Lots O' Dots

Hello Readers. Spring is here, at least where I live. Flowers are starting to bloom, the sun is out, I am sewing and thinking about Spring. I saw some cute polka dot jeans on Pinterest a while ago and wanted to try to make them myself. When someone handed-me-down a pair of dark wash jeans I was ready to try it. The jeans were close to fitting and in great condition. 

(Thanks Kathy G.!)

Here is the funny part of the jeans, they are capris y'all. They are supposed to be cropped length and they are full leg jeans on me, It's the curse of the short legs!

The first step was to take the jeans in a little to improve the fit just a little. That was no big deal. The length was perfect already, so it was time for the dots.

To add polka dots to these jeans I used some basic chalk and some acrylic craft paint.

I made some diagonal lines across the jeans. I used a yard stick to make the lines straight and parallel to each other. I thought if the lines were even and straight my dots would be evenly spread out on the jeans. My lines were not perfect, the fabric moved a little. I didn't worry about it, I just kept making lines. Who has time for perfection? It isn't brain surgery.

 (If you are doing brain surgery, please find time for perfection.)

I made chalk lines in the opposite direction and that gave me this X pattern all over the jeans. I made a small dot of paint at all the intersection points. I painted the dots with one thick coat of paint and let it dry for a few hours. 

Here is what the front looked like when it was dry. I flipped the jeans over and used the same chalk/yardstick system to paint the polka dots on the back of the jeans. I let them dry for a few hours again. That night I threw them in the washer to remove all the chalk lines.

My toddler interrupted the drying process and made a little smear on the waistband in the back. It's OK, it's all part of making things by hand. I will remember that little tiny hand grabbing my jeans and trying to run away with them whenever I see that smeared polka dot.

Here are my finished jeans with polka dots all over. I love them. They seem very cheerful and perfect for spring. Come back next time to see the sweater I refashioned to go with them.

Thanks for reading, now go make something fun for yourself.