Shorten a Skirt

What you will learn

• Marking a level hem
• Choosing a hem allowance
• Easing fullness

Materials and tools

• Skirt
• The shoes you will wear
• Measuring tape and seam gauge
• Pins and chalk
• Iron and board
• Matching thread
• Hand-sewing needle or sewing machine

Before you start

• Press the skirt at the heat on its care label. Put it on with shoes and a helper to mark the hem.

1. Stand with your weight on both feet. Your helper turns the hem up to the length you want and pins it at the centre front, centre back and both sides.
2. Take the skirt off. Measure from the waist to the pins at each of the four points. The two side numbers should match each other. Front and back often differ a little because of the body's shape. If the two sides differ, your waistband may sit crooked, so recheck.
3. Pin or chalk a line all the way around at the new length. Use a ruler or hem marker so the line is smooth. Lay the skirt flat to check.
4. Add the hem allowance. A straight skirt takes 1 1/2 to 2 in (4 to 5 cm). An A-line takes 1 in (2.5 cm). A very full skirt takes 1/2 to 3/4 in (12 to 19 mm). Mark the allowance below the new length. Do not cut.

5. Fold the allowance to the inside along the new length line and pin. On curved or flared hems, small folds appear. Ease them in with pins placed close together, or run a row of gathering stitches 1/8 in (3 mm) from the raw edge and gently pull them up.
6. Try the skirt on to confirm length and drape. Sit down, walk and check the hem from the side and back.
7. When satisfied, trim any extra fabric below the hem allowance. Finish the raw edge with zigzag stitch, or turn it under 1/4 in (6 mm).
8. Press the fold. Sew the hem by hand with a blind hem, or by machine with a straight stitch 1/8 in (3 mm) from the upper edge of the hem.
9. Press the finished hem and try on the skirt a last time.

Tips for a neat result

• A skirt hangs differently on a body than on a table. Always mark while wearing it.
• Let a full skirt hang overnight before marking, since fabric cut on the bias (diagonally across the weave) stretches and drops.

Common mistakes and fixes

Check your result

• The hem is level all around at the right length.
• The hem lies flat and the stitches are almost invisible.

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