How to Make Shorts

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

Those old jeans have monopolised the back of the wardrobe for too long! With these five steps they'll never be in the wardrobe for long again. It's goodbye to old jeans and hello to a wardrobe that's up to date and bursting with versatility. Dress them up, dress them down, denim shorts will flaunt those pins in the summer and look great with tights in the winter. Here's our step-by-step guide on how to make shorts.

Step One: Measure Length

Turn your trousers inside out. Measure from the inside leg the desired length of the shorts, and mark the point with a pin.

Step Two: Cut

From the pin line, measure down the excess leg an extra 8.5cms and draw a straight line across the width of the trouser leg. Using sharp scissors (fabric scissors are preferable) cut along the drawn line.

Step Three: Fold

Fold up the new edge 1cm all the way around the trouser leg and iron to make a sharp crease. From the new edge, fold up again, this time 1.5cms all the way around the trouser leg. Iron to make a sharp crease.

Step Four: Sew

Turn the trousers right side out and using thread matching the existing visible thread (top stitching), sew around the trouser hem 1.2cms from the edge. Fold the new edge up 3cms, and then again. Press flat.