Wowzer Wednesday-Hem your own jeans

Don't you hate it when you try on a new pair of jeans and everything feels perfect except they are too long? This happens to me ALL THE TIME. I am average height (5'6") but for some reason most jeans are too long for me. I never thought I had short legs but I must.

Any hoo. I just bought a new pair from Costco (yes sometimes I buy clothes from Costco because they are cheap). Of course they were too long. So I decided to get them anyway and hem them myself. I don't usually like doing this because it can be a tricky process, but I think this particular pair worked out just fine.

How did I do it?

Step 1.

Measure your jeans to a pair that you already like the length on from the inseam. Make sure to match it up as close as you can. Then you are going to cut the new pair so that they are about 1/2 to 1 inch longer than the old pair. (this depends on your hem length, I usually go with 1/4 inch hems so I only cut 1/2 inch)
2. You are going to fold and press the bottom to create a hem line. I fold 1 time (1/4 inch) and press. Then I folded a second time and pressed to create a clean hem line that did not have any frayed edges. The trickiest part is getting an even fold all the way around. That is where the pressing really helps.

3. Pin the pressed edge in place so there is no movement.
4. Using the same color of thread on the rest of the jeans use a straight stitch all the way around the bottom to hold the hem in place. I use a small stitch (2.5 and gold thread) for mine. If you cannot find the same color of thread try to match the color of the jeans.
5. Press again making sure everything is as flat as can be.

I just wanted to let you know that the jeans are already frayed on the bottom because I have worn them a few times since taking these pictures. Also, this technique works best on dark washes. It is much harder to create the same effect on a light wash because it is difficult to match the thread color. Dark hides all, and it makes you look skinnier (FYI). I probably should have taken a little more off the bottom so they didn't drag but I was afraid of cutting too short. I would rather have them be too long than too short. :)