Simple Summer Shorts

Hello Readers. It is hot and humid here. We are in the middle of a heat wave. It is a great time to make some shorts. So, that's what I did. I messed up pretty badly when I was making them and had to come up with a repair/correction plan. 

I started with these jeans. They were a little baggy. That was actually great because I didn't want tight shorts. I wanted a little bit of a looser fit. I cut them off and planned on making a rolled cuff. But I cut them way to short in the back of one leg. They were REALLY way too short. I would never be able to bend down or move freely without revealing more in the back than I would ever want to. I needed more coverage in back. What could I do to fix it?

I decided to add some trim to add length. I used a wide ribbon to add as much length to that one leg as I could. I couldn't just attach the trim on the hem of the shorts. The shorts were uneven so I had to measure as I pinned the ribbon to make sure it was evenly added to the leg openings.

I just made sure each side was exactly the same by comparing each side as I pinned the ribbon on.

I also added some ribbon to the back pockets to match the legs. 

Here is what was cut off from the jeans. You can see how the cut was really uneven in this photo. The picture on the right shows my cutting mistake. Oops!

The navy blue trim looks nice with the dark denim. It coordinates rather than stand out.

I have tried to make shorts before and I have messed up many times Now when I lay the jeans out to cut I keep the back of the waistband higher than the front. This leaves more fabric to cover your backside. Humans of all sizes (Me included.) are bigger in the back than they are in the front. There has to be more fabric back there.

I also try to make the outer legs higher/shorter than the inner legs. This allows enough fabric to fully cover the crotch area. It will all look straight and even when actually worn.

Here are the shorts in the sunshine. Yes, I am as pale as I look in this pictures. You don't need to adjust the screen, it's shocking but it's real. I just don't get tan. It's just not going to happen. Every summer requires gallons of sunblock.

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