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Home / Blog / Clothing and Style / Clothing Alterations

How to Hem Your Own Dress Pants (Without a Sewing Machine)

Published on March 25, 2022 by TMM Staff · Clothing Alterations May contain affiliate links (what's this?)

Want to learn how to hem your pants without taking them to a tailor or buying a sewing machine? You’re in the right place!

Table of Contents

  • What You’ll Need:
  • How to Hem Your Own Dress Pants
  • Questions About Hemming Your Own Dress Pants
    • What Is the Best Way To Hem Dress Pants?
    • Can You Hem Pants Without a Sewing Machine?
    • What Length Do You Hem Pants?

how to hem dress pants on your own

Note: This guide was created by TMM reader and contributor, Zack Pyle. Take it away, Zack!

You already know that short men need to get their clothes tailored to make them fit properly. Problem is, all those alterations can be expensive.

But if you’re a DIY kind of guy, you can probably do some of your own alterations.

If you’re under the average male height of 5’10” (177cm), a common problem is getting pants that fit. When you’re shorter than average, proper fit is crucial.

Not having a break, or having a small one in your pants one will keep your legs looking longer. It will also minimize “distractions” to look at at your feet and keep people’s eyes looking up!

Unfortunately until this point, you’ve either paid a good amount of money at your local tailor, or you’ve just dealt with your pants being too long.

I’m here to teach you how to hem your own dress pants.

I actually learned from my grandmother who was hemming my pants since I was little, and I finally decided that I should just learn. Now you can too!

Note: Before I begin, let me say that this is a little complicated. There is also a video that I have made at the end that might clear some things up if you have any questions. Also, don’t be afraid to ask if something doesn’t make sense!

Dress pants are pants without a visible stitch on the outside. To do this, you have to do something called a “blind stitch,” so let’s get started!

What You’ll Need:

  • Trousers (that are too long)
  • Iron
  • Seam ripper
  • Scissors
  • Thread
  • Sewing needle

How to Hem Your Own Dress Pants

The first step is to fold your pant leg inside to see how much you want to take off. To do this, put on your pants, fold the fabric inwards, then look in the mirror and adjust from there until you’re happy with the length.

From there, use pins to keep the pants in place while you take them off. In the picture below, you can see that I’ve pinned the right side at the length that I want (the left side is finished to show what we’re going for).

Hem Dress Pants 1

Next, turn the pants inside out and iron a new crease.

Hem Dress Pants 2

Take out the pins and unfold.

Hem Dress Pants 3

Using a seam ripper, rip the old hem seam.

Hem Dress Pants 4

After you do that, unfold the pant leg all the way.

Hem Dress Pants 5

Since the distance between the two creases was a good amount (around two inches), I just cut a 1/4″ from the end of the crease so it would fold over nicely. If your distance between creases isn’t a good amount, you can iron yourself a 1/4″ crease to fold over.

The reason that you want about two inches between your creases is so you aren’t sewing your hem at the very bottom of the pant leg. Having this extra fabric in there also allows you to make the pants longer in the future.

Hem Dress Pants 6

Hem Dress Pants 7

Fold the pant leg back up with a quarter inch crease tucked below, and get ready to start sewing!

Hem Dress Pants 8

Using thread that is the same color as your pants, cut about 24 inches of thread and tie a couple of normal knots on top of each other in one end so the thread doesn’t slip through the fabric.

You want to go through the “cuff” and then only through about two threads of the outside of the pant in a looping motion. That way only the tiniest bit of thread will show on the outside.

Once you make it all the way around, again, tie a couple of normal knots on top of each other so the thread can’t slip through the fabric.

Hem Dress Pants 9

This is what it will look like on the inside when you’re finished.

Hem Dress Pants 10

This is what it looks like on the outside when you’re finished. No seam!

Hem Dress Pants 11

If you are more interactive, here’s a video that I made with even more detail.

Questions About Hemming Your Own Dress Pants

Here are the answers to some common questions about hemming your own dress pants.

What Is the Best Way To Hem Dress Pants?

You can easily hem dress pants at home with some simple tools like an iron, seam ripper, scissors, thread and a sewing needle.

Can You Hem Pants Without a Sewing Machine?

Yes, you can easily hem your pants without a sewing machine.

