Going back to work means that some days, I don’t wear jeans to the office. Some days, I wear slacks. And those slacks need a belt.
It seems that somewhere between the freshman 15 and now, my childbearing and ice cream-bingeing has caused my waist to… expand. Which is a nice way of saying that my poor little belts don’t meet up at the front anymore.
I thought “Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a cute way to make these belts bigger?” So… I came up with one! Now we don’t have to think of our too-small belts as Goodwill fodder, or guilty reminders of sweets gone by… instead, they are an excuse for something crafty! Here’s how to make your own:
Start off with a belt that mysteriously “shrunk” while sitting in your closet. Pick out a fun fabric. I have a “thing” for fabric with words, so I used a wordy fabric from my stash.
Measure the belt around your waist. It is best to do this while wearing the pants you’ll wear when wearing the belt. Mark where you’ll cut one end, adjust, mark where you’ll cut the other end. Then… {scary part!} cut into your belt!
Cut the ends of the belt to taper, which will make it easier to insert into the fabric piece we are about to make.
Measure the width of your belt. Mine is about 1.” Add .5″ for seam allowance (.25″ on each side), and cut your strips… so, mine were 1.5″ wide. Then, cut two lengths of interfacing just the width of your belt. You could cut these the width of the fabric, but that’ll cause a lot of extra bulk in the seam allowances, and I didn’t want that. Iron the interfacing into the middle of the strips of fabric.
Stitch the two fabric strips right sides together, with a seam allowance just smaller than 1/4″ which will make it easier to attach it to the belt. Turn the strips right side out (this is going to be a little tricky with a belt this narrow, because the interfacing makes it so stiff, but be patient, the end result is worth it!), then tuck in the ends. Iron the fabric smooth, then tuck the belt into an end. It helps to curve up the belt (like in the photo below) to get it into the fabric tube.
Once you have it tucked in an inch or so, stitch down the end by stitching in a little rectangle on the end.
Repeat with the other side, then top stitch down the long sides of your fabric, to keep it all together, and give it a finished look.
You’re all ready to rock the cutest belt ever… now that it fits you perfectly! : )
Always,
Comments & Reviews
I love this! One of my favorite belts just broke, but I couldn’t bear to throw it away…this might help me save it. And fabric with words – totally with you on that one!
Great idea and thanks for the clear pictures. I am going to use this on a hip bag that is too small for my mom bod.
I am a beginner at best, so please forgive me. The fabric is sewn onto the belt I presume. What kind of needle goes through leather?
You can get leather needles, or a denim needle should work.
A denim needle is a good option for going through leather. But you will want to stitch slowly!