Hey welcome back to Man Sewing. It’s Rob and today I’m going to teach
you how to hem your pants without removing this bottom cuff. If you take this bottom cuff off, your jeans
just aren’t jeans anymore. I did it once. I took this cool pair of pants that were just
way too long, fit nice around the waist, but I went ahead and just cut the bottom off,
rolled them up underneath and hemmed them. And they looked terrible. So I’ve figured out a way to do this and
keep the cuff in place. I’m going to walk you through it here, starting
with step one. So we’re going to do this but I do need
to let you know, the most important thing is that we don’t cut anything until we’re
doubly sure they fit perfect. So these pants came from a terrific model,
my gorgeous wife who happens to be out in California. So one of these cuffs, I have technically
already stitched to the point where she has tried them back on and we know she’s happy
with the fit. So to get to the place where you’re happy
with the fit, if they’re your jeans, you’re going to put them on. Oh, stop there. Please make sure you’ve washed your jeans
a few times. I did that once also. I hemmed my wife’s pants and she hadn’t
washed them and then they shrunk. So please make sure you’ve washed, if these
are brand new jeans, wash them two or three times first. Then you’re going to put them on. And you’re going to simply and roll the
cuff up until this part right here is hitting the floor the way you like or the top of your
shoe the way you like. And you’re simply going to go ahead and
put a couple of straight pins through. So I’ve got one here. And I’ve got one on the other side just
to, to secure it. Then what I did originally was I laid both
legs next to each other and I folded them up so this point was actually at the same
height and these matched. And then I did slide a little ruler in there
to keep it consistent all the way around. The other thing you can do to keep it consistent
is use your actual seam allowances from the inside of the jeans, keeping them right on
top of each other will help keep that seam nice and tidy as well. So your first step truly is fit the jeans. Make sure they’re pre-washed, I already
said that. And then go ahead and get them on and mark
them to this point. Once they’re at this point, the second step
is going to go ahead and we’re going to iron a crease in here as our marking point,
ok? So we’re just going to come right over here
to our ironing spot. Again, I’m just double checking that everything
is perfect, as it is. And then I’m going to press a real hard
crease in here. A lot of folks believe that fabric has memory. So that means that if you press and then rearrange
your fabric or if I were to open this up, it will go back to the state it was when it
was last cool. So I’m not going to manhandle this too much
until my fabric is totally cool. But I’ve set a nice tight crease. Ok, so while that is cooling, let’s talk
a moment about your sewing machine set up, ok? So if you have the opportunity to have a free
arm exposure or take off your tool tray so we can get that leg of the pant around there,
that’s going to be really helpful. Not necessarily a requirement but helpful
if not, you’re sewing with the fabric up and around the foot. The other thing is I have a denim size 80
needle in here. Now you choose the size of your needle based
on the thread you’re using. But you choose the kind or the style of needle
based on the kind of sewing you’re doing. We’re using jeans, denim needle because
I’m sewing through jeans and denim today, right? Now the other thing I want to point out is
I am not using this gold-colored thread, right? A lot of folks will also do that. I’m going to use a blue thread that matches
the denim itself so that it goes invisible. Now that my crease has cooled, I’m going
to be able to go ahead and simply just take this and I just start to slowly unroll it
until I can literally feel the crease. I think if I do it this way, you’ll see
better. I can feel the crease on my finger and my
thumb is right above there. So this is how I guide my fabric right through
the machine. My finger below on the crease, my thumb on
the top. Ok, so I just want to double check and make
sure that you really are understanding this because I know it sounds a bit odd. But I have this crease right here under my
finger and the seam allowance or this gap between the cuff that already exists and where
the denim meets it there, that is right where that pressed sewn or that pressed line is,
that ironing, that crease line is, right in there. So I can really feel that. And that becomes all of the guiding that I
have, ok? So from that point on, I’ve got a nice pinch
on there, and I’m just sliding this over the free arm of the sewing machine. And one of the things I’m not going to do
is I’m not going to start right on one of those thick, lumpy spots. I’m going to let myself get a little bit
of trajectory going. A little bit of momentum first, ok? So I’m just double checking to make sure
I’m real happy with that. And then I’m going to line it up also so
that as this drops here, my needle is falling right here. The needle is falling right here on this. So that when it’s done and this gets folded
in, you don’t see it at all, ok? So that’s what we’re doing here. You ready? I am. I can feel it nice. And I’m just going to slowly go here. Now because this is going to be a washed sample,
I’m going to hit the reverse button and do a few backstitches. And now we’re going to head forward. You’re going to go all the way around. Ok, now as I’m approaching the thickness
of the side seam, this is a really good point to reevaluate. If my side seams were starting to stagger
and not look correct, I would stop and tear out my thread and restart. So that’s a really good way to check to
make sure you’re still on target. Constantly squeezing my seam. And now as I come up and over this one big
