Fixing a ripped crotch in your pants

[Batsy]

Every pair of pants I wear often ends up ripping between the legs, and then the rip gets bigger over time. What’s your favorite way to mend these kinds of tears in a way that lasts? When I sew to add decorative patches to clothes or to mend my bum flap, I sew by hand with dental floss. Is fixing a ripped crotch as simple as sewing a patch on/inside the hole? My stitches often end up coming undone, so I wanna find a way to not have to keep repairing the same pair of pants over and over.

 

[bote]

I've tried different ways, the only one that kinda worked for me was to basically sew a pair of shorts in. But once the crotch goes once, it always seems to go again pretty quick, so now I just switch them out.

 

[Joey Garbanzo]

If you sewed the crotch at all like the sewing on your vest/hat in your butt-flap thread then I say you should work on your technique. Thread the floss through the needle double back and tie the ends together to make a loop of floss with a knot in one end and the needle at the other. Tighten your stitches up. Get a thimble. Leather and better quality denim will hold up better.

Patching your clothes is kind of a forever work in progress as stitches will eventually pop, patches will wear through, new holes form etc...

Which reminds me I have some sewing to do myself.

Edit: Just for clarification I don't mean to sound like I'm making a dig at ya, just noticed your stitches it in the other thread you made. Making them closer together will bind the fabric better.

 

[Batsy]

If you sewed the crotch at all like the sewing on your vest/hat in your butt-flap thread then I say you should work on your technique. Thread the floss through the needle double back and tie the ends together to make a loop of floss with a knot in one end and the needle at the other. Tighten your stitches up. Get a thimble. Leather and better quality denim will hold up better.

Patching your clothes is kind of a forever work in progress as stitches will eventually pop, patches will wear through, new holes form etc...

Which reminds me I have some sewing to do myself.

Edit: Just for clarification I don't mean to sound like I'm making a dig at ya, just noticed your stitches it in the other thread you made. Making them closer together will bind the fabric better.

Thanks, I appreciate the feedback

 

[Batsy]

If you sewed the crotch at all like the sewing on your vest/hat in your butt-flap thread then I say you should work on your technique. Thread the floss through the needle double back and tie the ends together to make a loop of floss with a knot in one end and the needle at the other. Tighten your stitches up. Get a thimble. Leather and better quality denim will hold up better.

Patching your clothes is kind of a forever work in progress as stitches will eventually pop, patches will wear through, new holes form etc...

Which reminds me I have some sewing to do myself.

Edit: Just for clarification I don't mean to sound like I'm making a dig at ya, just noticed your stitches it in the other thread you made. Making them closer together will bind the fabric better.

Thanks, I appreciate the feedback

 

[Bibs]

Get some old pyjamas pants and sew them into your jeans like they were an insulating liner, it's the simplest way and adds another full layer of fabric to work with.

 

[Toyoder]

Talked about this with a buddy of mine because our pants are always blowing out at the crotch.. We thought that the best way would be to make some kind of "insert" to sew into the pants..

I've tried different ways, the only one that kinda worked for me was to basically sew a pair of shorts in. But once the crotch goes once, it always seems to go again pretty quick, so now I just switch them out.

This reminds me I actually have a pair that I need to fix,. why do pants rip at the crotch in the first place?

 

[ali]

I don't have hints on how to fix it, but i've also wondered why it happens that pants split there. I think it happens more to pants that are a bit tight, so best solution if you don't want to buy new pants is lose weight. For me once it happened while riding a bike, but also a couple times when i was just squatting down, so now i figure that's an easy test to do when buying new pants - if there is tension in the crotch when you squat, they're gonna be too tight for an active traveling lifestyle. Alternatively you can look at pants which have some stretch built in, but in my experience those ones tend to be flimsier overall anyway. I just use relax cut black work pants now, they're pretty tough and designed to be worn every day.

 

[DreadForest]

This is my department!

First things first- repair before there's a hole! Check your pants and see if there are any areas that look a little thin. On blue jeans, this shows up as little white marks. Using thread or (preferably) 3 or 4 strands of embroidery floss stitch over the white spot, going a quarter inch past the spot on either side. Keep your stitches close together. Now do the same thing going the other direction (if your first set of stitches went East-West, do this set North-South.

For a bigger hole, before you patch it, BASTE around the edge of the hole. A quarter inch away from the damage will do the job. What this accomplishes is preventing the tear/fraying section from getting bigger. Now you can either attempt an invisible mend or slap a patch on there. Basting is the key to keeping things from re-ripping.

 

[Anagor]

I think it happens more to pants that are a bit tight

Yeah, I think it depends on the cut, how they are designed.

My jeans mostly rip first at the knees, then in the back around the corners of the back pockets and below the waistband, then maybe below the back pockets and only then at the crotch. Then it's time to look for new pants ...

