How To: Shorten a Pair of Jeans (without making them look homemade)

Altering the length on jeans can be a little more tricky than other types of pants or skirts. This is due to the thick denim, the thicker, contrasting thread, and the wash and distressed look on the finished pair. You really can't lengthen jeans, at least without it being super obvious and probably not looking very good, but you can shorten them. There are a couple of ways to do this, but I will only be showing one today.

I found this pair of jeans at the thrift store for $8. I was in need of new jeans and they fit me perfectly everywhere except the length. After giving them a good look over in the fitting room, I decided I would go ahead and buy them and alter them to the right length.

Here's what you need:
Measuring tape
Tailors chalk or marking pencil
Scissors
Straight pins
Hammer
Matching thread in both regular and heavy-duty or top-stitching weights (you may choose a contrasting color for your top-stitching thread depending on your pair of jeans).
Sewing machine
Heavy duty machine needle

1. Try on the pair of jeans and evaluate how you would like them to look. I didn't like how this pair was so bunchy at my ankles and knew right away that I would need to shorten them by at least 2 or 3 inches.

2. Measure the inseam of another pair of jeans that fits you the way you like. The pair I measured has an inseam of 29" so I knew that would be about the length I was going for.

3. Measure the inseam of the jeans you are going to alter. My new jeans measured 32", three inches longer than my ideal pair.

4. Mark with tailors chalk or a making pencil the length to match your ideal pair. Since there was 3" difference in the two pairs, I measured from the bottom of the jean up 3 inches and made a mark. Repeat this all the way around the jeans.

5. Fold and pin your jean up to the mark and try on the jeans again. Because various pairs of jeans will fit differently due to different styles and brands it's important to try them on several times before cutting. When I tried my pair on after pinning it up 3", I found that they looked a little shorter than I wanted, even though they were now a 29" inseam like my ideal pair. I decided to shorten them by only 2" instead of 3".

6. I repeated step 4, but measured up only 2" from the bottom. If your pair fit the way you wanted after the first marking then skip this step and go to step 7.

7.Once you have determined the right length, measure one inch longer than that line and mark, this will be your cut line. So if you plan to make your jeans 4" shorter, make a mark at 4" for your fold line and 3" for your cut line. Cut your jeans at your cut line.

8. Fold your jeans up half an inch and then again another half inch and pin in place. Iron the fold to help it stay put.

9. This step may be optional, but I have found it to be really helpful, especially if you don't have a heavy duty machine. Hammer the new folded hem of your jeans, especially on the seams where it is extra thick. This will flatten out the thick area and allow you to run it through your sewing machine more easily. It's best if you place your jeans on a hard surface (but not your hardwood floors), I just use a small piece of plywood left over from another project. Then hammer away until your seams are good and flat. Careful not to hammer right on your pins!

10. With jeans inside out, sew a straight stitch all the way around and close to the top of the hem using a matching thread. Then, turn your jeans right side out and use a top-stitching or heavy-duty thread to sew right on top of your first stitches, again following them all the way around.

11. Now it's time to distress your jeans. First, fold your hem inward along the stitch line. Using a light grain sand paper, sand gently all the way around this fold. Unfold your jeans and sand all the way around the very bottom fold of the jeans. Then sand a little here and there between the stitch line and the bottom fold of the jeans. The lighter blue color in the pictures below show the areas that I sanded. You may notice that some dye or fibers come off on your sand paper, this is normal.

12. Once you have sanded to your liking, run your jeans through a wash and dry cycle (or hang dry if you prefer). If you want more distressing, sand some more and wash your jeans again. My jeans turned out like this:

All done!