How to Shorten Jeans Without Sewing
Jeans are a classic wardrobe staple, but sometimes they can be a little too long. If you don’t want to spend money on a tailor, a few ways to shorten jeans without sewing work just as well. Trimming jeans without sewing can be a quick and easy solution to update your old favorites. Here’s how to shorten jeans without sewing!
Cut off the Hem of the pant legs, so they are even where you want them to be. You can use scissors or a rotary cutter for this step. If you have enough fabric, cut notches into one of the seams near where you just cut off the Hem, then turn that seam inside out. Pin in place if needed. Repeat on another side. Read on to know more!
10 Ways on How to Shorten Jeans Without Sewing:
1. Cut off The Hem:
The most obvious way to shorten your jeans is to cut off the Hem simply. This will give you a new, unfinished edge that you can then fold up or sew into place. If you want to remove the original Hem, take off the pants and use a seam ripper to remove all of the stitches. You can also cut along the hemline with scissors or a rotary cutter if you don’t have a seam ripper handy.
2. Use a Razor:
If you don’t want to cut the jeans, you can also use a razor to shave off the excess fabric. This is more labor-intensive, but it will give you a neater finish than simply cutting off the Hem.
3. Try A Fray Check:
If you’re worried about ruining your jeans with a cut or a razor, you can try using a fray check to seal the edge. This will help to prevent the fabric from unraveling over time.
4. Stitch in a New Hem:
This is another option for shortening jeans without much fuss if you have basic sewing skills. You can measure how long you want the Hem to be and then sew it back into place with your machine.
5. Turn Up The Cuff:
This is the simplest way to shorten jeans at home. All you have to do is fold up the cuffs and wear your jeans as-is. This is a good alternative for those of you who have thicker ankles, which may make it difficult to tuck in your pants.
6. Try Sewing Pockets Closed:
If you love the style of your jeans but not their length, you can try sewing the pockets closed. This will help to give you a more streamlined look and take up some of the excess fabric.
7. Cut Away Excess at the Waistband:
If your jeans are too baggy around the waist, you can cut away some of the excess fabric. Just be sure to leave enough room for you to be able to slip your hands into your pockets comfortably.
8. Shave Off The Seam at the Hem:
If you’re looking for an exact way to shorten jeans without sewing, you can shave off the seam at the Hem and then sew it back together in a slightly different spot. As long as you leave enough room for your hands to fit through, you shouldn’t have any problem doing this.
9. Use Fabric Scissors:
If you’re comfortable using fabric scissors, you can cut the jeans along the inseam to shorten them. Just be careful not to cut too much, or you’ll end up with a pair of shorts instead of jeans!
10. Fold Up a Turn-Up or Roll a Hem:
Finally, if your jeans have turn-ups or rolls at the hems, you can fold them up to shorten your hemline. If you’d rather, you can also roll the Hem of the jeans under twice and stitch it into place. This will give you a finished hem that’s just as sleek as a regular hem but faster and easier.
Some Tips and Suggestions:
1. If you have a sewing machine, you can shorten your jeans by taking them apart at the seams and then resewing them.
2. If you don’t have a sewing machine, you can try using some fabric glue or tape to hold the seams together while you sew them.
3. Another option is to cut the jeans and then hem the cut edges.
4. If you don’t want to do anything too complicated, you could try using a denim pencil or fabric marker to color in where you want the Hem to be. Then wash the jeans by themselves to shrink up to the right length.
5. If you can’t do any of these things, you could try asking your parents or a friend who knows how to sew if they can help you.
6. Remember that the hem length will only be as long as the leg size, so if your jeans are too long, no matter what else you do, they’ll look kind of funny on you.
7. If you live in a place where people always wear their jeans rolled up, it might be worth waiting until the weather gets warmer, and then you could roll them up instead of doing anything else to them.
Conclusion:
You can shorten jeans without sewing with these methods. However, you should first consider whether or not your material will fray after cutting it. If so, you’ll want to use a fabric adhesive like Fray Check or clear nail polish on the raw edges of the cut pieces before stitching them back together.
This method works for denim (especially vintage), corduroy, wool blend fabrics, etc. but may not work well for cotton blends that don’t fray easily as they’re more likely to come apart when sewn again.
The last two methods involve just sewing one is by hand, and the other is by machine. If you’re not confident in your sewing skills, it might be a good idea to take your jeans to a tailor and ask them to do the job for you.
It’ll probably cost around some extra bucks depending on where you live. We hope this blog post on how to shorten jeans without sewing has been helpful. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Nancy Behan
Nancy is an embroidery artist, fashion blogger and a full time editor at DIY quickly. Nancy edits the fashion section on DIY quickly, focusing on the embroidery and cross stitch articles, alongside with fabric and other costume design elements. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a Bachelor of Arts in Art History. She loves to work on her own projects, read books and watch romantic movies in her spare time.
