This site is supported by our readers. We may earn a commission, at no cost to you, if you purchase through links.
Learning how to hem jeans can save you a lot of time and money after shopping.
Not only do you not have to worry about finding a pair of jeans that fit you perfectly, but you can also do the tailoring work on your own time, as opposed to someone else’s.
]
It doesn’t matter whether you prefer to use a sewing machine or sew by hand; both methods have their advantages!
All that matters is choosing which method is best for you.
Table Of Contents
Requirements for Hemming Jeans
If you are going to hem jeans yourself, make sure you have the following ready:
- A heavy needle.
- Ruler and a measuring tape.
- Scissors.
- Chalk.
- Thread/silk.
- An iron.
- Ironing board.
- Sewing machine (optional).
Hemming jeans by hand versus machine: the debate
When it comes to hemming jeans, you can either do the work by hand or use a sewing machine. Sewing machines make the job a little faster, of course, but it’s also much harder to reverse mistakes made along the way.
By comparison, sewing by hand can be a little slower., but you can contemplate your work and directly, preventing accidents before they happen.
We will discuss ways to hem jeans with a sewing machine and by hand, so you can decide which method sounds better!
Before you hem jeans
Measure the inseam
Jeans fittings should all start with this basic step, regardless of the method you used to shorten your jeans.
In order to measure your inseam and determine how much fabric to remove from the jeans being fitted, find a pair that you know will fit you well.
Measure the inseam of these jeans, aligning one end of your tape measure with the crotch of the jeans and the other with the bottom of the pant leg.
Mark the length of the fitting inseam on a piece of paper or in your phone. Then measure the distance between the crotch of the jeans you want to change and the hem of the same pants.
By subtracting the inseam of the pants that fit from the inseam of the pants you’re changing, you can figure out how much fabric to pin or remove from the jeans you’ll be working with. Simple!
Once your math , be sure to use your ruler (or your tape measure) to map out how much fabric to remove from the jeans you want to change. Mark the length of the fabric with chalk and prepare your other materials to continue.
Cut or fold
It’s up to you to decide if you want to cut out the unnecessary denim or fold it up to change it.
By removing the denim you want to remove cutting, you have more flexibility in your work, but if you measure incorrectly, you may have some problems.
Alternatively, you can cut the denim you want out of your jeans. remove, fold. be able to change the length of the jeans and avoid early accidents.
It is worth noting that even if you pin your jeans up, you still have the extra denim away from the jeans. It’s just a matter of deciding when to do that work.
Also keep in mind: Pinning the extra denim out of the way increases the chance that you can use the hem of the original jeans when you’re done with your project.
By cutting away the extra denim, you get a less polished finish for your jeans or design a strong hem yourself.
Here too you have to decide whether you want to trim the extra fabric at an early stage. all up to you!
Hemming jeans with a sewing machine
Sewing jeans with a sewing machine?
You’re in luck – as long as you have the right machine feet, you can make quick progress with this change.
Sew your edges
Once you’ve marked the fabric you want to remove from your jeans, you’re ready to sew.
Assuming you’ve trimmed the excess fabric, sew around the new raw edges to prevent them from fraying.
A zigzag stitch to secure the fabric as best as possible.
Straight stitches ]
Then you want to use a straight stitch to knit the cm length of each of your trouser legs.
It doesn’t matter which side of the leg you start, but backstitch your row at the beginning and end to secure your new hem.
Clean Up
Again, assuming you asked for the extra denim from your jeans, all that’s left is to clean up any stray threads. Dan, to-do! You’ve learned how to trim jeans!
It’s a task that sounds harder than it is, depending on how you do it.
If you want to maintain the professionalism of the out-of-the-box zoom. However, the editing process gets a little longer – but we’ll go into that a bit more.
]
Hemming jeans by hand
Hand sewing works in much the same way as machine sewing for hemming jeans, although sewing by hand takes more time than sewing by machine.
If you are just learning how to hem jeans, you can sew by hand very familiar with the whole process.
Sewing your edges
Again we assume you have cut remove all unnecessary denim from your jeans.
Instead of finding a zigzag foot to sew your edges together, you want to take your heavy duty needle and the thread of your choice, and use both to create invisible backstitches around the diameter of your pant leg.
A general backstitch is achievable by first tying a knot at the end of your thread. Then make a straight stitch around the edge of your fabric.
Since you will work with jeans in this scenario, you can afford to go larger. stitches; thinner fabrics require tighter stitches to prevent them from slipping out.
Make a stitch past the knotted end of the thread. Then make your second stitch by returning your needle to where you tied your thread and sewing forward again.
Repeat this process one step forward, one step back, until you’ve made it all the way around your pant leg.
The invisible backstitch is a bit more professional than its visible cousin. It also known this stitch as the ladder stitch.
Make sure the denim down well where you want to sew. Then knot the end of your thread.
Bring your needle up through the fabric, effectively hiding the knot. Move your needle to the parallel side of the denim and thread a stitch through a tiny amount of fabric.
Swap the sides and repeat the process. Then the whole project becomes a repeat until you reach the end of the trouser leg.
Clean Up
Create an invisible backstitch takes more time, but once you’re done all you need to do is work away any loose thread ends that may have come off of you to hem your jeans.
How to keep the original hem
Suppose you want to hem jeans with the original hem. These types of adjustments will make your jeans look a little more professional.
The steps will require you to leave the fabric of your jeans secured, rather than cut, which makes it possible to you will have more time to adjust your height before you remove denim.
Pinning
If you have measured the amount of fabric to remove from your jeans, roll up that fabric and pin your future hem in place.
Second, Pinning
Place a second row of pins one inch above your original inline.
For example, if you remove two inches of denim from your jeans, your first inline should be two inches above the original hemline.
The second inline should be five inches above the original hemline. This second line represents the fabric of the original hem and varies based on the amount of fabric used for that hem.
Most jeans use half an inch of denim for that hem. their hems; so, by leaving an extra inch on your jeans, you make room for the depth of that hem.
Measure your hem in advance and double the length before pinning your second row.
Maneuver
Remove your first row of pins. Then roll out the fabric of your jeans so that the original hem comes into contact with the second row of pins you placed.
Pin the rolled fabric in place, make sure making sure that one side of the hem does not exceed the other.
Sewing
Sew with a sewing machine or your own needle and thread a thread just below the original hem along the entire diameter of your trouser leg.
Repeat with the second leg as well.
Trimming
Remove the extra fabric from your jeans.
As mentioned before, this is always where the fabric will if you choose to pin it.
Raw edges ]
Use a sewing machine to sew a zigzag stitch over the freshly cut edges of your jeans.
It to use a sewing machine at this stage, but if you choose to sew by hand, you can use the invisible backstitch or ladder stitch.
Secure
Take the time to replicate the stitching done on the original seam with a thread line, doubling the security of your freshly hemmed jeans.
You can then repeat this process with the other leg of your jeans, and you’ll have a new set of custom pants that fit you perfectly!
Here’s a video with an example of this process.
Do you have any tips for hemming jeans?
- sewingfromhome.com
