How to Hem Jeans with Original Hem and Standard Hem

To hem jeans, you have two options: The standard hem method cuts off the extra denim fabric and folds up a new hem, which gives you a clean finish but loses that authentic denim edge. 

The original hem method keeps the factory hem — its topstitching, its faded edge, its worn-in look — by folding the excess length into a tuck and stitching it out of sight inside the leg of your jeans. We use the original hem method when shortening jeans by at least 1/2-inch, but less than 3 inches and only if the factory hem still looks good.

For either method, all you’ll need is a desire to sew and a sewing machine with enough power to climb over the side seams without complaint.

What you’ll learn in this sewing tutorial:

• How to decide the new hem height for your jeans
• Folding tips for sewing a standard hem
• Tips for sewing denim fabric
• How to calculate the original hem method - it's tricker than you might think!

I've been sewing since I inherited my first Singer sewing machine around age 8. Now I'm a Singer sewing machine dealer and love sharing sewing tutorials so you know how to alter your clothes and sew popular projects! 

In this post, you'll find links to many tools and supplies to make hemming your jeans much easier. I have included affiliate links to Amazon which help support my business at no additional cost to you.

- Magic Longarm Pins - You need pins that won't bend! These work great for longarm quilting AND pinning thicker material like denim.

- Seam Gauge - These can range from simple to super fancy. I love this Clover Seam Gauge for Nancy Zieman - it's the BEST! Measuring tape will work in a pinch, but a seam gauge really makes this easier and more accurate.

- A machine that can handle denim - This is the part where a lightweight machine will fight you. I used my Singer Heavy Duty 4432 for this sewing tutorial - it has the motor and the presser foot pressure to get through the thickest areas of seam allowance without stalling.

- New sewing needle – I used a Universal 80/12 needle for my hem and had no issues. It was a brand new needle which means it was sharp and straight out of the package. You could also try a size 90/14 denim needle for standard denim, 100/16 denim needle for heavyweight denim. Here's a pack of Singer Heavy Duty Needles to play with.

- Matching color cotton thread — I used Aurifil 50 wt cotton thread in 4644 Smoke Blue which blended with my blue jeans perfectly. When sewing a standard hem, you can use thicker gold or gray thread to match the original factory look if desired.

- Optional - Hump jumper (or a folded scrap of cardboard) for climbing over thick seams.

- Optional – Pressing Ham – This helps you press curved edges like the arm scythe of a sleeve and also the hem of your pants too!

- Hot, dry iron and pressing cloth - Press in the finished hem and hold with a pressing cloth and your hems are much less likely to roll in weird directions after sewing.

Just in case you're short on time, here's a short take on the original hem method:

Wash and dry your jeans first so they shrink before you measure. Try them on with the shoes you plan to wear, fold the hem up to the length you want, and pin to secure.

Now measure the original hem you are preserving (usually 3/4 - 7/8 from the bottom edge of the jeans). Measure up from the pin on the leg this amount. 

Place pins all around the leg at this height: hem + original hem. Fold up the original hem to the pin line so the inside folded edge of the hem aligns with the pin line. Stitch very close to the original hem using a zipper foot.

The factory hem sits at the new length! Can you tell which leg in this photo was shortened and which one is unaltered?

Slip the hem under your presser foot and topstitch along the folded edge with a 2-3 mm long stitch. Match your thread color to the denim fabric for an invisible finish.

Contrast gold or gray thread and widen the stitch length to 3.5-mm if you want it to read as a factory hem. A second row of stitching ⅛ inch below the first mimics the double-needle look on most commercial jeans.

Key Sewing Tip - Be careful not to stretch the leg of the jeans as you stitch, especially if you are sewing through stretch denim!

Step 6 — Press the hem with a hot, dry iron. To help set the new seams, press your hand over the edge for a few seconds. This tells the fibers to remember – this is the new way we want you to flow. If you want the new hem to match the worn look of the rest of the jeans, rub a little 80 grit sandpaper on the folded edge. It’ll lighten up the edge of the fabric and make it look just like the rest of your garment.