 

[Batsy]

This is my department!

First things first- repair before there's a hole! Check your pants and see if there are any areas that look a little thin. On blue jeans, this shows up as little white marks. Using thread or (preferably) 3 or 4 strands of embroidery floss stitch over the white spot, going a quarter inch past the spot on either side. Keep your stitches close together. Now do the same thing going the other direction (if your first set of stitches went East-West, do this set North-South.

For a bigger hole, before you patch it, BASTE around the edge of the hole. A quarter inch away from the damage will do the job. What this accomplishes is preventing the tear/fraying section from getting bigger. Now you can either attempt an invisible mend or slap a patch on there. Basting is the key to keeping things from re-ripping.

Thx, you seem very knowledgeable. I’ll have to look up basting

 

[DreadForest]

Thx, you seem very knowledgeable. I’ll have to look up basting

Would it be of use to people for me to post a picture tutorial?

 

[Bibs]

Would it be of use to people for me to post a picture tutorial?

Yes dude please do 🙏

 

[sevedemanos]

Every pair of pants I wear often ends up ripping between the legs, and then the rip gets bigger over time. What’s your favorite way to mend these kinds of tears in a way that lasts? When I sew to add decorative patches to clothes or to mend my bum flap, I sew by hand with dental floss. Is fixing a ripped crotch as simple as sewing a patch on/inside the hole? My stitches often end up coming undone, so I wanna find a way to not have to keep repairing the same pair of pants over and over.

your stitching comes undone?

if you mean bc the material itself is disintegrating too fast for the patch to hold, i can relate. sometimes freshies are the only viable option

if not then look up double stitching.. which is basically just looping around the other direction, connecting the dots.

which ofc is sometimes not really practical/ time effective and then you go for the.. well, uh, the zigzag thing. but on pants, at least as far as the crotch a double stitch is doable

 

[DreadForest]

Okay. Basic Mending 101:
Step One - Do a running stitch around the hole about 1/2" out from the rip.

Step Two - cut a patch a quarter inch bigger around than your running stitch area. Turn the edges in that quarter inch and stitch.

Step Three - Stitch the patch over the hole. I used white floss so you can see the stitches.

Finished patch from the inside -

An alternate method, if you want to be fancy (or don't want to hem your patch - stitch straight lines of running stitch crosswise to the hole you're repairing. The patch needs to be about the same size relative to the hole as the other method.

Outside -

Inside -

 

[laughingman]

Okay. Basic Mending 101

This is a good example of viable mending. Good job man. Very solar punk.

 

[DreadForest]

This is a good example of viable mending. Good job man. Very solar punk.

Thank you. I debated doing invisible mending, but I find this is more durable, and I doubt anyone looking for sewing advice on StP is concerned about visibility.

 

[laughingman]

Thank you. I debated doing invisible mending, but I find this is more durable, and I doubt anyone looking for sewing advice on StP is concerned about visibility.

There is a lot more coverage for invisible mending out there I would say. The rub being that making your garment look new again requires a lot of exacting skill and experience that can be a barrier of entry to the person who just wants something that works. The visible mending movement suggests that the act of using and repairing something makes it better not worse, so I'm always glad to see people embracing a repair don't replace mentality.

 

[DreadForest]

The visible mending movement suggests that the act of using and repairing something makes it better not worse, so I'm always glad to see people embracing a repair don't replace mentality.

This is actually a growing movement, if posts in online craft forums are anything to go by. I've even seen people doing sashiko (Japanese style embroidery) "mending" on clothing that doesn't need it. It's good to see. If I wasn't quite so firm in my belief that Meta is responsible for at least one genocide, I'd be on IG promoting the idea that making everything by hand out of natural materials is cooler than getting two-wear-before-it-disintegrates crap made by children in a sweatshop. The vast majority of people have literal piles of plastic-based clothing they never wear. If that sort aren't willing to invest their time in a new piece, they don't need it. (Also, if you put several hours or possibly days into your clothes, you'll definitely respect both them and the materials more, and thus take care of them!)

 

[laughingman]

This is actually a growing movement, if posts in online craft forums are anything to go by. I've even seen people doing sashiko (Japanese style embroidery) "mending" on clothing that doesn't need it. It's good to see. If I wasn't quite so firm in my belief that Meta is responsible for at least one genocide, I'd be on IG promoting the idea that making everything by hand out of natural materials is cooler than getting two-wear-before-it-disintegrates crap made by children in a sweatshop. The vast majority of people have literal piles of plastic-based clothing they never wear. If that sort aren't willing to invest their time in a new piece, they don't need it. (Also, if you put several hours or possibly days into your clothes, you'll definitely respect both them and the materials more, and thus take care of them!)

Exactly right on all accounts.