Make Shorts Bigger

 Hello Readers. Sometimes we get too big for our clothes. It's sad but true. We gain weight and those clothes we loved are suddenly too tight. And what if they shrink in the dryer? It happens to all of us at some point. Let's find a way to fix that. 

These denim shorts got too tight, but it's a quick and easy fix. 

I needed to choose some fabric to put in the sides of my shorts. I chose this denim that I had on hand. You could choose a contrasting color if you want, any color will work. Try to pick a fabric that is strong and sturdy like denim. A thick woven cotton would be great. A thin light weight fabric won't hold up with the denim. You need enough to make 2 equal side panels. You can make the side panels any width you need to make your shorts fit again. 

I sewed across the top of my new denim piece. I wanted to keep the top edge from fraying. This new piece of fabric should be the same length as your shorts. You will want the side panels to be the a similar length as the shorts.

 

I turned that edge under and stitched it down with light blue thread to match the denim as best I could. Try to match your thread the best you can to your denim or the thread in the original shorts to get a uniform cohesive look. 

The first step is to cut the shorts open. I found the side seam and cut the seam open with sharp sewing scissors. Sharp scissors will give you a clean cut edge. Set the shorts aside for now.

 

Make sure to trim off any of the side seam stitching that might still be attached. The cuts need to be sharp and clean. 

 

I sewed one side of the new side panel to one side of the shorts. I made sure that the right sides were facing each other for this. I also made sure the top seam I just sewed on the side panel is at the top of the shorts. That will give me a nice neat waistband.  
 

I tried the shorts on. They wouldn't stay up yet but this let me double check the width of the side panel. How wide did it need to be to make these shorts comfortable? I needed about 2 inches at the waist, 3-4 inches at the hip and 1/4 inch for the seam allowance. 

 

I cut the extra fabric off my side panel. It's big enough for both sides. Now I can sew the side panel in on the other side. 

 

You can see my side panels are too short but I wanted to cut my shorts to match the length of the side panels. 

 

I used my scissors to cut the shorts to the length I wanted. The best part of denim cut offs is that we don't need to hem the bottom of each leg. What as time saver!

  

You can see the side panel here. It is sewn in well and the new length is fun too. 

I washed and dried my shorts to get that nice frayed edge along the bottom of each leg. 

My new shorts fit well and I was happy with them when I was done. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pink Shorts Simplicity 1165

 Hello Readers. I have had this pattern for quite a while and I like it so much this is the third time I have made it. When you find a great pattern, you make it more than once. This is the third time I have made it and it is easier and more fun every time I make it. I made these shorts because it is summer and it gets very hot where I live.  

  New summer shorts.

This pattern deserves 5 stars. 

I found this cute pink fabric at Good will. It seemed like a fun choice for summer.

 

This pattern is great because it's simple and there are pockets!! I sewed the pockets to the front pieces. 

 

I put the shorts together pretty quickly. 

 

I pinned the waistband in place. I used elastic in the back of the shorts but not the front. The pattern calls for elastic all the way around the waistband. I like a smooth front better so that is what I'm making. 

 

I hemmed the bottom of each leg. 

 

My new shorts were done. 

 

 The pink elephants are a lot of fun. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 

 

 

 

 

 

Simplicity 1165 Shorts

 Hello Readers. When I like a pattern, I usually make it more than once, I really like this pattern from Simplicity so, I am making it again. I made the full length pants using this pattern a few years ago and decided to try the shorts version. I had some fabric in my stash that I could use so.. I got to work.

New summer shorts. 

 This pattern is nice because it doesn't require any extra notions or extra expense. I just needed my fabric and some elastic, which I had in my sewing stash. Let's not spend any money today.

I cut out my pieces. I extended the leg a couple inches just to have enough length. I was going to hem them at the end, I did not need to decide length right at the beginning of the process.

I sewed the pockets in the front pieces first. I usually forget this and it causes a problem later. I sewed the right and left sides together and then sewed the back and front of thew shorts together.

The pattern called for a long narrow piece of fabric to make the elastic waistband casing. I did that and pinned it to the shorts. 

 

I turned the edge under and ironed it to make a nice sharp hem. 

 

I ironed the shorts to make them look nice and neat. I don't usually iron my casual clothing but when I am sewing a project, I like to see how it looks nicely ironed.

