How to Make Pockets Deeper

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Ok, I usually steer clear of anything controversial on my blog, but today we are talking about injustice! That’s right! I’m calling for Pocket Equality! What is so wrong with wanting a cute pair of girly jeans that can actually fit my phone in the pocket?!? Is that really too much to ask? Are you sick of all those cute jeans with NO FREAKING POCKETS?!?!?! Ok, some of them have pockets that can hold a stick of gum, but not your phone. Don’t even get me started on the plight that is jeggings! I am sooooooooooo not a purse girl, so I NEED good pockets! So, how do you make your pockets deeper? Let’s find out!

So, let’s get down to it. This is how to actually make your jean (or other pants or even skirt/dress) pockets deeper.

You will need:

A pair of jeans or pants with shallow pockets (or you know, pockets that aren’t quite deep enough)
Sharp scissors (sewing scissors work best, but work with what you have. If you plan to do more of this kind of stuff, I recommend buying a good pair of sewing scissors)
Cotton fabric double the size you would like to increase your pockets by (this will vary from each pair of jeans)
Thread
Ruler, measuring tape, or any other way to measure your fabric
Sewing Machine (you can do this without a sewing machine, you’ll just have to stitch it by hand)
Pen or marking pencil
Seam ripper

How to Make Pockets Deeper:

1 | Start by measuring the depth of the current pocket

You can do this by using a ruler, tape measure, or whatever else you have around. (I have literally used a string and a sharpie to measure before.) To do this you will place the ruler in the pocket and measure to the top of the front of the pocket. For this pair of jeans, the pockets are starting out at 3″ deep. That’s not deep enough to actually keep anything in my pockets, so let’s fix it!

2 | Turn your jeans inside-out

Next, you will turn the jeans inside-out with the pockets facing up. Lay them out on a hard flat surface. (Avoid using your sharp scissors on a surface that you don’t want accidentally shredded… like a bedspread… oops!)

3 | Unpick the bottom of the pocket

Carefully unpick the bottom of the pocket.

Jean pockets are often sewn with a French seam, so you’ll likely have to unpick two seams per pocket.

Once you have the seam pulled out of the bottom of the pocket, you will want to press it flat.

4 | Measure for the Addition

Your pocket should have about a 1/2 inch overlap and about a 1/2 inch beyond the pocket on the outside seam.

5 | Pin it!

So we are just going to pin it with a 1/2 inch overlap and zigzag over it. This will give it the strength it needs without adding bulk.

For now, we will leave the bottom and the outside edge open. We will pin the top edge of the new fabric around the bottom of the original pocket.

6 | Sew the New Pocket to the Old Pocket

Working from the outside seam, zigzag stitch the overlapping fabrics.

You can go around a second time to enclose the other raw edge in a zigzag stitch. This is optional. I have found my pockets hold up just fine leaving them like the picture below.

7 | Mark the cut lines

Using a pen or a marking pencil, mark the shape of the pocket you would like. I have found that I personally prefer to round the corners of my pockets, but you can also leave them straight.

Cut along the line that you have drawn and pin the front and back together.

8 | Sew the Bottom of the Pocket

Sew a zigzag stitch along the edge that you have just pinned.

9 | Tack the Pocket to the Outer Seam (Optional)

This part is optional, but I find it helps so that my pockets don’t bunch funny. I just pin where I have just zigzagged on the outer seam to the outer seam of the jeans.