Showerthought: I tried to make a dress from old denim and it turned into a weird sculpture

So I had this pile of old jeans I was going to toss, and I got the idea to cut them up and sew them into a patchwork dress. I spent a whole weekend on it, using a pattern I found online. But the different weights and stretches of the denim pieces, some from skinny jeans and some from old bootcuts, made the whole thing pull in weird directions. When I tried it on, it didn't hang right at all. It just kind of stuck out in stiff points and looked more like a modern art piece than something to wear. I learned that mixing fabric types without testing how they move together is a huge risk. Has anyone else tried upcycling denim and run into a similar problem with the fit going totally wrong?

3 comments

3 Comments

emeryking1mo ago

My denim disaster could be in a museum.

stella_shah891mo ago

Is it really museum-level bad though? I've seen jeans with paint splatters that just look like a craft project. Even ripped knees are pretty normal now. Unless you somehow turned them into a sculpture, it's probably just laundry day.

roberts.diana1mo ago

But what makes it museum quality, Emery? Stella has a point about normal wear and tear, so the damage must be truly special. I'm picturing something that tells a story way beyond a simple stain.