How To Cuff Pants

When you find the perfect dress pants and they are too long, you can learn how to cuff pants instead of having them hemmed. Cuffing pants is easier than having them hemmed, plus you lessen the chance of making a hemming error. Another good thing is that cuffed pants have been pretty popular over the past couple of years.

To cuff your pants you will need:

• Sewing machine
• Some thread that matches the color of the pants
• Pins to hold the material in place
• Measuring tape or a ruler
• Sewing needle

1. Find out how much shorter the pants need to be. Dress pants should rest on the top of the shoes you are wearing. Measure how much extra material you have at the end of the pants by measuring from you waist to the top of your feet. Any extra material that is longer than this will be included in the cuff.
2. Take the extra material and fold it up over the pant leg. Secure the bottom of the fold in place with the pins. Stitch the fold in place with a running stitch, or sew it by hand. The longer the material, the larger the cuff you will have.
3. Fold the material back down to meet where you just sewed. Then secure it with the pins and sew along the bottom of the pants. The cuff is now completed and just needs to be secured. Remove the pins after sewing.
4. Turn the pants inside out. Attach the cuff to the seam of the pants with a needle and thread. No need to use the sewing machine for this. Now just remove the stitching that you placed in step two. Your pants are now cuffed, fitting right, and looking spiffy.