Never say that I don’t know how to make my own fun! Mind you, we were all at a national park site so presumably everyone was dressed for practicality rather than fashion, but still, there were very few tourists whose pants seemed likely to be the exact length that they’d want. And call me a snob, but one park ranger’s pants were WAY too short! I, myself, am way too short, so my general irritation with store-bought pants is that they are always, inevitably, way too long. I actually like my pants a little longer than is conventional–the backs of one’s heels must be covered for modesty, lol!–but if stores had their way, I’d constantly either be walking on the bottom four inches or cuffing them like Tom Sawyer. Hemming pants is a fussy job, but fortunately, it’s also an easy one, requiring only careful measurement and straight-line stitching. Here’s exactly how to hem pants to be the exact perfect length:
Materials
To hem pants, you will need:
pants. Pick apart the existing hem if you need to shorten them only a little, or ignore the existing hem if you’ll be shortening them more than two inches. If you’re buying new pants, you can also sometimes choose to buy them unhemmed, which is my favorite, because no matter what length ranges they offer, I know I’m going to have to end up shortening them, anyway! measuring tools. I use a measuring tape and a gridded quilting ruler. The former is good for measuring the pants’ inseam, and the latter is terrific for keeping cutting lines straight. straight pins and chalk. cutting, ironing, and sewing tools.
Step 1: Measure and Mark the Pants.
Measuring and marking is where I get suuuuuper fussy, because why bother going to all this time and effort if your pants won’t turn out exactly the way you want them? To measure and mark perfectly, turn your pants inside out and put them on. Put on the shoes you’ll usually wear with these pants and then stand on a stepstool, ideally (you can do it on the floor but then you’ll be condemning your partner to literally crawling around at your feet…), and have a partner fold up one leg of the pants until its length is exactly the way you want it. I mentioned before that I like my pants a tiny bit on the long side, so for me this means that when I’m in my Converse, the back of my pants should just barely meet the floor. They’ll sit a bit higher when I’m in my regular sneakers that have a thicker sole, and my hiking boots have enough of a sole to keep them safely off of the dirt trail, so this is the perfect length for me. At this point, hop down from the stool and check yourself out in a mirror. When you’re happy with the length, have your partner pin it well, then carefully take the pants off. I inevitably prick myself at least once! Back at your sewing table, lay out the pants and measure the new inseam of the pinned side. You’ll likely notice that the fold isn’t perfectly even, but it should be close, so use your best judgment to pick the inseam measurement that seems right. Then, unpin and unfold the pants leg. Use your gridded ruler to help you make a chalk mark at the new inseam on both pants legs. For the second leg, I usually measure up from the old hem instead of down from the crotch. If you’ve got the extra length, mark another line 2″ below the new inseam line. If you don’t have that much extra length, though, don’t worry about it. If you were able to make that second, lower line, then cut the pants along that line. DO NOT CUT YOUR PANTS AT THE INSEAM LINE!!!!!!! At this point, because I am, indeed, really that fussy, I like to fold my pants up along the inseam line, iron them to crease and set the fold, then turn them right side out and try them on one more time. Two inches is a LOT of extra length to play with, so if I decide that I actually don’t like my new inseam, I can iron the creases flat and take another run at it.
Step 2: Create the New Hem.
Turn your pants inside out again, then lay them on your work table and iron them flat. To make the perfect hem, even if you don’t have an extra two inches of length below the inseam, fold up the raw edge at the bottom of the pants to meet the inseam line, then iron the fold to set the crease. Next, fold the hem up again, so that the double-fold naturally folds at the inseam mark. Fiddle with it to make sure it’s perfect, then iron it to set the crease and pin it well. In the above image, you can see that the right side needs one more fold up, and the left side is finished.
Step 3: Stitch the New Hem.
I like to turn my pants right side out yet again, just to make sure that my stitches will look nice from the front. From the front, sew one line of stitches along the bottom edge of the hem, approximately 1/4″ from the bottom. Take out any interfering pins as you go. You’ll have to go by feel for the next line of stitches, since the fold is to the inside, but sew your second line approximately 1/4″ below the top of that inside fold. When you finish, your pants will be the perfect length, and every bored sewist at every tourist destination that you visit while wearing them will admire how tidy and well-proportioned they are.
