tips and techniques for hems

7/27/2019 Tips and Techniques for Hems

1/12

Tips and Techniques for HemsON JUNE 16 | INSEWING + QUILTING TIPS,SEWING TUTORIALS + PATTERNS| BYBETH| WITH105

COMMENTSCarla Hegeman Crim is the founder ofScientific Seamstresswhich offersePatterns and patterns; ScientificSeamstress ePatterns offer good basics with a touch of boutique whimsy. Carla and her team are also collaboratingwith Jennifer Paganelli on the fun new series of downloadableSis Boom Patterns. Carla is a molecular biologistturned patternmaker, and an expert sewist. Were so happy shes here today to share some hemming tips with us all!

She covers hem width, folding, stitching, timing and special situations (like curved hems & hemming knits). Youllwant to bookmark this post!So much goes into the construction of a great-fitting, wearable garment. After all the measuring, cutting, and sewing,often the final make-or-break step is the addition of the hem. Many patterns give specific recommendations withregards to hem width and type of stitching. However, as you get more and more comfortable with sewing clothing,you will likely find yourself making extensive modifications, and even going out on your own completely and draftingyour own patterns. As a designer, it will be up to you to choose the best hemming parameters to get just the look youare after.

When it comes to hems, I have access to an excellent collection of reference materialmy closet. It may not beorganized, and I probably dont wear half the stuff in there, but it is a great starting point for deciding how a garmentshould be finished.

Between the items I have made and the items I have bought, there is a little bit of everything. If you arent aclotheshorse, just head up to the mall with camera or notebook in hand. Chances are you will find multiple garmentssimilar to the piece you are making, and you can get all the hemming inspiration you need.

There are no set rules when it comes to hemming, but Im going to give some general width, folding, stitching, andtiming guidelines. Ill also address some special situations, and provide some of my favorite tips and tricks forhemming perfection.

Hem WidthThe width of the hem greatly affects the way a finished garment hangs. For flowing designs made from light tomedium weight fabrics, a narrow (about 1/8 to 3/8 wide) hem is most appropriate. Very narrow rolled hems can bemade with a serger, and also with conventional sewing machine with a special foot attached (see article for moreinfo). Thinner hems not only move with the fabric, the are relatively easy to apply to thin or slippery fabrics and/orcurved edges. Here are some examples from my closet:
http://www.sewmamasew.com/2010/06/all-about-hems/http://www.sewmamasew.com/2010/06/all-about-hems/http://www.sewmamasew.com/category/sewing-tips/http://www.sewmamasew.com/category/sewing-tips/http://www.sewmamasew.com/category/sewing-tips/http://www.sewmamasew.com/category/tutorials/http://www.sewmamasew.com/category/tutorials/http://www.sewmamasew.com/category/tutorials/http://www.sewmamasew.com/author/beth/http://www.sewmamasew.com/author/beth/http://www.sewmamasew.com/author/beth/http://www.sewmamasew.com/2010/06/all-about-hems/#commentshttp://www.sewmamasew.com/2010/06/all-about-hems/#commentshttp://www.sewmamasew.com/2010/06/all-about-hems/#commentshttp://www.sewmamasew.com/2010/06/all-about-hems/#commentshttp://www.scientificseamstress.com/about.htmlhttp://www.scientificseamstress.com/about.htmlhttp://www.scientificseamstress.com/about.htmlhttp://www.scientificseamstress.com/products.htmlhttp://www.scientificseamstress.com/products.htmlhttp://www.scientificseamstress.com/products.htmlhttp://www.sewmamasew.com/store/ecom-catshow/PTSISBOOM.htmlhttp://www.sewmamasew.com/store/ecom-catshow/PTSISBOOM.htmlhttp://www.sewmamasew.com/store/ecom-catshow/PTSISBOOM.htmlhttp://www.sewmamasew.com/store/ecom-catshow/PTSISBOOM.htmlhttp://www.scientificseamstress.com/products.htmlhttp://www.scientificseamstress.com/about.htmlhttp://www.sewmamasew.com/2010/06/all-about-hems/#commentshttp://www.sewmamasew.com/2010/06/all-about-hems/#commentshttp://www.sewmamasew.com/author/beth/http://www.sewmamasew.com/category/tutorials/http://www.sewmamasew.com/category/sewing-tips/http://www.sewmamasew.com/2010/06/all-about-hems/


