9/21/10
A common fashion trend for wearing jeans is to retain the original seam and hem. It is obvious that the original length of the jeans does not always fit every one. Also, wearing correct length jeans is important to go with flat shoes. In such cases, we usually go to a tailor for length alteration. At some point of time, you may be in a hurry and do not have time to go to the tailor. No worries, you can hem the jeans on your own within half an hour. Let's take a look at the step- by-step method on how to hem jeans by retaining the original seam.
Easy Tips to Hem Jeans
If you have a sewing machine, you can complete hemming your blue jeans within 25 - 30 minutes. You can stitch with a regular needle and thread if you do not have a sewing machine. One word of caution is to to hem one leg of the jeans at a time. Doing so will allow you to undo it easily, in case of any incorrect measurements or stitching. Following are some easy tips for hemming jeans, which are applicable to all popular jean cuts, be it straight, flared or boot-cut:
The materials required to hem jeans are: measuring tape, scissors, sewing machine (with thicker needle) or regular needle (if sewing by hand), thread (matching color with the original seams), pins, pencil for marking length and an iron. Once you are prepared will all these requirements, you can begin with the task of hemming jeans.
First of all, decide on the appropriate length of the jeans. You can do so by putting on the jeans and wearing the shoes that you want to pair with the jeans. By checking in front of a mirror, you can cuff the jeans at the appropriate length. For this, you can turn the bottom of the jeans inside out and fold them. If you are wearing flat shoes, you can mark the length a little below the ankle (about an inch length). Accordingly you can retain the jeans length for wearing high heels as well.
Mark the length on the jeans with the help of a pencil. If you want to cut 4 inches from the original hem, you can measure 2 inches from the folded bottom (exclude the length of the original hem) and pin at regular intervals. Make sure, you measure the length all around the hem while pinning down, so that you are removing equal lengths all around the hem.
If you are using a sewing machine, you can adjust the sewing foot next to the edge of the original hem (close to the original seam). Finish sewing all around the cuff. In case of sewing by hand, you can follow the same procedure for stitching all around the hem. You can then try whether the altered jean length fits you or not. If not, you can undo the stitch and start all over again.
If the folded material is too long, you can cut off the excess fabric by leaving a length of about half an inch. Otherwise, for short excess fabric, you can iron the folded portion and leave it. With this, you have completed hemming one leg of the jeans. Start with the other remaining leg by following the same procedure as you did for the first one. This way, you can hem jeans easily.
