Friday, May 11, 2012

Work With What You've Got: Ripped Pants & Iron On Patches

No, this is not a post about the 90s...My skinny pants made a desperate cry for attention right before my shopping trip.  They must have been thinking that I would never wear them again because they decided to rip as I sat down on my couch, the sound was tragic, drama queen! It was almost as bad as what happened with my skinny jeans the day before but, that’s a story for another day. 


Apparently newer pants, skinny or otherwise, used regularly only have a shelf life of approximately two years. This has not only been my personal experience but, BF’s as well. Because of this limited shelf life and the new wardrobe revelations regarding work I decided that instead of shelling out $60.00+ for a pair of replacement pants from the GAP I would fix them with an iron on patch. Crafty Iris to the rescue! 

Thankfully they had the patches at my local CVS but, I’m sure you could pick them up if need be at any pharmacy or grocery store that has a tiny section of sewing goodies. Since the offending hole was on the inside of my thigh it didn’t matter if black of the patch wasn’t an exact match for the black of the pants. First thing was to sew up the hole to reduce the risk of any additional ripping. 


Then I placed the patch to cover as much of the hole as I could and ironed away. The instructions on the packet of patches said to do it on the highest heat setting with no steam. It was a fairly straightforward process. For some reason I got some discoloration on the patch but, it’s not really a big problem since no one will be able to see it unless I show them. Because the patch didn’t cover the entire hole I ended up having to cut an additional piece from another black patch to rectify the situation but, it all worked out.


I haven’t worn them yet but, I am sure my handiwork will hold up to the wear and tear of life and hopefully the washing machine. Either way, this endeavor has saved me a pretty penny. Have you gotten crafty with anything lately? Please share I’m always inspired when other people do creative things to make what they have work for them!

2 comments:

  1. I've used those patches before, hopefully it works out for you :o) My favorite quick fix for fallen hems (which seems to happen to me all the time!) is fusible bonding tape (e.g. Stitch Witchery), which really does last, even through the wash.

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    1. That's good to know, I'll keep that in mind :)

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