seam, I might have to give a little encouragement as I go. And so what I’m doing here is I don’t
want to distort my fabric. I’m kind of pushing and pulling at the same
time as I go through there. And then not a problem. Just keep on rolling. One of the things that happens for a lot of
folks is as your presser foot goes up too high, what that does is it releases your tension
system on your machine. So a lot of folks will break thread about
that point and it’s actually not that the density of the jeans was too much, it’s
that the seam allowance, excuse me, the, the tension opened up and your threads got all
bound on things. Ok, coming through here, double checking. Just for a moment, I needed both hands on
top. I’m also coming into that finish so I’m
giving a little bit of a tug through the back. And then one last backstitch to really lock
in that, that thread because, like I said, this is going to be in and out of washing
machine constantly, right? These are your favorite jeans. So we’re just going to cut that. And at this point, the next most crucial step
is that we roll this back under correctly. Visually make sure you like your cuff. So you’re looking all around as you go. You want to see all your gold thread. And then what we’re going to do is we’re
going to go ahead and press it. This point is fun for me because my models
come back out, right? So that beautiful wife of mine comes in and
she tries on her pants and tells me what a nice job I’ve done for her. Or not, the first time because I forgot to
fold it right and I put them on and made her a pair of knickers I think. So what I do is I’m just pressing that there. And so that way when she goes to try them
on, it’s going to hit on her shoe or on the floor just as she likes, ok? Once we know we love that, then what we’re
going to do is we’re going to open this back up. We’re going to cut this part off. Once you cut this off, you’re not going
to be able to put it back on. And that will affect the size of the pants
so please make sure you really love your jeans before you do this next step, ok? You can use a nice big pair shears. I’m actually going to use a rotary cutter
and ruler. So I’m just going to roll this to this side,
ok? And we’re going to use roughly a quarter
inch seam allowance, ok? A little bit larger is ok and then I’m going
to zig zag this closed. So we’re ready. We’re going through. Got a couple of layers there. Well maybe it might be easier for my shears. Sometimes the nut on the cutter isn’t giving
me enough drop. I think I’ll use my shears for that. I’ve got a nice big nut on that cutter so
it’s hitting my ruler more than it’s hitting the pants. But it gave me a good line to work with. Just like that, ok? A little extra over here. Beautiful. Now what I need to do is just take a moment
and I’m going to switch out my presser feet. I still have the free arm exposed because
I’m going to want to be able to stitch this just the same. And I’m going to find the foot that allows
me to do a really nice zig zag. So there’s a nice wide foot there for me. And then I’m going to use one of the stitches,
you can use a zig zag and that’s good. If you have one of the stitches that does
like a diamond pattern, that’s better. If you have a true hemming stitch, that’s
the best. What I also do though, because it’s denim,
we can lengthen our stitch up a little bit so that we’re not using a lot of thread
and a lot of a back and forth motion. So I’m going to get the machine set up for
us real quick here. Ok, so I’ve got the machine all set up for
you. Here’s kind of a sample of the stitch we’re
going to use, right? Just a nice little diamond pattern. And as I bring the jeans over, I’m doing
a last inspection to make sure, if I’ve got any long spots that look like they’re
going to be funky, I’m just going to trim them down. Because I’m going to be looking at this
edge as I sew instead of the gap at the cuff, right? So again, as I bring this onto the machine,
I’m dropping the presser foot down. I am not starting on one of the big thick
spots. And I’m going to try to let this stitching
happen as close to the edge so that it’s kind of finishing off what will be the rough
edge up inside the leg of the pant. Sometimes with these back and forth stitches,
we have to give it a little extra TLC to keep it flowing through because there’s so much
movement to the needle in the feed. And then also, as I sometimes approach that
cuff, I’m just going to lift a little pressure, scoot a little forward. Remember this is just a finishing stitch. No one is going to ever see this. This is just to keep the threads tidy in the
wash and dry. Oop, I’ve got to give it a little more encouragement. And that does happen. Ah, back on track and loving it. Now once this is done, of course, I’m going
to try the other leg. And then, I think, if my wife looks as good
in these pants as she does in everything else, I should probably take her out to dinner. Treat her to something nice. Hey, I’m coming into that finishing zone
now so what I’m going to do is I’m going to run about an inch past where I started. Like I said earlier, you’re not going to
ever see this part. And that just locks in our stitches nice and
tight. And from this point on, I’m going to pull
this out. I’m going to trim off that thread. And then I’m going to give it one final
pressing. And for this, let me see if I can do this
so you can see it the best. I’m going to take the iron and I’m going
to slide it up inside the pant leg now. So that I’m really pressing the part I just
stitched together nice. So I’m just going to flip this over, iron
the other side from the inside as well. And we, my friends, are all finished. So you’ve got a killer pair of jeans that
are going to fit you perfect. Look like they were never altered whatsoever. And it was so simple, I’m speechless. With that said, my wife and I are getting
dolled up. We’re going out for dinner until we see
you again on Man Sewing.
