Replace a Pants or Jeans Pocket

Save your Jeans Pocket, Save Your Jeans

Have you got a favorite pair of jeans? Everybody has. You wear them more often than your other ones, and wash them more often, too. They're soft and comfortable and you can even put up with the threadbare spots that start showing up after a few years of wear.

What you can't deal with though, is that hole in the pocket. That will sideline them in a heartbeat. Nowhere to put your keys. Change falling down your leg. Is it time to give them up? Will you ever find a pair so comfy? Thank goodness you won't need to.

Follow along as I show you how to get a brand new pocket. We'll use a piece of twill for the new pocketing. These instructions will be clearer if you read through all of them first. It will also help if you check previous and future photos as you do each step.

	STEP ONE: OBSERVE Here we can see that this jeans pocket is quite worn. Keys, coins and just general laundering can weaken the fabric, eventually creating a hole. The bottom half will need to be replaced.
	STEP TWO Taking a closer look, you can see that the pocket has already been repaired once. Patching or stitching a new seam above the hole is a great short term way to "fix" a hole.
	STEP THREE Begin by simply cutting the bottom off of this jeans pocket. Turn the pants inside out, lay the pocket out smoothly and cut straight across the bottom through all thicknesses.
	STEP FOUR Next, measure the width of the pocket. Double that and add an inch. Here that is 5½X2+1=12. Cut some firm fabric (pocketing or twill) to that width. Make it 4" to 6" long.
	STEP FIVE Remove some of the remaining stitches on the seam line edge of the pocket. DO NOT rip too close to the seam where the pocket meets the pants.
	STEP SIX Here is a close up of Step Five. Let's call the edges that have just been ripped the seam line edge. We'll call this remaining piece of pocket the *jeans pocket. And the side that my forefinger is touching is the outside* of that pocket.
	STEP SEVEN Wrap the twill around the outside of the jeans pocket. Match the bottom edge of the jeans pocket with the 12" edge of the twill. The seam line edges will not meet exactly. That's OK. Pin.
	STEP EIGHT Starting at the seam line edge, stitch where the jeans pocket is pinned to the twill. You will sew all the way from seam line edge to seam line edge. Your presser foot is actually inside the pocket.
	STEP NINE Here's the new seam, turned right side out, connecting the old pocket to the twill. Press it, with the seam allowance facing downward.
	STEP TEN This shows a close up of the seam you just made (connecting pocket to twill) where it meets the side seam edge. Now let's close up that side seam and bottom edge.
	STEP ELEVEN Remove a couple of just the topstitches along the outside of the existing pocket. Then turn the pocket inside out.
	STEP TWELVE Here's a closeup of the inside of the seam line edge.
	STEP THIRTEEN Smooth the pocket flat. Sew wrong sides together. You are making a half circle with your stitching. It goes from the spot where the pocket meets the pants, down the side, then to the left. It ends at the fold.
	STEP FOURTEEN Here is the bottom edge of the pocket, now closed.
	STEP FIFTEEN Here is a close up of the bottom left corner, where the stitching stops.
	STEP SIXTEEN Trim seam to 1/8". Take care not to cut into your stitching.
	STEP SEVENTEEN Your pocket should look like this.
	STEP EIGHTEEN Now turn the pocket right side out. Coax that seam out as much as possible, bringing the stitching to the very edge of the fold. Press. Now topstitch ¼" from the outer seam. This creates a French seam finish.
	STEP NINETEEN Here is the finished product. The seam between the pocket and the twill is flat. The edges around the pocket are encased in a French seam. The pocket feels good both inside and out.

Now you've saved your jeans. Pocket your goodies and wear these with pride. This repair will last for years. Use the same process for dress pants or kids clothes. Go find your keys because you'll have a place to put them again!

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