What Length Do You Hem Pants?

Most guys look best with dress pants hemmed to a “partial break” length. This means your pants rest on top of your shoes, but they’re not so long that they cause excess fabric to bunch up around your ankles.

Clothing Alterations alterations, DIY, trousers

Related Posts

how to hem jeans and chinos at home
How to Hem Jeans and Chinos at Home
Pants Alterations
How to Tailor Your Jeans, Chinos and Trousers
how to shorten laces
Shoelaces Too Long? How To Shorten Your Shoelaces
How to find a tailor you can trust
How to Find a Tailor You Can Trust (and Test Them Out)

About TMM Staff

The Modest Man staff writers are experts in men's lifestyle who love teaching guys how to live their best lives.

If an article is published under TMM Staff, that means multiple writers worked on it. For example, sometimes several of us have experience with a certain brand, so we collaborate to publish a more thorough review.

Or, if an article was originally written by one person, but then it was updated by someone else, we'll re-publish it under TMM Staff.

Remember: all of our articles (including those below) are written by real people with decades of combined experience in men's fashion and lifestyle topics.

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  1. Cathy says

    January 4, 2023 at 10:29 pm

    This is great. Thank you. But what if the pant has tapered leg? It will not match (fit) when you fold up the hem. Is there any method to do so? Thanks in advance.

    Reply
    • Brock says

      January 5, 2023 at 12:00 pm

      It depends how much you hem it. If you’re chopping off like 5-6 inches, it will probably affect the taper, which means you’ll have to hem and taper at the same time (that’s not covered in this tutorial, but there are plenty of videos on YouTube that show how to do that).

      Reply
  2. Valma Lesley Berryman says

    July 5, 2022 at 10:24 am

    Why do you think that hemming is for men I like to hem my pants and I am a woman I don’t like to think it always a man

    Reply
  3. Jill says

    March 30, 2021 at 9:44 am

    Should the hem be the same width all the way around the bottom? front & back, & both sides all at 2 inches? Thanks

    Reply
  4. DGG says

    March 8, 2020 at 12:26 am

    Never can get the 1st fold to stay in place even during removal. Almost every suit pants I buy or have has a 1/2″ or 3/8″ fold of material not the 2″ you show. Are those huge 2″ folds in dress pants common?

    Looking at other guys pants at the leg bottoms in the office and I see generally that the bottom sewn hem is about 1/2″ from the bottom of their legs too. Haven’t seen anyone yet with big 2″ folds on the bottom. (Obviously I don’t grab them by the ankles or legs with a ruler in my hand to verify! Ha, Ha!)

    I’m a fat guy and 5’9″ tall but apparently have short legs. (No one seems to do my type of SHORT and FAT!) My proper pant size is 50 X 26. I usually don’t buy expensive suit pants but usually wear cheaper uniform pants. They’re usually less than $25. But the difference in what I have to get to and what they provide at my waist length is massive. The shortest I can get from my uniform pants company is 50 X 32. The shortest pants to buy online that will fit the waist I can find is 50 X 30 and that is already with a 1/2″ folded seam. So I have to get rid of about 5-6″ of material!

    I’ve had to have a tailor do the pinning and sewing of them before and the minor hemming costs me more than the pants did. So I’ve tried deperate bachelor things that you probably would think were crazy to get them to hold long enough till I can sew them. I’ve measured and cut the bottom legs and tried pins and staples and clothing glue strips and all kinds of stuff to get the threads sewn at the original 1/2″ marks to only limited success. And because I’m removing about 5-6″ of material the legs are way too big for that low on my ankles. I’m not bad with a needle and thread when I’ve got the material pressed down. But all thumbs at holding and pinning,etc. Is there a video on making the legs narrower toward the ankles as well as sewing a nice looking visible (or invisible seam) at that half inch mark? I won’t likely ever get taller (59 yrs old) only wider!

    Thanks for a good tutoriasl. It just doesn’t work for me.

    Reply
    • ZackPyle says

      March 8, 2020 at 1:37 pm

      I think you’re looking to do a visible hem, not a blind stitch. Check this tutorial out instead. https://www.themodestman.com/how-to-hem-jeans-and-chinos/

      Reply
  5. Karen says

    August 29, 2017 at 10:49 am

    I just sewed my son’s school pants thanks to your video. If my own grandmother were still alive, I would have asked her; you are blessed to have yours to ask and you are a blessing for the rest of us!!

