This tutorial is all about how to cut up a pair of jeans to get lots of lovely useable denim fabric as well as saving some other parts of the jeans for different types of upcycling projects.
Undo the button and zip and begin to cut just underneath the waistband in one direction. A good pair of fabric pinking shears should have no problem cutting through thick seams and even the zipper.
Hold the front pocket lining up against the back of the waistband to keep it out of the way, then cut along just under the opening of the front pocket.