How to Make a Skirt

By Leena Muley and Alan Chow, students at Central Saint Martins

Transform your jeans into a denim skirt by following these simple steps.

Step One: Cut

Cut along the inside seams of the jeans, making them completely open from the ankles up to the crotch. Do this again down the other leg. Cut along the front seam up to the end of the fly front, and repeat the same distance at the back.

Step Two: Place

Place the side of the denim with the top stitching on top of the plain denim side so that the fabric lies flat.

Step Three: Cut Legs

If you want a raw edged hem for a boho look, cut the jean legs off to the desired skirt length. Or if you want a seamed finish for a tidier finish, add an extra 5cm to the desired skirt length and cut away the excess jean legs.

Step Four: Create Triangles

Using the excess trouser leg denim, fill in the triangular gaps at the front and the back of the skirt and pin into place. Top stitch all the edges down with a sewing machine.

Step Five: Remove Excess

Cut away excess fabric on the inside of the skirt, leaving 1cm seam allowance which you can then neaten with an overlock stitch or zigzag stitch to avoid fraying.

Step Six: Hem

If you are hemming your skirt, fold the edge under 1cm and iron to crease, and then fold again 4cm under and iron to crease. Top stitch using matching thread 3.8cm from the edge to finish.