    Reply
  6. Gretchen Stock says

    July 24, 2017 at 8:48 pm

    If you use iron on hem tape, it often comes loose after the pants have been dried in the dryer.

    Reply
  7. Abraham says

    January 2, 2017 at 10:11 pm

    Thank you so much! Very helpful.

    Reply
  8. Glafira says

    November 15, 2016 at 8:46 am

    Hi Zack,
    I am 5’10” and my problem is that 90% of “ready to wear” pants are too short.
    I got a pair of dress pants that have a relatively wide hem so I would like to make them as long as possible.
    I cut the original sewing so I now have the unfinished pair of pants. Is it possible to hem them with a finishing bind/tape to make sure that the minimum of the length is lost?

    Reply
    • Zack Pyle says

      November 15, 2016 at 10:23 am

      I would fold in about 3/4 of an inch, iron, and sew the blind stitch from there.

      Thanks,

      Zack

      Reply
  9. Drema Pauley says

    October 17, 2016 at 3:23 pm

    I’m hemming dress pants. I understand all that you showed. But……….what happens when hemming you don’t match up. Meaning the outside is wider than the inside. Do you understand what I’m trying to say? It’s works great when it all measures the same inside and outside. The gentleman I hemming for is 42 waist so rather larger at top than bottom. Cutting 5 inches off leaving 2 inches to hem. But it doesn’t match. Do I need to let out some of the seam allowance to make the hem wider to match the outside?

    Reply
    • Zack says

      October 17, 2016 at 3:30 pm

      Do you mean it’s not a straight leg? Yeah, you could let out a little, to match it. You could also try to do less than 2″. The less you keep, the closer it will be. Good luck!

      Reply
  10. Elizabeth says

    July 31, 2016 at 7:39 pm

    As a 5’5 female, I never find pants that are the correct length! Thank you for the information!

    Reply
  11. Baillie says

    May 13, 2016 at 12:26 pm

    This was so helpful, both the video and the pictures are great. Thank you!!

    Reply
  12. Andrew says

    January 28, 2016 at 3:22 pm

    Brock, this site is fantastic! I’m a guy who is halfway there and this site is going to take me to the finish line. I just learned how to sew on a button so maybe I’ll tackle hemming next.

    Wasn’t sure where to post this but I recently bought a pair of casual pants from CK and their body fit is pretty close to what you are teaching.

    Reply
  13. Wendy Sundt says

    January 28, 2016 at 1:49 am

    Thanks… 47 year old mom who never learned how to do this for herself. Great tutorial!

    Reply
  14. Shahezada Muhammad says

    January 15, 2016 at 5:34 am

    Nice websit.
    Was looking fr hem. Where i got it here. ✌️

    Reply
  15. Tony J Sirna says

    January 8, 2016 at 10:00 am

    Oh Zack, I’m sorry, I’m a fan of the cuff, can you cuff slacks, too?

    Reply
    • ZackPyle says

      January 8, 2016 at 1:05 pm

      Of course. Just leave enough “outside fabric” on the inside when you hemm, then flip it around and iron in your cuff!

      Reply
  16. Tony J Sirna says

    January 8, 2016 at 9:55 am

    I want to learn how to hem my own dress slacks, but I have to look really close on the steps, cause I tend to get nervous. It looks easy enough. I’m 5′ 5″, so I need your help, Zack!

    Reply
  17. Diana Prine says

    November 11, 2015 at 5:05 pm

    Thanks great tutorial, will be teaching my son and leaving him this site, Its a great man kind of thing to know, Hope to see more like buttons, thanks Happy Holidays

    Reply
  18. Jenny G says

    October 26, 2015 at 3:47 pm

    Thus is awsome, I sew, but have never dealt with suit pants before, and have to have my husband’s pants done by tomorrow. Thanks!

    Reply
  19. Mktbrandy says

    September 27, 2015 at 11:34 am

    Im short for a girl, and even petite pants are often too long. I finally decided to buy a long pair and hem them. Thanks for the great instructions!

