and received lots of compliments. What was your first sewing win? I would hear it.

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