Can You Re Attach A Hem To Jeans

How to Re-Attach a Hem To Jeans
By an eHow Contributing Writer

Lucky is the guy or gal who can buy jeans off the rack and immediately wear them because the length is just right. For the rest of us, the alternative is to take the denim to the tailor and fork over $15 to $25 -- or you can do it yourself.It is strongly recommended before you begin that you use an old pair of jeans (or some your child has outgrown) to practice on.

Things You'll Need:

* Old jeans (to practice on)
* Your fancy jeans that need to be hemmed
* Sewing machine
* Thread to match jeans
* Pins
* Iron
* Needle
* Thread

How to Re-Attach a Hem to Jeans

Step 1
Wash and dry jeans at least once before hemming.

Step 2
Cut off the original hem ½” longer than the inseam you want it to be; cut straight across with a sharp scissors.

Step 3
Sew the cut inseam with a single stitch. Fold ¼” to 1/3.” Start sewing in the middle of the fold. (This will be hidden when you reattach the original hem.)

Step 4
Cut excess off the original hem. Trim it to almost the same width as the hem itself. Do a zig-zag quick machine stitch on the raw edge to prevent fraying.

Step 5
Pin the original hem back on the new inseam to make sure it is not too long. To shorten, undo stitching on one end to make a long strip instead of a continuous circle. Cut off the desired amount and then hand sew the two ends back together.

Step 6
Place the original hem on top of the new inseam. Cover the single stitch that was sewed earlier. The original hem should be flush with the inseam.

Step 7
Re-attach original hem permanently. Sew on the outside. One expert suggests invisible/clear type thread on the spool and jean blue for the bobbin.

Step 8
Sew a single stitch above the original hem’s thread. To match the original hem’s thread color, sew directly on top of the original threading; match the stitch length.

Step 9
Either iron the bulk down flat and then tack it with hand stitching ... or cut off the inner inseam to about 1/4" (or less) and then to a tight zig-zag stitch around the raw edge, either with a machine or by hand.

Can You Re Attach A Hem To Jeans