 

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

 

 

  

Sewing Summer Shorts

 Hello Readers. It is "Me-Made-May". That just means people are wearing and sharing their self made clothes on social media. It has inspired me to sew some new items for myself. I have had this Simplicity Super Saver 8035 pattern for ages. I decided to try the shorts pattern with some blue fabric I had on-hand. Summer is coming and shorts would be handy to have.  

 New shorts for summer.

I cut out the pattern pieces. It seemed simple, there were not many pieces and shorts are not complicated, right?? Spoiler, It wasn't as easy as it should have been. Let me share my experience and ideas. 

I sewed my pockets together first. This was a mistake. I was supposed to sew one piece of the pocket to a front piece of the shorts and one pocket piece to a back piece of the shorts. Then I was supposed to sew the shorts together. At least I think that is what I was supposed to do, I found these directions very vague and the pictures not very helpful either. Even though this project is simple, this pattern might not be the best for a beginner. 

I sewed one piece of pocket to one front piece of shorts, then sewed one back piece of pocket to one piece of shorts. Then I sewed the pocket together. This wasn't quite what the directions told me to do but I was just trying my best at this point. 

 

I ended up with half a pair of shorts. This picture is of one side of my new shorts with the pocket sewed in place. I ironed all the seams with my iron so the seams would be flat and smooth. I did the same process for the second half of the shorts. When I had a complete right half and a complete left half, I could sew them together and I would have a full pair of shorts. 

 

I sewed all the pieces together with my serger because this was linen and linen frays easily. Here is a look at my shorts from the inside. Did I sew my pockets inside out? Yes, but let's just ignore that. No one is going to see that, and no one will ever know. Shh, don't tell. 

 

I turned the top edge down to make the waistband. 

 

I sewed the waistband casing from the outside to make sure my stitches would be very neat. My bobbin stitches can be wonky sometimes. The pattern called for elastic to be put through the finished casing. OK, let's do it. I left a small opening in the casing for the elastic as directed. 

 

When elastic is fished through the waistband, it gathers the waistband together and that will make the shorts fit around my waist. I finished the elastic and connected the ends together as directed by the pattern and closed the opening in the casing. This was easy enough.

   

I turned the bottom edge of the shorts leg under and sewed the hem of each leg. The hems looked nice and neat. That was what I wanted. This pattern was long enough to choose what length of shorts I wanted, if you want long-ish shorts, this pattern would be good for that.

 

 I used matching thread  (Similar here.) to get a nice neat look to my seams. Sometimes contrasting thread looks nice too but I wanted the thread to match and blend in for these shorts. 

 

 These shorts were fun and I was pleased with how they turned out. This was not a great pattern for a first sewing project but it is simple enough for someone who has sewn a little and ha some sewing knowledge already. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Making Wrap Shorts

 Hello Readers. I have been wanting to make some wrap shorts for a little while now. I finally got it done. This fun summer fabric from San Diego Sewn was the perfect choice for this make. *Not a paid ad, I just thought they had cute fabric.

Before and after.

Look at this cute fabric! Look at these lovely women. They are glowing, thriving, relaxing, undisturbed, just living the dream. I bought 2 yards of this because that was all there was available at the time. I have seen online that it was restocked.

 

My first step was to wash this fabric in my washing machine before I did any sewing. I dried and ironed it and got to work.
 

I used this pattern piece from a previous shorts making project where I made my own pattern. I made this pattern based on my measurements. I used it because I just needed a guide to cut out my pieces for these new shorts.

 

I cut all my pieces and extended the sides so they would be wide enough to wrap around my hips.

 

I connected the 4 pieces to make the shorts. This was a fast project and I was able to get this done quick and easy. Now I had to make the waistband ties.  

 

The waistband ties are what keeps the shorts up and holds them together. 

 

Here is a look at the tie in the back. This is the narrow strip of fabric I made for this waist tie. It is the waistband of the front part of the shorts. The front of the shorts wrap around the body to tie in the back. It is not going to be visible when the shorts are worn. The back of the shorts will wrap around and tie in the front.

 

Here is a look at the front of the shorts. The front is tied in back and I am holding the back piece open so you can see how the front wraps around and then is covered by the back piece.

 

When The back of the shorts are tied in the front the sides overlap by about 6-8 inches and cover everything they should.

 

Here is a quick and clumsy demonstration of me tying on the shorts. 

 

These shorts were so fun. I love how they turned out. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

*Year End Note From Chickie- I loved these shorts. I want to make pants in the same style! They always fit and the fabric was so fun too.

 

*2025- This shorts are still fabulous.