Blue Jean Bags

What do you do with those jeans that are a titch too big? Upcycle 'em!

Unfortunately, all of my jeans are a titch too tight, so I had to resort to a trip to the thrift store. Well, that was after my new friend, Otti, picked up a couple of 44's at Hospice during their end of month sale. (Let me clarify something before She Who Must Not Be Named gets her nose out of joint...Otti is NOT my new BFF as Verne has suggested in a rumor he started; Sally is my BFF!) Back to my story...The next day I cut them up, wasting nothing, and made them into sturdy shopping bags. I was so excited with the results that Verne and I stopped at a thrift store in Sutter Creek yesterday in search of more 40+ jeans. Not only did we find six pair, but they were half price for their 4th of July sale! Two pair were never worn as they still had original tags. Of course, I started thinking about the very large man who never had an opportunity to wear them and decided that one of two things happened...(1) he was so obese that his heart gave out and his family donated them or (2) a happier thought, he joined Weight Watchers and is now a pleasing 36" inch waste. Whichever, the jeans are now mine and I began transforming them within an hour of getting home.

Here's a few tips if you decide to upcycle a pair of jeans:

1. Get the biggest bang for your buck...look for size 40+ jeans, as they obviously contain more fabric. You should be able to get an 18" panel from the crotch to the knee. 

2. Save the pockets, labels, and anything else that might be interesting to use as an embellishment for your bag.

3. I've used strapping for handles. It adds to the cost, but I like the look and there's no time spent making and turning fabric handles.

4. If the original pants pockets are stitched with a contrasting thread (gold is common), do all of your topstitching with that color.

5. Consider using a heavier thread than you'd use for normal quilting. If you do, use a denim or topstitch needle.

Two of my finished Upcycled Denim Market Bags...

I have a confession to make...before I finished this post I made a trip back to the thrift store to make sure I hadn't missed anything in my haste yesterday. As I looked around the store I saw a section for "large" women. Yep! I found two XXL pairs of women's jeans that are perfect and three ankle-length denim dresses. One final pass through the men's jeans yielded another size 44. I walked out with an armful of treasures all for under $18!