It's been several years now that I no longer buy clothes I can sew myself. At the end of 2020, my boyfriend challenged me to also make his wardrobe. I had already made him shirts, sweatshirts... but it was mainly jeans that his closet was asking for, and him too ;-)

So, I, who had only sewn a few women's pants, studied the theory on denim and sewing jeans. I searched quite a bit for the pattern that would satisfy my partner's tastes; finally, we settled on the book "Jeans et denim" by Guénaël Luong published by Editions Mango and the Slim model for men. 

So, I invite you to discover the steps of making and the tips and tricks I gathered during the making of my first two men's jeans. 

As a brief introduction, I would ask you: What would jeans be without belt loops, a coin pocket, or patch pockets on the back? All these essential jean elements must absolutely be taken into account for the jeans you sew to become "real" jeans. And I must say that Guënael's book is packed with photos and step-by-step instructions that allow you to sew jeans of truly fine quality. 

One small regret in the book is the size correspondence between the size chart listed in the book (5 sizes from S to XXL) and the pattern sizes provided with the book (6 sizes from 36 to 46). My first jeans, which we'll call "the toile," was therefore cut a bit large. Nevertheless, this allowed me to better adjust the second one ;-)

1. Choose the right material and tools for denim

I won't go over all the information again because I had already written an article about denim and the necessary tools to sew it. You can find it here. 

Nevertheless, I wanted to remind you that denim is a very pleasant material to sew but also to wear. For more comfort, I recommend choosing denim that contains a percentage of elastane. The elastane will allow the denim to closely follow the curves of the body and provide a bit of ease (for example, when sitting).  

If you choose denim without elastane (100% cotton), it’s better to go down one size because the denim will stretch and loosen, eventually risking being too big. 

In the shop, you will find denim with elastane and all the suitable equipment like needles or thread. 

2. The stitches, topstitching, and seams

It is necessary to overlock all the pieces of your jean because denim can fray. You can do the overlocking with a zigzag stitch, but overlocking with a serger will give a much better result. You can have fun contrasting the overlock so that the jean looks as good inside as outside. 

As for the seam itself, a straight stitch will be used. For my part, to strengthen my seams, I used the saddle stitch which also makes the stitches stand out because it is thicker. I really wanted this effect with very contrasting seams. I lengthened the stitch length (3.5). I also used decorative stitches for the patch pockets, which allows you to personalize the jean. 

Topstitching also characterizes jean seams. It is therefore important to master their straightness, especially if you want to use contrasting thread. If you’re not confident, I recommend practicing and, in any case, doing a test on a scrap to evaluate the spacing between the topstitching that suits you best. 

Finally, to sew a jean, you will need to master: 

• the open seam (the classic) 
• the felled seam 
• the flat-felled seam (not mandatory but so much cleaner and stronger on pants that will be put to the test)

3. The pockets

Jean pockets come in three types:

• the ticket pocket (the very small one at the front)
• the side pockets (the large ones at the front)
• the back patch pockets

I recommend making tight zigzag stitches on the top of the back patch pockets; this helps reinforce the pocket openings and prevents them from tearing or coming loose with wear.

I always find it nice to use the machine's decorative stitches (all those we hardly ever use ;-) to personalize pockets. Keep that in mind ;-) 

4. The fly zipper

The much-feared fly zipper... well, in the end, it's not that complicated if you carefully follow the steps and instructions; while being precise in execution. 

I find the step-by-step in Gwenaël Luong's book really well done and it fully guides the fly zipper construction. 

5. Rivets and buttons

Rivets help reinforce pocket openings. They are generally placed on the front (slash pockets) and on the outer sides of the back patch pockets.

Placing jean rivets and buttons:

• carefully mark the placement spot (chalk)
• pre-pierce using a punch on the mark
• place the two parts of the rivet or button into the clip ends 
• close the clip by applying (strong) pressure

To place them, I used my multi-position punch and my Prym brand varyo clip which I sell in the shop. It was my first time setting rivets and jean buttons, and I must say it was very easy. 

6. Waistband and belt loops

One of the last steps is attaching the waistband and belt loops. I chose to make simple belt loops that are placed once the waistband is attached. 

Then just place them where you want: 2 at the front, 2 on the side, and 1 at the back, and sew them with a tight zigzag stitch.

I chose to first sew a straight stitch at the top of the belt loop at 0.5cm to fix it in place initially. Then, all that's left is to fold it over and make a tight zigzag stitch at the top. Finally, fold the bottom of the belt loop by 0.5cm and make another tight zigzag stitch and... ta-da, the first belt loop is fixed!

So, now you know a bit more about sewing men's jeans. As for me, I will definitely sew more because I really enjoyed the challenge and I already have plenty of denim and thread color combinations... in short, lovely sewing dreams filling my head.