Stitching a dress is an art and who doesn’t love to do art from their own hands. Today we shall talk about how to hem a dress? Hemming a dress is a beginner’s task when it comes to the world of stitching.

It is very simple because you just have to turn up the edge of the dress and stitch it properly.

If you have a dress that you want to alter the length and do not want to spend a lot then keep reading this article. Giving the dress to tailor for altering and hemming will cost you about $20 to $50.

Hemming it on your own will not only be money-saving but also be a fun process. You can do the hemming with hand or by sewing machine. We will discuss both. Here is a step by step process of how to hem a dress.

Things you will need:

  • Scissors
  • Chalk
  • Measuring tape
  • Thread
  • Needle
  • Sewing Machine (basic for straight stitching)
  • Iron
  • Pins

Step 1: Mark your Length:

Wear your dress one time and see how much length you want to take off. It is recommended to wear your shoes with the dress too to get a better idea.

Mark the length with chalk and remove the dress. Place the dress on a table or a flat surface; remove the bubbles or crumples on the dress. Take the measuring tape or a ruler to see how much fabric you have marked.

Create a line with the chalk all around the dress accordingly. Mark another line on the dress at 1 inch above the cutting line. This will be your seam allowance.

Step 2: Cut the Fabric:

Now carefully with the help of scissors; cut the dress from the marked line.

Be careful while cutting the fabric as some fabrics are tricky and some are easier to cut. (Here we do not recommend fabrics such as knits and stretchy cloths to do hemming at home)

Step 3: Place the Pins:

After clean cutting the marked fabric from the dress. Fold the dress from the marked seam allowance line twice inwards the dress and place pins to hold the position.

Here you can also do a long loose stitch by hand to hold the position. But placing pins would also be a helpful and quick option.

Step 4: Iron the edges:

This can be an optional step for some people.

But for pro-hemming, you can use the iron to set and clean the edges and make a fine crease before stitching.

Step 5: Hem around the dress:

Take the thread the same as your dress color. It is very important to use the thread of the same color or close to the same color as you do not want it to look like done by an unprofessional.

Prepare your needle with the thread of about a foot long and knot it at the edge. Do not take a long thread as it tends to tangle while stitching. Here goes the stitching process, make small stitches, and keep them equal in distance.

When you feel that you are short of thread make a knot and fasten the thread with the fabric. Take more thread and stitch around. Repeat the stitching process until the dress is completely stitched.

Step 6: Stitch around with the sewing machine (if you want):

If you have a sewing machine and want to do the hemming quickly. Because the sewing machine can save you precious time, you can use the pretty basic one.

After completing till step # 4 you can place your dress in the sewing machine and carefully do the basic stitch all around the dress.

Keep your hand steady and we recommend using the sewing machine only if you already have some experience of stitching on it.

Step 7: Remove the pins and Iron:

Once you are done with the stitching by hand or by machine. Remove the pins carefully and iron your dress to see the final look. Try it on and see if you have done your job well.

Follow these amazing steps whenever you want to hem a dress, sleeves, pants, t-shirts, tunics, blouses, or any fabric. This is the easiest and cool, fun way to do a task on your own.

So instead of paying money to your tailor try hemming your dress by yourself this time. This will give you a sense of achievement and you will also feel creatively satisfied. Plus you will learn a new skill.

How do you hem a dress at home?

How do you hem a dress by hand?

How do you shorten a dress easily?

Is it hard to hem a dress?

If you’ve never hemmed a dress before, you might feel intimidated and unsure about where to start. It’s actually pretty simple and you don’t need a lot of sewing skills to do this well. In fact, you can complete this project in half an hour or less with just a needle and thread, using a blind stitch.

How do you hem a high low dress?

How do you hem a stretchy dress?

How do you hem a stretchy dress by hand?

How do you hem stretchy fabric?

Is it possible to shorten a knitted dress?

If you would like to shorten your knitted garment ( sleeves, the body, skirt, pants, dress), please mark it with a safety pin or fold it at the correct length or you can let us know how much you would like it to be shortened. We always try to shorten knits with original finishing if its possible.

How do you hem a knitted dress by hand?

How to Hand Stitch Knit Fabric
  1. Secure your thread to the fabric. Then insert the needle from right to left through a few threads of the garment.
  2. Moving to the right, insert the thread again from right to left through a few threads of the hem.
  3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 until the entire hem is secure.

How do you shorten a ribbed knit dress?

How do you shorten knits?

Can you cut and sew knitting?

You can either combine the different garment pieces by treating the knit almost like a fabric, where by you have a large square of knit that you lay the pattern pieces on and then cut out your pattern pieces and sew them together. This process is called ‘cut and sew‘.

How do you shorten at shirt keeping the factory hem?

How can I make my sleeves shorter?

Instructions
  1. Use a seam ripper to take the cuffs off.
  2. Pin the cuff onto the sleeve matching the top of the cuff to the marked seam line.
  3. The pleats will be adjusted and deepened.
  4. Sew with a regular stitch on the original cuff seam line.
  5. Make sure you caught everything on the back side.
  6. Press the new pleats really well.

How can I shorten my blazer sleeves without sewing?