Jeans problems.

[Kittymoose]

Okay, here's the problem. I'm 4'10". My leg measures from hip to ankle: 31"
I'm not small enough to be able to wear kid's sized clothing. I'm usually around a size 8/10.
I would LOVE to have ONE pair of jeans that I didn't have to severely alter. I love love love HUGE bellbottom jeans, but by the time I get them all cut and (sometimes) hemmed, there's almost no flare to the leg at all. Buying 'petite' or 'short' sized jeans is not an option as they are 1) rare and 2) designed for a much older crowd (no offense to said older crowd).

My questions are:
Does anybody know of a few (easy!) patterns for making pants/jeans?
Does anybody know, if I buy a denim needle for a singer, or even the "universal" needle with the singer logo on it, will it fit into my Brother machine? I haven't been able to find needles specifically for the Brother machines.

And the uncrafty question:
Does anybody know where I may be able to just buy short jeans in younger styles?

*to clarify, by "younger" I mean things with flares, hipster jeans, more modern looks. By things for an "older crowd" I'm talking about plain, high-waisted, straightleg jeans.

Thank you <3

[stacysews]

Have you looked at the Burda pattern catalog (http://www.burdamode.com/Patterns,1270778-1128998,enEN.html) - especially the young fashion?  I like Burda patterns because they it good, usually have easy to follow directions, and they are much trendier than the Big 4. 

[mountaingrrl]

Have you gone to Old Navy? They have "short" pants in a variety of sizes and styles. I don't think of them as old.

Good luck!

[jessvict]

New York Jeans CO. has a nice petite modern jeans. They have low rise flare style too. They are a little expensive though.

[Kittymoose]

I'm going to have to check out the Burda patterns.

Old navy is good, but the places near me rarely stock short sizes. And standard "short" sizes are about three inches too long.

I used to go to New York and Company, haven't been there in a while. I didn't know if they still had the petite jeans. I'll have to check them out too.

Thanks for the replies everyone

[SpottedFrog]

Hmm, thing is I'm 5'3" and I wear the "short" length in most brands I buy, so being 5 inches shorter the "short" jeand will still be way too long.

Bell bottoms/ Flares were designed for people with legs a mile long that weight 96 pounds- IMO they look dreadful on everyone else.

[sweetiepickles]

We have a cool cheepy store here called Steve & Barry's university store, and it has shorties. I get my shorty jeans there or at my local ON. When I get reg. ones that are too long I cut off about 2" and let it look shaggy. Sometimes I just cuff em too! If you did this with the  ON jeans, you'd still probably be able to keep most of the flare. Also, I believe Gap sells shorty jeans, but they are a bit too high $ for me so I really don't know???

Good uck and keep us posted.

[Kittymoose]

I had a pair of jeans from steve & barry's, I turned them into bellbottoms. They were pretty good, but i've gone back in and I can't seem to find a decent pair of jeans. I think its the whole skinny jeans thing. Oh well. I just ordered a burda pattern, I'm pretty excited for that.

And I think I'm gonna cave and just get a denim needle and hem stuff myself. Its hard work to find pants nowadays haha

[stacysews]

Here's a good tute on how to hem jeans - keeping the original edge finish so they don't look hemmed! 

http://www.daciaray.com/?p=38

[jensven1017]

Just a little side note too, you can get the "jean" thread that will help the jeans look more finished. It makes a big difference, plus its thicker so it'll last longer. I just bought a plain heavy duty needle when I made mine but I guess it depends on how heavy the fabric is.

I feel your pain though, all my jeans end up torn and dirty at the bottom because they drag the floor, but I'm about 1 inch too tall for short pants, lol. Plus why is it that stores think the larger the size the taller the person must be? Can't there be a 5'4 size 9? hehe, anyways - good luck with the jeans!