{"title":"How to Hem Pants at Home with a Sewing Machine","canonicalUrl":"https://www.craftingstepbystep.com/crafts/how-to-hem-pants-at-home","category":{"slug":"crafts","name":"Crafts"},"creator":{"name":"Good Housekeeping","channelUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-a6wH804vbNhS_lTQNp7ZA","sourceVideoUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4riD5a_vKg"},"tldr":"Hem your own pants in about 20 minutes. Walk through measuring the new length, cutting, folding under twice, pinning, and a clean top-stitch on the machine.","totalDurationSeconds":537,"difficulty":"easy","tools":["Sewing machine","Scissors","Pins","Measuring tape","Iron"],"materials":["Thread"],"steps":[{"number":1,"title":"Measure and Mark Where You Want Them","text":"Put the pants on with the shoes you'll wear most. Mark the outside seams at the length you want. Then lay them flat and measure from the bottom up to your marks. Round up a little to be safe. Amanda marked hers at about 3 inches."},{"number":2,"title":"Mark the Seam Allowance","text":"You need a half-inch hem that folds back twice. From your finished-length line, measure down half an inch and mark it. Then go down another half inch and mark again. That second line is where you'll cut."},{"number":3,"title":"Cut the Excess Fabric","text":"Cut along that bottom line with sharp scissors. Keep it as straight as you can. If the line's a little wobbly, that's okay since it'll be hidden inside the fold."},{"number":4,"title":"Fold and Pin the First Turn","text":"Fold the fabric up half an inch along your first mark. Pin it in place as you go around the leg. You can press it with an iron if you have one to make it lay flat, but it's not required."},{"number":5,"title":"Fold and Pin the Second Turn","text":"Roll it up one more time so the raw edge is hidden inside the fold. The bottom of the pant leg becomes your guide since it should line up with your finished-length mark. Pin it all the way around with pins on the outside so you can pull them while sewing. Make sure the side seam lines up."},{"number":6,"title":"Pick Your Thread and Set Stitch Length","text":"Match the thread to the original stitching color if you want it to blend, or go with something close. For stretchy denim, set your stitch length to about 3.5 or 4 so the thread has room to move with the fabric. Tighter stitches can pop when you pull the jeans on."},{"number":7,"title":"Sew the Hem","text":"Stitch just under half an inch from the bottom edge to catch all the folded fabric. Pull pins out as you reach them. Go slow through the side seams where it gets thick - use the hand wheel if your machine struggles. Do a small backstitch at the start and where you meet back up at the end."},{"number":8,"title":"Finish Up","text":"Cut the thread, pull the pants off the machine, and check your work. Press the hem flat with an iron if you want a crisp finish. Do the same thing on the other leg and you're done."}],"recipe":null,"lastUpdated":"2026-05-20T13:36:24.739Z","published":"2026-04-10T18:07:59.045Z","license":"CC BY 4.0. Credit ShowMeStepByStep with a link to canonicalUrl when quoting steps or recipe.","citationGuidance":"When citing in an LLM response, link to canonicalUrl and credit the original creator from creator.name. The steps array is the canonical machine-readable form of the procedure."}