    Reply
  20. Lauren says

    April 22, 2015 at 2:21 pm

    Great post and tips! This is some wonderful information to know. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  21. Jonathan says

    April 22, 2015 at 10:15 am

    I was recently wondering if I could possibly hem my own pants. Before I attempt to do this on dress pants, I think I am going to give it a try on pajama bottoms.

    Reply
    • ZackPyle says

      April 30, 2015 at 12:14 am

      Not a bad idea. The first piece of clothing I ever tailored was an old t-shirt. The good thing about this is that if you mess up on the sewing part, just cut the thread and try again. No harm done!

      Reply
  22. Oliver says

    April 19, 2015 at 2:07 pm

    Really interesting stuff …. will be looking into doing this myself in the near future. More DIYs would be great!

    Reply
  23. adauria says

    April 17, 2015 at 11:53 am

    Love it. Would love to learn how to hem jeans, if that’s doable without fancy equipment.

    Reply
    • littlemike says

      December 7, 2020 at 3:55 pm

      Best way is with a sewing machine. If you look at the factory hem on jeans, it is a visible row of stitching, usually in the same color thread used to assemble the jeans—orange, yellow, etc., rather than the color of the fabric. Just fold it over like the factory did and sew it in a straight line to replicate the original hem.

      Reply
  24. Jason says

    April 16, 2015 at 9:36 pm

    Great stuff. I’m definitely interested in more DIY/How-to’s.

    Reply
  25. Carl says

    April 16, 2015 at 6:24 pm

    Hem tape rocks!!

    Reply
    • DGG says

      March 8, 2020 at 12:29 am

      Never got hem tape to stick to any material I’ve tried for more than one wash.

      Reply
  26. Rollo says

    April 16, 2015 at 4:32 pm

    Very heppful post. Thanks.

    Reply
  27. Annie Kip says

    April 16, 2015 at 4:14 pm

    Great job, Brock! Men should have basic skills like this. Men can also create a cuff, if they prefer, by making a very deep hem, folding the cuff up toward the outside, and using the thread to make a small stitch to hold the cuff in place at each seam.

    Reply
  28. edward says

    April 16, 2015 at 4:06 pm

    awesome, more how to’s please

    Reply
  29. Ted M. says

    April 16, 2015 at 3:51 pm

    My wife just bought a sewing machine (she is learning how to sew as well), so I am hoping to be able to do a proper seam in the next few months. But for those folks who don’t have a machine or don’t know how to use one, this technique looks great!

    Got a couple of questions:

    First, is the sewing technique that you showed where the thread doesn’t go completely through the outer fabric (thereby leaving no visible seam) somewhat fragile? It looks like something where one would need to be careful in putting on ones pants so as not to rip out the hem with ones toe!

    Second, have you ever tried this technique on a pair of jeans? Denim is thicker than the fabric on a pair of suit pants. Does it require different thread?

    Thanks for the advice and for putting together this awesome website. 🙂

    Reply
    • Zack Pyle says

      April 16, 2015 at 10:30 pm

      Hey Ted,

      It’s not fragile at all. It’s the exact same as any store bought pants! (And to clarify, it actually does go all the way through the material, but it only catches 1-2 threads so it’s basically invisible.

      As for jeans, jeans don’t have a blind hem. If you take a look at your jeans right now, they have a visible stitch, so it’s a different method!

      Thanks,

      Zack

      Reply
      • DGG says

        March 8, 2020 at 12:46 am

        Most dress pants I buy also have a visible 1/2″ up from the edge visible stitch too. I have bought maybe 10 pairs of uniform and dress pants from different sources and they all seem to have this visible 1/2″ stitching.

        Reply
  30. Kevin says

    April 16, 2015 at 3:46 pm

    An even easier method that works well for dress pants is to use hem tape. Measure, iron, cut as above, but use the hem tape instead of sewing. Takes some care to do this, but mine have stayed in place. I haven’t tried this with denim though, as I read it doesn’t hold well.

    Reply
    • DGG says

      March 8, 2020 at 12:43 am

      I’ve tried 3 types of hem tape or essentially glue on a little fabric strip. Within one wear and wash, they fall right off both dress pants and work pants and jeans. They work one wash or two. Then you are doing it all over again.

      Reply

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