How to Add Ribbons & Ruffles to Girls' Jeans

Sometimes a little embellishment can go a long way. Instead of purchasing ready-made clothes that may just cost more for the design or label, it's possible to make jeans for that special little lady cute and attractive just by adding a few of your own ideas. You'll save money, you can rework an old pair of pants and you'll be coming up with a one-of-a-kind design.

Things You'll Need

• Jeans, bought or already owned
• Ribbons and ruffles
• Thread
• Scissors
• Finishing glue (optional)
• Pins
• Sewing needles or sewing machine

Instructions

1. Lay out your design. Look at your jeans and decide where your embellishments would look best. Maybe at the cuffs, or on a back pocket, or in a line down one leg. Maybe a hole in the knee could use a ribbon. Use pins to temporarily fasten the ribbons or ruffles to the place you want them to go. Avoid placing your embellishments where they can interfere with the zipper or buttons.

2. Get your needles or your sewing machine ready. You'll need fairly strong needles to be able to pierce the denim easily.

3. Sew the embellishments. If you're fastening your embellishments to the cuffs or the waistband, a sewing machine will come in handy, especially because those places tend to have a thicker layer of material. However, if you're fastening your ribbons or ruffles to places closer to the center, you might consider hand-sewing them. Depending on the size of your jeans, certain areas of your jeans may not be accessible to your machine's needle.

4. Finish up the project. Cut any loose threads and remove any pins that may still be in the jeans. You may use a little glue to keep the loose ends of threads or parts or ribbons or ruffles from coming loose or snagging on things.

Tips & Warnings

• Use the appropriate needles, scissors, and notions for the type of material you are using. Needles that are too thin may bend or snap or cause you to puncture yourself.

• Avoid placing your ribbons or ruffles where they might get stepped on or trip the wearer. If you want to attach them far down on the cuff, cut a little of the cuff off to compensate for the length you are adding.

• Don't attach the ribbons or ruffles in places where they are likely to catch on things.

References

• sewing machine ready