To alter or not to alter, that is the question…

too short for jeans, too long for capris?

I bought these great Bluenote jeans at Above the Underground in Abbotsford last week.  For various reasons, this cool little thrift shop/retail training store is going to be closing on May 25^th. (I’ll update this blog with a link to a story about all that as soon as I have it written!) In the lead up to that date, they’re offering all clothing and accessories at 50% off already, so I got these for $3.

I love them for all kinds of reasons. I love it that they’re made in Canada. I love it that they have this fabulous, oriental detail and I’m not sure if Bluenotes did that or if a previous owner created this look but I think it’s cool.

the oriental look of the tag makes me wonder if Bluenotes created these jeans to look like this

They mostly fit right – and that’s saying something for me because I find jeans difficult to buy. I’m short,  I’m short- waisted and I’m… curvy in places where jeans are not, so it’s always a challenge to find something that fits and feels good. Nonetheless,  I’m having a bit of a dilemma. I have worn them as they are, but I think they’re too long for me. What do you think?

love this beautiful border

For someone who has skills, I think altering these would be an easy fix. They’ve been serged and the oriental fabric has simply been sewn onto the edge of that for added length. I could do one of two things: simply remove the oriental fabric and move it up, leaving the jean part as is and just attaching the coloured stuff overtop of the jean OR I could cut the jean part off, re-serge it and then re-attach the fabric at the edge as it’s been done now. Problem is, I don’t have a serge machine nor do I know how to use one (although there is one where I work and I could probably persuade a knowledgeable colleague to help me with this little dilemma.)

here you can see how the oriental border has been attached

When one person found out how little I paid for them she said “Pfft! For 3 bucks, just wear them like that, they look fine!”  I thought that was an interesting perspective. I would have thought that if I’d paid  $50 for them, I’d be more inclined to leave them as they are, since I’d be afraid to mess with them after having paid so much. (Of course, I’d NEVER pay $50 for a pair of jeans. Still…) Doesn’t it make more sense that if you’ve paid so little for something you’re more inclined to take a risk with alteration?

Anyway, I’m not a seamstress by any stretch of the imagination but I love these enough to want to wear them at their best.  So I’m looking for your advice. Do they even need to be shortened or should I leave them as they are? If I do shorten them, how should I go about it?

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