This is a great question! Most of the time, you should be able to keep the original hem on your jeans. Why do we want to keep this little strip of stitched denim fabric in tact? The original hem looks cool. It matches the look and fashion of your jeans. It's that simple.

The only time you can't use the original hem is when you're only shortening your pants a tiny amount, or a huge amount - like over 3 inches of adjustment.

And if you are hemming flare pants. As I mentioned before, the bottom edge of the flare pant leg will be the widest point of the leg. It will be more challenging to shift it higher because the leg narrows as it nears the knee.

Here's the cool thing about keeping the original hem - the hemming process is actually easier (less folding actually) but getting the original hem lifted to the correct position can be a bit tricky. It's easy to do this hem and have the leg end up too long... 

Let's learn how to do this and get the calculation right so your jeans are hemmed just exactly right.

Step 5 — Pin the tuck. Fold the jeans up so the spot just beyond the original hem aligns with the pin line. Move one pin at a time from the right side of the jeans to the inside, along this point. Pin all the way around, matching the side seams so the hem is straight and level.

You may run into challenges when hemming your jeans. Let's tackle the most common issues you will experience with this sewing adventure:

• My machine gets stuck on the bulky side seams - Stop with the needle down, lift the presser foot, slide a hump jumper or folded cardboard under the back of the foot to level it, then continue. Turn the hand wheel on the side of the machine towards you to stitch through the thickest point rather than powering through it.
• I'm getting skipped stitches - Skipped stitches are almost always the needle. Switch to a fresh denim needle in the right size — denim needles have a sharper point and a stronger shaft built for sewing this fabric specifically.
• The hem is puckering - Were you pulling on the fabric as you sew? When stitching stretch denim especially, avoid stretching the fabric and let the sewing machine's feed dogs carry it under your presser foot.
  
  Your stitch length may also be too short. Lengthen to 3 - 3.5mm and reduce presser foot pressure slightly too.
• One leg came out shorter. Did you pin both legs or use the same measurement for both? If you pinned, checked the fit, and hemmed both legs to individual measurements, there shouldn't be a noticeable difference between the legs. If you only pinned one leg and used the same measurement for both, one of your legs may be slightly longer than the other.
  
  Take your time pinning and checking the fit before stitching. It's always worth taking more time to check the fit before stitching, and especially before cutting your fabric.

If you slip on your blue jeans and find they look like the worst type of high-water pants you've ever seen (like not-cool-capris) then you may need to extend the length of your jeans.

Follow these steps to extend the length of your blue jeans if needed:

1. Cut along the folded inside edge of the original hem. We won't be able to keep the hem for this sewing technique. Measure the circumference of the bottom edge of the legs and add 1-inch for seam allowance.
2. Purchase another pair of jeans that either closely match your pants, or wildly contrast. In this case, it might be best to boldly extend the leg with vibrant fabric rather than try to blend two different close blue denim fabrics together.
3. Cut up the jeans and cut two rectangular pieces the length you measured in Step 1 and as wide as you want the jeans extended. 
4. Sew the short ends of the rectangles together to form two wide tubes. Finish the seams with a zigzag stitch and decorative stitches on the outside if desired.
5. Pin the pieces right sides together on the bottom edge of your jeans, matching the side seams. Stitch, finish the seam with a zigzag and topstitch to flatten the seam allowances against the extending sections.
6. Try on your pants, pin and hem the bottom edge of the extended pieces following the steps above for the standard hem.

I used this method to extend the length of my original bell-bottoms when I accidentally cut the jeans too short. Bell-bottoms and flare pants especially look best when the pants arch out from the knee or calves of your legs and fall to the ground to cover your feet completely.

In this beginner sewing tutorial, we've learned: