Things You'll Need:
- One-half yard of fabric for insert
- Pins
- Seam ripper
- Ruler or measuring tape
- Scissors
- Sewing machine and thread
- Iron and ironing board
-
Step 1
Decide how large you want your bell bottoms to be and how high up on the leg you want the flare to start. Mark this point on the jeans with pins or with a pencil or fabric-safe pen.
-
Step 2
Using the seam ripper, remove the outside seam on each leg up to the point that you marked in Step 1.
-
Step 3
Spread the now-open leg of the jeans wide and determine how large of an insert you want to make. Measure this width and also the length between the hem of the jeans and the upper point marked in Step 1. Add an additional 1 to 2 inches to the length and an additional inch to the width to come up with your completed measurements.
-
Step 4
Cut the insert fabric into a triangle shape, making sure that the length of the full triangle and the width of the triangle's bottom match the measurements you took in Step 3. Cut a matching insert for the other leg of the jeans.
-
Step 5
Pin the insert into the leg opening, remembering to keep right-sides (patterened or "nice" sides of the fabric) together. Position the two fabrics on your sewing machine so that you will have a 5/8" seam allowance. Stitch up one side, pivot the needle at the top and then stitch down the other side.
-
Step 6
Hem the bottom of the insert to the same length as the jeans by folding the material several times and then stitching across. Press the jeans for a finished look.
