Turn a $5 Pair of Pants Into Short Overalls With This DIY Thrift Flip

5 Materials
$5
2 Hours
Medium

I love me a good upcycle, and this thrift is certainly a satisfying one! I had found an oversized pair of linen pants at my local thrift shop and fell in love with the fabric. Something else I love is overalls! So I decided to put these two things I love together and create some fun short overalls from the pants. If overalls aren’t your thing then keep scrolling, but if they are then this fun project is perfect for you! Check out my step-by-step tutorial below to make your own thrift flip overalls!


Tools and Materials

Tools and Materials:

  • Oversized linen pants
  • Seam ripper
  • Fabric scissors
  • Pins
  • Sewing machine
Sketch Out the Design

Sketch Out the Design

For this design, I used my notebook to sketch out my overall design. I wanted to create short overalls, so this left me with quite a bit of fabric to create the top part of the overalls.

DIY Overalls Design

I also sketched out the back of the overalls. I wanted to create some cute ties for the straps as well.

Determine the Length

Cut the Pants

I started off by determining how long I wanted the shorts to be, pinning them, and removing the excess fabric. I made sure to cut the shorts a bit longer than I actually want them to be because I’ll have to hem them later.

Cut the Pants


Take Them In

I also took them in a bit on the sides so that they fit me more snugly. I pinned the sides and sewed straight down to the bottom of the shorts.

Create the Top of the Overalls

Create the Top of the Overalls

Using the fabric from the rest of the pant legs I cut up the sides of them so that I could lay them flat. Then I cut out the pattern pieces I had sketched in my notebook earlier.

Match Top and Bottom

I made sure that the bottom parts of these pieces matched the top of the shorts I had made.

Hem

Then I hemmed the edges.

Put the Front Together

Put the Front Together

With all of my pieces cut and hemmed, I was ready to put it all together! I pinned the top part to the shorts and added a topstitch to hold them together.

Check for Fit

I tried the overalls on to see how everything fit. I wasn’t so happy with the neckline so I’m going to drop it a bit. I also want to add a pocket to the front panel and two pockets to the back of the shorts if I have enough fabric. I still need to create the back panel as well and create the buttonholes needed for the ties in the back.

Create the Back

Create the Back

I cut open the other pant leg along the seam and cut out the back panel of the overalls. 

Stitch to the Shorts

Then I finished the edges and stitched the panel to the inside back of the shorts.

Finish the Front

Finish the Front

To finish the front of the overalls I needed to fix the neckline, add a pocket, and add some buttonholes. Adding the pocket was super simple. I serged a rectangular piece of fabric with a center seam that matched the overalls.

Clean Up the Front

As you can see here, I cleaned up the front of the overalls a bit, lowering the neckline so that it was more flattering. Then I folded the serged edges of the pocket under and stitched it to the center of the front of the overalls.

Create Buttonholes

Finish the Back

I sewed a buttonhole on either corner of the back of the overalls and opened them with a seam ripper. 

Hem the Shorts

Hem the Shorts

Finally, I folded the bottom of the shorts up and hemmed them

Thrift Flip Clothes
DIY Overalls


DIY Thrift Flip

I mean come on, these overalls are ADORABLE! How could anyone not be on team overalls? And they only cost $5! This project is a total win in my book!

Suggested materials:
  • Oversized linen pants
  • Seam ripper
  • Fabric scissors
See all materials

The author may collect a small share of sales from the links on this page.

Comments
Join the conversation
2 of 27 comments
  • Lily Ng Lily Ng on Jun 16, 2022

    Super cute! The red pants were the best find! How did you do the ribbon ties in back? It's a button hole with faux ties on?

  • Nancy Nancy on Jun 21, 2022

    I agree. Don't find the back flattering.

    And, the links do nothing but go round & round,

    same over & over. VERY frustrating.

Next