Ways To Stretch Jeans - 10 Tips For Stretching Denim

It’s party night and you have the whole series of events planned out in your head, from what cologne you are going to wear after taking a shower and every other important detail.

After a few hours of sleep, it’s time to get ready for your party, you perform all the rituals necessary and try to put on your favorite jeans that bring out your flawless shape, and boom “It doesn’t fit.”

Your eyes then open wider because there’s literally no other option that would match with the top you have on!

I have good news for you, there are ways to stretch jeans and make them fit, even if they aren’t elastic jeans. You don’t have to jump around your room for them to fit properly, and don’t inconvenience yourself by forcing the jeans to close.

Check out our methods below on how to stretch jeans, you’d be glad you did.

Table of Contents

Can you actually stretch jeans?

Yes, you can actually stretch jeans and make them loose and more comfortable while rocking them.

Some people doubt this but a trial would convince you. Your pair of jeans can actually be stretched a great deal to fit around your waist using some amazing techniques. However, don’t expect to stretch a size 34 into a size 42.

Fabrics like spandex or lycra are elastomeric, this means they’ll always retain their original shape. Even if you tried all our techniques below, they might not loosen as much as traditional types of denim.

10 Ways To Stretch Jeans

1. How To Stretch Jeans With A Hair Dryer

Here’s the first method of stretching your tight pair of jeans. I doubted this method at first, but after giving it a try, I was shocked at how I was able to loosen up my old pair of denim using heat.

What you’ll need;

Hair Dryer (A powerful one)
Flat surface

Instructions

Connect your hairdryer to an electric source.
Lay your pair of jeans on a flat surface.
At about 6 inches away from the jeans, aim the hairdryer.
Move steadily and continuously to heat up all areas of the jeans.
Do the same for the flip side of the jeans.
Using your hands, pull the jeans from opposite sides from top to bottom.
Insert both arms inside each leg of the denim and stretch as wide as you can.
Repeat the hairdryer procedure if the jeans start to cool off.

2. How To Stretch Jean With Warm Water

This method should be used if you want to stretch your jeans to make them longer. It works like a charm. Denim tends to be elastic when inserted in warm water. You can simply insert your pair into a bucket filled with warm water, leaving it to soak for a while, and do some stretching afterward.

You could also use the spray bottle technique. Here’s what you will need;

Warm water
Spray bottle

Instructions

In a spray bottle add warm water.
Spray the jeans in sections.
Make each area damp.
Lay the jeans on the floor.
Using your legs to press the waist section of the jeans, hold the legs with your hands and pull as though your life depended on it.
Flip it over using your legs this time to hold down the legs of the jeans and pull the waist section upward.

3. Adding Extensions

If you have tried stretching your pair of jeans and they don’t seem to be getting longer, you can add extensions. Doing this is a very easy way of making any pair of jeans longer. The only challenge here might be getting the right color that’ll match the color of your jeans. Or you could just add a different color, and it would seem like some unique style.

What you’ll need;

Sewing pins
Jean fabric
Scissors
Sewing machine
Thread

Instructions

Cut a two-three-inch slit along the side in the waistband.
Cut a piece of fabric that is more than twice the length of the cut-out.
Fold in half and place folded side up on the inside of the waist.
Stretch the cut section of the waist out.
Using sewing pins, tack the folded fabric to the waistline. This should hold it in place.
Set up the thread with the right color.
Set your sewing machine to a low stitch number with a wide stitch width.
Sew the outer edge of the cut areas.
Cut excess fabric from inside the jeans.

If you are having issues with this, feel free to give your jeans to a professional to help you with the entire process.

4. How To Stretch Jeans By Squatting

If you just got a new pair of jeans and they seem a bit tight, you can loosen them up a bit by doing some squats. It will help stretch the denim. With this technique, you will not only stretch your jeans but perform a basic workout for yourself.

This technique might not help those who want to loosen up the waist of tight jeans but has proven to be quite useful in stretching the hips and legs of denim.

5. Adjust the button

If the waist of your jeans has become too tight for you, this simple technique might help. However, jeans buttons are quite different from regular buttons seen on pants. The video tutorial above will show you how to replace the button for your denim so they fit properly. Be sure to place the button a few inches away from the initial spot.

6. How To Stretch Jeans With Hot Steam

Here’s another technique that many people do not know about. The truth is, heat makes jeans easier to stretch, and we are going to use this to our advantage.

Here’s what you will need for this;

Water
Heating Iron for clothes
Ironing table or board
Spray bottle

Instructions

In a spray bottle add warm water and drizzle over the jeans.
Lay the damp denim on the ironing table.
Use the heating iron to steam all areas of the jeans.
When the jeans are almost dry, wear them and do some squatting.

7. How To Stretch Jeans In A Bathtub

This is one of the most unconventional methods but I have had a lot of friends tell me that it works. I actually had to give this a try and see for myself. Here’s how this works;

You’ll need;

Warm water
Bathtub

Instructions

Fill your bathtub with warm water.
Without underwear, put on your jeans and enter the tub carefully.
Sit in the bathtub for about 20 minutes while changing positions at intervals to aid stretching.
Remove the pants and shake out water (do not squeeze).
Place the jeans on a flat surface or use a hanger to dry them.

8. How To Stretch Jeans Waist Using A Wooden Hanger

If the waist of your jeans is the problem, then this method might help fix the problem. Also, you can try readjusting the position of the button, it might help.

9. How To Stretch Jeans Waist By Pulling

7 years ago, I paid a visit to a country in Africa and saw a method that was rather strange but I guess it actually works. If your hands are strong enough you’ll simply just have to pull the waist of the jeans to increase the size by a couple of inches.

Make sure the button of the jeans is in place, put both your hands inside the denim and then stretch it as wide as you can. Trust me, this method works like magic for some kinds of fabric. The very hard ones might be hard to stretch using this method.

10. How To Stretch Jeans Using A 4-Inch Clamp & Spreader Clamp

In this video tutorial, the creator will show you how to stretch any pair of jeans using a 4-inch clamp and a spreader clamp. The only downside to this tutorial is that you would have to spend some money to get these clamps, while other methods won’t require spending a dime as they make use of household items.

Check out the video for more instructions on how to stretch jeans using these special tools.

Final Words

If you have tried everything and nothing is helping, then I am sorry to say this, but it’s time to say goodbye to your favorite pair of jeans. We did our best to save it but you must have outgrown it. You can give it out to your younger one who would probably fit perfectly into it.

Thanks for stopping by, but just before you leave, I would like to know, have you tried any of the tips here before? Did it work for you? Or perhaps you have a secret method you would like to share with us? I would love to hear from you. Use the comments section below to leave your views.