2/12


3/12

Slightly wider hems (about 3/8 1/2) give a crisper edges and a bit more structure to shirts and dresses, as shownon the bottom edge of this peasant top:

Tailored dresses and skirts require a relatively thick (1 to 2) bottom hem to make the garment hang properly. Inmy youth, I made a way-too-short little shift dress out of white stretch denim. To make it a bit longer and moremodest, I took out the recommended wide hem, and resewed a very narrow hem. Not only did it look awful, I spentthe entire night pulling on it to compensate for the thin hem rolling and creeping up my thighs. Needless to say thatone is NOT in my closet any more. Here is an example of a proper dress with a nice wide hem:


4/12

On many casual pants, skirts, and dresses made from medium weight fabrics, you will find a bottom hem that is to

1 wide. This average width gives a nice solid finish, and generally makes the piece hang nicely:

When it comes to pants, however, my personal preference is to make hems a bit on the wide side. It just seems thatthey wash and wear better when they have the extra material responding to the pull of gravity.

FoldingWhen working with light to medium weight woven fabric (my substrate of choice 99% of the time), I generally make


5/12

double-folded hems. This eliminates the need to edge finish, and also gives a very clean look to the inside of thegarment. For narrow hems, I make a fold about from the raw edge and press. Then I make a second fold that isright in line with the raw edge of the fabric. For wider hems, I make an initial fold, then make a second fold thedesired distance from the first fold.

For thicker woven fabrics, a double-folded hem is often too bulky. In this case, it is best to make a single fold with theraw edges finished (either with a flatlock stitch on a serger, or a zig-zag or overcasting stitch on a conventionalsewing machine).

When working with knits, I find single-folded hems to be much easier to manage than double-folded hems. Sinceknits do not fray, the raw edges dont even have to be finished. I do find that edge finishing goes a long way to keepthe edges from curling in trickier knits (for more knit hemming tips, see below). Another great finish for knit edges isthe rolled hem.


6/12

A metal gauge can be used to measure out the width of the seam allowance. In most of my ePatterns, I include aprintable cardstock folding template that can be used to make the exact folds called for in the design. You can easilymake a custom folding template just by drawing a parallel line that is spaced the desired width from the edge of thecardstock. Ive also put together afree pdf tutorialthat contains both curved and straight universal folding templatesmarked with a range of widths:

StitchingHems can be sewn into place by machine or hand stitching. For most casual fabric and design combos, straightstitching with a sewing machine is perfectly acceptable. If you want to downplay the appearance of the line ofstitching, use a thread color that is slightly darker than your fabric. However, nice, even machine stitching with acontrasting thread color can add detail to a hem. Decorative stitches can also be used to add pizazz and function inone fell swoop.
http://www.scientificseamstress.com/FoldingTemplates.pdfhttp://www.scientificseamstress.com/FoldingTemplates.pdfhttp://www.scientificseamstress.com/FoldingTemplates.pdfhttp://www.scientificseamstress.com/FoldingTemplates.pdf


7/12

For more tailored garments and formal fabrics, blind stitch hemming is preferred. Blind stitching can be accomplishedeasily and quickly by machine if the proper foot is used. The edge-finished fabric is folded once at the desired

position of the stitching, and folded a second time at the bottom edge of the garment (the first fold should be about from the finished edge).


8/12

The stitching is made near the edge, and at specific intervals the needle will jump over and catch the fold. The bladein the center of the foot facilitates perfect alignment during stitching.

Machine blind stitching is commonly used on drapes, slacks, mens slacks, and big fluffy wedding dresses. A bit ofthe thread may be visible on the outside, but it is not obvious because of the position of the hems (especially if youuse matching thread).

For hemlines that are more noticeable, (like on a knee-length skirt), blind stitching by hand can give practicallyinvisible, couture quality results. I like to think of it as zig-zag stitching, going up from the edge and into the garment,then back down, and so on and so forth. The trick is to catch as little of the garment as possible so that the stitching


9/12

does not show on the outside. To reduce bulk at the stitching points, hem tape or lace (sold in the packaged notionsnear the bias tape) can be machine sewn to the edge of the fabric, and then blind stitched to the garment.

