Tutorial: Take in Waistbands with Elastic. . . Fast and Easy!

I wanted to share with you a fast and easy way to take in the waistband in a pair of jeans or any other piece of clothing. When I buy clothes for my children, the waist always seems to be too large. I usually try to buy clothes with the adjustable waist in them but I find great deals at times that are to hard to pass up. :) So here is my solution to the too-loose waist. . .


This is a skirt that I bought for 2.99 from The Children's Place. The front waistband has two straight sections on either side of the button. These sections are where I am going to add elastic. The back of the skirt already has elastic and it is still too big.



After cutting the slits in the fabric use a safety pin attached to one end of your elastic and push it through the opening at one end.






Then use Fray Check on the raw fabric edges to prevent raveling.


Now pull up the elastic at the other end of the opening enough to make the clothes fit your child. Pin in place and sew the elastic down near the opening.


Tuck the end of the elastic into the opening sew in place and fray check the raw edges of the fabric.


I repeated these steps for the other side of the waistband of this skirt. This is a very simple and fast fix to the problem of too-loose waists.

Here is a pair of pants that I fixed in this manner also. On these I could use the back inside waistband of the pants to tighten them.


I cut two slits with my seam ripper on each side of the back waistband.


Insert the elastic and pin in place at one end.


Now sew the elastic down by sewing close to the opening.

Then tuck the end of the elastic into the opening. Sew in place and use fray check on the raw edges.


Now pull up the elastic at the other end to get the waist as needed. Pin in place.


Now sew near the opening. . .


Tuck in the end of the elastic, sew in place, and the fray check the raw edges and here is the inside back waistband now. . .


And from the outside. . .


I hope this helps someone else too! :)