How to stretch jeans at home?

Probably, each of us has a thing in our wardrobe that we cannot part with. Even if it has lost its original appearance, has become hopelessly small or large for you, it can take up space in your closet for years. Getting rid of this thing is usually hampered by pleasant memories, for example, how stunning you looked in it.

Very often, such a fate lies in wait for your favorite jeans. Finding jeans that will favorably emphasize the dignity of the figure and hide its flaws is a great success, which happens quite rarely.

If jeans, which have recently sat flawlessly, suddenly stopped buttoning on you, you can try to increase them by a size or two using methods tested by many generations of fashionistas. Read about how to stretch jeans at home in our today's article.

Jeans can get small for two reasons:

• The first reason is shrinkage after washing.
• The second reason is more sad - a sharp increase in weight. If the numbers on the scale remain the same, but your favorite pants are sitting very tight, they most likely sat down after you washed them incorrectly.

Jeans shrink in a variety of areas. Products made of low-quality material, with a high percentage of synthetic fibers, can "shrink" not in separate places, but completely, or in length or width. Better quality pants fit only in sections.Most often - on the belt, which is why it can be difficult for us to button up jeans after washing.

Another possible problem area is the legs. Skinny jeans such as skinny or slim fit jeans, which include stretch, are most susceptible to this. Therefore, when buying tight trousers, be prepared for the fact that after washing they may become short for you.

There are several methods available to stretch your jeans at home. We have compiled a selection of the simplest and most effective methods for you.

Denim is a cotton fabric that is not very elastic. However, to make jeans fit better, manufacturers have long learned to add various synthetic fibers to denim, which can stretch and contract under the influence of various factors.

The fact that jeans have shrunk is usually to blame for these elastic additives.

The fabric can be stretched mechanically. It will be most effective to do this directly on yourself. Therefore, we pull on jeans and start charging.

We work with our feet: we squat, do swing, sit on a split, do a bicycle in the air, in general, we recall all the exercises on legs from school physical education lessons.

At first, shrunken fabric will hamper movement, but soon you will feel freer. Continue until you feel as comfortable in the jeans as before.

The fibers will stretch better and retain their shape longer if you wet them first. It's better to soak your jeans on yourself too.

For this procedure, you need to choose a day when it is warm in the apartment, and you are not worried about a cold or other inflammatory diseases, otherwise the consequences of such an experiment will be dire.

1. So, we collect a full bath of water (the water temperature should be comfortable for the body, but not too warm).
2. Then we pull on jeans and plunge into the bath. You need to sit there for 10-15 minutes so that the denim gets wet well.
3. After leaving the bath, we proceed to physical exercises - we do everything in the same way as in the previous method.

Interestingly, the same method can not only increase the size of jeans, but also reduce them. We wrote more about this in the article about what to do if jeans are stretched.

In dry cleaners, clothing repair shops and sewing ateliers, a special device is used to stretch the trousers in the waist area. In the original it is called the waistband extender, but the people call it simply - "extender".

You can buy such a device in one of the companies that sells equipment for the above organizations.

Using the trouser expander is very easy, you can easily master this device:

1. First, the fabric on the waistband of the jeans should be slightly moistened with a spray bottle.
2. Then zip up your pants with all the fasteners, take the expander and insert it inside the belt.
3. Start gradually stretching the device until the mark stops at the desired value (when starting the process, you need to take measurements from yourself in order to know how wide the jeans should be stretched).
4. Now, without removing the expander, leave the pants until the fabric is completely dry - this usually takes a few hours.

Another good way to stretch denim is by exposing it to hot, humid air. The source of this air can be an iron or a garment steamer. This method is especially useful if you need to stretch your jeans in one place, for example, at the waist or at the bottom of the legs.

The settled area should be steamed for a few minutes.Gradually, the fibers will begin to straighten, the former elasticity will return to them. While the pants are still soaked in warm steam, you need to put them on quickly - let them cool down already on you. Walk around in jeans for an hour and a half so that the new shape has time to fix.

If none of the stretching methods described above helped, then the situation is more serious. The elasticity of the material cannot be restored, therefore, it is necessary to resort to drastic measures.

To do this, you will have to recall the skills in handling sewing accessories learned in needlework lessons. You don't have to be an experienced seamstress, but you need to be at least a little familiar with a sewing machine.

This method will only work if the jeans are only slightly off your size. As a result, you will get an additional centimeter and a half of the width, but not more.

In addition to a sewing machine, you will need:

• sewing ripper;
• scissors;
• crayon;
• ruler;
• needle with thread;
• and a set of pins for sewing.

First, the jeans need to be turned inside out, then using a ripper to gently dissolve the side seams in those places where the trousers have become narrow for you. You may have to cut the product along its entire length - it's okay, it just takes a little more time.

Now you need to outline the location of the new seams, sweep, and then sew on a sewing machine. Thus, you can increase the jeans by half.

The most radical, but also the most effective way to enlarge jeans is to insert stripes into the side seams of the product.

At first glance, it may seem that this way the pants can only be ruined, but if you do everything carefully and choose the material for the inserts successfully, the result will be simply amazing.

The most important thing is to choose the right fabric for the stripes. It should not only go well with jeans in color, but also have the appropriate density.

You will need a little material, strips of fabric 50 cm wide are more than enough.

Next, you need to correctly calculate the width of the inserts. First, measure your waist and hips, and determine how many centimeters you need to add to the width of the jeans to make them fit.

Then divide the resulting number by two and add 2 cm to the stock. Now you need to cut out two flat fabrics of the required length and width and sew them into the previously opened side seams of the jeans.

If, as a result of improper washing, jeans have decreased in length, and not in width, you can return the lost centimeters using the methods we are already familiar with.

It is recommended to wet the pants before you start stretching. To make the fabric more manageable, you can rinse your jeans in warm water with conditioner to soften the fabric and make it more elastic. After that, the pants need to be squeezed out, but not very hard.

There are many ways to stretch jeans. For example, throw them over the horizontal bar, hook onto them with your hands and hang for as long as you can. Or stretch the pants on the floor, press them with your knees in the hips and pull the pants up with all your strength.

When choosing jeans, pay attention to the composition of the fabric from which they are sewn. The higher the cotton content, the lower the risk that the pants will lose their shape over time.

Any jeans can shrink: both purchased in a discount center and purchased in an expensive boutique. Not only the quality of the material of the product, but also the observance of the rules of care plays a role here.

It is best to wash jeans by hand or in the washing machine on the delicate cycle. Do not wash jeans in hot water or dry them in direct sunlight!