Oversized distressed denim is everywhere we turn at the moment, so how can you nail this trend without breaking the bank? By doing it yourself of course! Here’s how to customise your denim, as explained by maxi dresses retailer, QUIZ.
Initial preparation
Before you pick up the scissors, you need to know what you’re doing first. Failing to prepare and you could make a BIG mistake that will leave your denim unwearable.
It goes without saying that your denim should be clean and dry. Put the jeans on and work out which areas you want to distress. Pockets, knees and the bum are popular parts to modify, as they are the areas of the jeans that naturally wear and tear. Use chalk to mark out where you want to distress.
Ripping the denim
You know where the tears will be, so the next step is preparing to cut the jeans. Place a magazine or thick cardboard in the jeans under where you’re cutting to make sure you only cut one side of the fabric.
Using a safety knife, cut rips of varying sizes into the denim to create a natural-looking tear. Loosely aim to create a diamond shape using varying sized cuts.
Fraying the cuts is the next step. Along the edge of each cut, gently tease the horizontal white threads using a safety pin, being careful not to break them. Then, using tweezers, pluck out the vertical threads to leave just the white horizontal threads. Repeat this for each cut you have made.
Distressing the denim
Dig out the sandpaper from the toolbox — you’re going to need it. Take a piece of sandpaper and rub it across sections of your jeans. Doing so will create a natural-looking colour fade, perfect for adding the finishing touches to your distressed denim creation.
Patch your denim
Patched denim is huge right now, and you can create your own at home by sewing patches on to them. Bright floral motifs are in vogue and practically leap off distressed denim to give you an eye-catching contrast of grunge and chic. If you want a subtle embellishment, why not go with lace? This is a classic feminine fabric that will dress up your modern distressed denim with retro charm for the ideal smart-casual look.
If you don’t want to sew your own patches on, QUIZ actually has a range of jeans that feature this type of detailing, so you can buy a ready-made pair.
With our top tips, you’ll be wearing distressed denim that will rival the likes of style queens Rihanna and Kylie Jenner.
Photo by Jamakassi on Unsplash