Timing

As Kenny Rogers once said, You got to know when to hold em, know when to fold them OK, he was talkingabout cards, but the same sentiment applies to hemming. Sometimes it is best to sit back and wait a spell beforeputting in a hem. For both woven and knit garments, flowy type styles have a tendency to lengthen afterconstruction. Bias cut styles, in particular, can grow several inches on the hanger! For this reason, it is best to letsuch garments rest in a hanging position overnight before hemming.If your garment is relatively straight, and you are using stable wovens and knits, the hems can go in right afterconstruction. In fact, I often calculate the needed length (based on measurements of myself or other nice fittinggarments), and put in the hem folds before sewing. I find it much easier to press a flat edge, and it is so nice just tobe able to refold and put in my stitching at the end of the construction process.

Special SituationsCurved hemsIt can be a bit tricky to get even folds along an aggressively curved edge. With narrow hems, you can use yourfingers and your iron to manipulate the fabric into place prior to stitching. The wider the hem, the trickier it is to get thecurved edge to lay nicely against the garment. Convex shaped arcs should be slightly gathered to shrink the edge.

You can gather with basting stitches, or if you have a serger, turn the differential feed setting up a notch or two whenedge finishing. Before stitching, press the folded edges and make sure that no lumps, bumps, or puckers are visibleon either side of the garment. Concave curves can sometimes be accommodated by gently stretching the raw edgesof the fabric. Snips can also be used to compensate, but use them sparingly, and make sure they do not extendbeyond the hem fold. Another option is to use flexible bias tape to finish the curved hem, or create a facing that fitsexactly.


10/12

Hemming Kni tsKnitseeeek! Actually, they arent that hard to hem , you just have to be mindful of the stretch. First off (as with anyknit seam), you should definitely use a ball-point needle to prevent jabbing holes in the fabric. The next thing toconsider is the direction of the stretch. Hems are almost always running parallel to the direction of the stretch, whichmeans the stitching should be somewhat stretchy so that it will move with the fabric. The amount of stretchinessneeded depends on how tight the garment will fit. A long flowing knit skirt could probably be finished with a regularstraight stitch, no problem. The bottom openings on a pair of leggings, however, would need to be very stretchy toslip over the foot and then hug the ankles. My go-to stitches for such knit hems are the regular zig-zag stitch and thestaggered zig-zag stitch. I think they look cute, and they hold up to some serious stretching.


11/12

My machine actually has a knit stitch but I dont use it for hemming because it isnt very attractive and it seems todistort the edge. If you absolutely must have straight stitching on a hem that is going to be subjected to stretching,use long, loose stitches, 100% polyester thread through the needle, and a stretchy thread like Wool Nylon in thebobbin. This combination will minimize the chances of the stitches popping during wearing. It also cuts on thedistortion caused by small, tight stitching. Also, avoid tugging and pulling during the stitching process. Just let thefabric feed through the machine feed through the machine without any help other than gentle guidance to keep thehem stitching even.

Knits are notorious for shifting and curling during stitching, and sometimes a little stabilization is all it takes to makethose edges behave. One of my favorite products for narrow hems is Wash-Away-Wondertape. It is sticky on bothsides (but wont gum up your needle), and makes a perfect fold. For wider hems, I use fusible tapes like Heat &Bond Lite or Stitch Witchery. These products keep the hem fold in place, and minimize stretching during stitching.

Hemming Fabr ics that FrayFor fragile fabrics like silk dupioni, chiffon, and lam, it can be hard to even get a nice clean edge to fold, let alonestitch. I have found that giving the edges a nice clean cut, followed by immediate (but light) treatment with fray-checkmakes all the difference in the world.


12/12

In summary, there are lots of factors involved in determining the best possible way to hem a garment. For guidance,check out ready made garments. There are no specific hemming rules, just make sure you are finishing your item in amanner that fits with the fabric and the function of the design. And dont be afraid to get a helping hand fromtools/notions like hem gauges, hem tape, fusible products, and Fray Check! They can truly make the differencebetween a wimbly-wombly disaster and a crisp, clean, professional looking hem.

tips and techniques for hems

Documents