How to rip jeans properly, 80's style.

StormWarrior

I have quite a few pairs of good jeans and I would like to rip some of them. I'm going for the 80's look. I watched a tutorial of how to do it on youtube. She said cut them and then rub them with a cheesegrater, but she didn't actually show how to cut them. I tried it myself on a cheap pair of jeans and did such a terrible job that I had to throw them away. Before I try on a good pair, does anyone know how you're supposed to cut them? It's not easy, I tried with scissors and first had to dig them in to make a hole, then hack at them for a while to get a cut. Has anyone actually succesfully done this themselves? I know I could just buy pre-ripped ones, but I don't want to spend money as I have a whole wardrobe full of jeans already, and I'd rather rip them to my own taste. Also, do they have to have some bagginess if you're to cut them, will it work as well on skinny jeans?

liah

I have a good old pair of jeans that I did this to and it looks well enough. I used an exacto knife (you know those really, really, really sharp ones) and made a slit, but not quite all the way through the fabric, just enough to break the tension if that makes sense, then I ripped it open by hand. From there you can do the cheese grater thing but mine have come out properly from just washing them a lot and regular wear and tear. I found the razor/exacto knife the easiest way.

Grolschevik

I used to use the little saw you often get on Swiss Army Knives. The multiple tooths fray the denim perfectly... I wouldn't use scissors or a sharp knife: the cuts will be too clean.

Beonce

I've used a cheese grater for this in the past...the small, sharper holes shred the jeans just right :-)

Don't go overboard though, they can go to pieces after a couple of washes!