We had a wonderful, very full weekend. My daughter and I participated in our first Girl Scouts event, and I got to attend new leadership training. I am very excited about Girl Scouts. It's a great program that really lets girls learn leadership skills while having fun. Plus, they have a focus on outdoor activities and STEM which I fear is lacking for many girls today. I'm so excited to be involved in the program.
Since she had her first event Saturday, and I didn't get her uniform until Friday, that meant I got to spend Friday night sewing. It ended up being a good thing, because I had a couple of projects I was meaning to complete anyways. One of them is a collection of pants for my son.
I think there's quite a few parents out there than can sympathize with this problem. I have a tall skinny little boy. If something fits around the waist, it's probably 3 inches short on the pants and vis versa. Sweatpants and jeans with adjustable waists help, but every once in a while we get some free jeans or older PJ pants with worn out elastic, and they just fall off his tiny hips. (Lord. I wish I had that problem)
Fixing this is SUPER easy. And if you have a needle and thread, you don't even need a sewing machine! This is completely doable without one.
DIY Skinny Hip Fix
Elastic (I like the no-roll kind)
Needle and Thread or Sewing Machine (I like to use a color that matches the pant, not the elastic)
Safety Pin
Small Sharp Scissors
Optional: Stitch Ripper
Directions
1. Cut a Small Slit
So, most waistbands of pants will already have a "pocket" for you to thread your elastic through. So, for jeans or other pants that button/zip on the front, on the one of the sides towards the front, cut a small slit on the inside of the waistband. Take care not to cut all the way through the pant. Just try to get that first layer. If you are working on some stretched out sweatpants or PJ pants, you may want to start in the back since your elastic is going to go all the way around.
2. Thread Elastic
Attach your safety pin to the elastic and thread it through the small slit you made. You should be able to thread all the way around to the other side (or with PJs and sweatpants, thread the whole way around).
You may run into obstacles. For example, on these Levi's, the patch that was sewn into the back of the jeans keeps you from threading all the way around. In that case, use your stitch ripper (or even small scissors) to cut away enough stitches so the safety pin can slide through. Don't remove the entire patch (unless you want to). You only need just a tiny space for the safety pin to slide through. Once you get to the other side, cut a tiny slit in the top layer of fabric for the safety pin to slide back out. Secure the safety pin and elastic to the side of the pants. (Or if you went all the way around connect the beginning and end of the elastic together with the safety pin)
3. Sew
You can either use a needle and thread or a sewing machine to attach your elastic. If you use a needle, make sure you have strong knots and really have at it. Make sure that elastic isn't going anywhere. If you have a sewing machine, use a zig zag stitch to secure the elastic.
If you're working on pants like jeans, you will secure the beginning of the elastic first. Remove the safety pin and place the elastic against the inside of the waist band and sew the elastic to the jean. Once it's sewn on, pull the other end of the elastic tight. Make the waistband as tight as you need it to be. Then secure the end of the elastic to the other side of the pants with a couple of stitches. Cut off the excess elastic.
If you're working on sweatpants or PJ pants, pull the elastic as tight as you need it and sew the two ends of the elastic together so it's making a circle of elastic. Cut off excess elastic when you're done sewing. Slide the elastic around so the piece you just finished sewing is inside of the waistband. That way it isn't visible and isn't scratching your kiddo.
So, there you go! A very easy and cheap way to make your pants fit those skinny boy hips. Of course this works for skinny girls too, but I always find that boy pants are usually assuming your little one is built like a brick house. :)
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