How to Turn Pants Into Shorts

By eHow Fashion, Style & Personal Care Editor

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When the knees in your jeans start to go or the bottom of your pants become frayed, it might be time to turn those pants into shorts. Converting pants into shorts is a convenient way to diversify your warm-weather wardrobe without digging deep into your pockets.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

Chalk, marker or light-colored pencil
Safety pins
Sewing scissors
Thread
Sewing machine

Step1

Have the person you are making the shorts for put the pants on, so he can tell you where he wants them cut. Mark the line using a piece of chalk, safety pin, colored pencil or marker.

Step2

Decide if you want to add a hem and how thick you want the hem to be. While young people, especially girls, tend to prefer that the ends of their jean shorts remain frayed, you'll need to add length to the shorts to account for a hem if you want a clean, tailored look. A good rule of thumb is to add 1/2 inch of length for the hem.

Step3

Use sharp sewing scissors to cut away the legs of the pants at the point you've marked on the material. Discard the fabric you cut off as you turn the pants into shorts.

Step4

Finish the ends of the shorts as you prefer. If you want to add a cuff, fold the material up to form the cuff, and then use your sewing machine and matching thread to sew the hem in place. You can also achieve a clean look by folding the loose ends underneath the shorts (rather than over top, which will form a cuff) and sewing the alteration in place.

Step5

Dodge the need for a sewing machine by using hot glue instead of thread to hold folded-under fabric edges in place. Simply make your folds, apply hot glue to the hidden edge of the fabric, put it in place and leave it to dry. Once the glue sets, you'll be able to machine-wash the shorts without worrying about affecting the glue.

Tips & Warnings

You can save some time by leaving the ends of your new shorts rough when you turn old pants into summer wear. This is particularly popular in women's fashion, where jean shorts often have frayed ends with loose threads hanging down to create a unique and casual look.
If you're looking to add a 1-inch cuff around the bottom of the shorts, leave 1 1/2 inches of extra material.
Be careful when you use sewing scissors. They're much sharper than normal scissors, and you can cut yourself badly if you're not careful.