How to Upcycle Jeans into Bermuda Shorts DIY

Happy Earth Day friends! I love upcycling things to make them last longer and keep them out of the landfill. This is the perfect way to take old jeans, pants and even active wear yoga pants and turn them into Summer time shorts. I love bermuda or board shorts...you can go shorter, but let me show you the BEST way to do the trick in just a couple of minutes! This particular pair of pants is being sacrificed for several craft projects, stay tuned for more fun denim ideas.

Okay, so a little backstory first.

In junior high, so like age 14, I was over at a friends house. She was going to turn her pants into shorts. She grabbed some crappy scissors and laid her pants flat on her bed. She didn't think. She just hacked the leg off her pants, about an inch or two away from the crotch seam. She didn't measure.

She just blundered and cut the other leg off too--front pockets and all! It was like watching a horror movie. I was frozen in disbelief. I had grown up sewing so I knew the right way to make cut offs...but hers were terrifying. She tried them on...only to find they were MUCH too short, they were uneven and her front pockets were completely cut off.

Her backside was hanging out the back and the front was worse. I don't want to get too graphic, but it was a disaster. Thankfully, she threw them away...but it was a poor death for those pants.

I'm not a fan of short shorts...bermuda or walking shorts are what I prefer. I'll show you the proper technique and you can make them as short as you like.

Great way to upcycle jeans by turning them into shorts in a few minutes.

Begin with pants that need to become shorts. This is a great upcycle for pants that are filled with holes or are much too short--do your kids grow tall overnight too? This technique works for all pants...or shorts. Maybe you just want to go shorter.

Supplies needed:

Jeans or Pants
Sharp fabric scissors
Measuring tape
Sharpie Marker

Aren't these pants adorable? They are black on the backside and blue on the front...with darling zipper pockets. It's a shame that I cut into them...but they do not fit anyone I know. I am using them in a 3 different blogging posts, so I feel like it's a great upcycling project. Stay tuned for more!

Lay the pants out on their side, making sure to line them up from the peak of the crotch area to the bottom of the ankles. This part is known as the "inseam". Most pants are measure by their inseam. Knowing your inseam is a great piece of information. Measure your favorite pants with this same technique and you'll always know when you are shopping.

For Bermuda shorts, I do an 8-9 inch inseam. Measure from the top of the inseam to the length you'd like. I would do short shorts at about 4 inch inseam. It seems surprising how long they are, but when fitted around the curves of a body, they are much shorter...note my friend's tragic short shorts story from above!

Feel free to measure your favorite shorts with this method and mimic them. If you are going to hem them with a sewing machine, give them about 3/4" more length. If you are going to make short shorts, pull the front pockets out, that way you won't cut right through them.

Cut straight across the leg at the desired measurement. I do both legs at a time...don't worry too much--have you seen what kids wear these days? ;)

Perfection, or nearly--that's it! Let them fray naturally or throw them in the wash to get them started. Or go ahead and hem them with a sewing machine. This is a great way to give extra life to pants that no longer fit in length.

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Save for later--you'll need this one for sure this Summer!

And you will definitely want to make some galaxy tennis shoes to wear with your new shorts!

These are perfect for sunny summertime weather. More details at this post.