Saint Jean in Crucifixion Ferrare Vicino da Ferrara 1469 1470 detail

A hem in

sewing Sewing is the craft of fastening pieces of textiles together using a sewing needle and thread. Sewing is one of the oldest of the textile arts, arising in the Paleolithic era. Before the invention of spinning yarn or weaving fabric, archaeo ...

is a garment finishing method, where the edge of a piece of cloth is folded and sewn to prevent unravelling of the fabric and to adjust the length of the piece in garments, such as at the end of the sleeve or the bottom of the garment.

Methods

There are many different styles of hems of varying complexities. The most common hem folds up a cut edge, folds it up again, and then sew it down. The style of hemming thus completely encloses the cut edge in cloth, so that it cannot unravel. Other hem styles use fewer folds. One of the simplest hems encloses the edge of cloth with a stitch without any folds at all, using a method called an

overcast stitch Overcast stitch is a type of stitch used to enclose a raw, or unfinished, seam or edge. The purpose is to prevent unraveling of the fabric. Variations The hand overcast stitch involves small, evenly spaced diagonal stitches, binding the raw edge ...

, although an overcast stitch may be used to finish a folded "plain hem" as well. There are even hems that do not call for sewing, instead using iron-on materials, netting, plastic clips, or other fasteners. These threadless hems are not common, and are often used only on a temporary basis. The hem may be sewn down with a line of invisible stitches or

blind stitch A blind stitch in sewing is a method of joining two pieces of fabric so that the stitch thread is invisible (or nearly invisible) during the normal use of the finished product. Blind stitching uses a folded edge of the fabric to hide the stitches; ...

, or sewn down by a

sewing machine Diagram of a modern sewing machine Animation of a modern sewing machine as it stitches A sewing machine is a machine used to sew fabric and materials together with thread. Sewing machines were invented during the first Industrial Revolutio ...

. The term ''hem'' is also extended to other cloth treatments that prevent unraveling. Hems can be serged (see

serger An overlock is a kind of stitch that sews over the edge of one or two pieces of cloth for edging, hemming, or seaming. Usually an overlock sewing machine will cut the edges of the cloth as they are fed through (such machines being called ser ...

), hand rolled and then sewn down with tiny stitches (still seen as a high-class finish to handkerchiefs), pinked with

pinking shears Pinking shears are scissors with saw-toothed blades instead of straight blades. They produce a zigzag pattern instead of a straight edge. Before pinking scissors were invented, a pinking punch or pinking iron was used to punch out a decorative ...

, piped, covered with binding (this is known as a Hong Kong finish), or made with many other inventive treatments. Most

haute couture (; ; French for 'high sewing', 'high dressmaking') is the creation of exclusive custom-fitted high-end fashion design. The term ''haute couture'' generally refers to a specific type of upper garment common in Europe during the 16th to the ...

hems are sewn by hand. Decorative embroidery embellishment is sometimes referred to as a

hem-stitch Hemstitch or hem-stitch is a decorative drawn thread work or openwork hand-sewing technique for embellishing the hem of clothing or household linens. Unlike an ordinary hem, hemstitching can employ embroidery thread in a contrasting color so as ...

design.

Types of hems and hem stitches

A variety of hem types exist because there are so many different fabric types and garment styles. Common types of hems include: * Double-folded hem * Overlocked and folded hem * Rolled hem *

Bias tape image:lavender 0.25 inch double-fold bias tape.jpg, left, An example of double-fold bias tape Bias tape or bias binding is a narrow strip of fabric, typically plain weave, cut on the bias (textile), bias. As the weaving, weave of fabric is at ...

hem * Blind hem Hems of different depths (which includes the

seam allowance Seam allowance (sometimes called inlays) is the area between the fabric edge and the stitching line on two (or more) pieces of material being sewn Sewing is the craft of fastening pieces of textiles together using a sewing needle and thre ...

) may have a particular style to achieve, which requires more or less fabric depending upon the style. A handkerchief-style edge requires a hem allowance of . A typical skirt or pant hem may be . The hem's depth affects the way the fabric of the finished fabric will drape. Heavier fabric requires a relatively shorter hem. An interface fabric sewn to the fabric in the hem has a useful function in some hem styles. A

bias Bias is a disproportionate weight ''in favor of'' or ''against'' an idea or thing, usually in a way that is inaccurate, closed-minded, prejudicial, or unfair. Biases can be innate or learned. People may develop biases for or against an individ ...

strip is sometimes used as a hem interface. This adds fullness to the finished garment and reduce wrinkling. The hem stitches that are commonly used for hand-sewn hems include:

pick stitch A pick stitch in sewing is a simple running stitch that catches only a few threads of the fabric, showing very little of the thread on the right side (outer side) of the garment. It is also sometimes known as "stab stitch". A pick stitch can be m ...

;

catch stitch Catch may refer to: In sports * Catch (game), children's game * Catch (baseball), a maneuver in baseball * Catch (cricket), a mode of dismissal in cricket * Catch or reception (gridiron football) * Catch, part of a rowing stroke * Catch wrest ...

(also called a ''herringbone stitch'');

slip stitch A ladder stitch, or mattress stitch, is a stitch which can be used to invisibly close seams from the outside of the garment or item. It is primarily used to close seams on stuffed items, such as pillows, mattresses, down coats or stuffed toys, ...

; and

. Sewing machines can make a stitch that appears nearly invisible by using a blind-stitch setting and a blind stitch

foot The foot (: feet) is an anatomical structure found in many vertebrates. It is the terminal portion of a limb which bears weight and allows locomotion. In many animals with feet, the foot is an organ at the terminal part of the leg made up o ...

. Blind-stitches are commonly used to finish hems of applique designs on fabric. Modern sewing machines designed for home use can make many decorative or functional stitches, so the number of possible hem treatments is large. These home-use machines can also sew a reasonable facsimile of a hem-stitch, though the stitches will usually be larger and more visible. Clothing factories and professional tailors use a "blind hemmer", or hemming machine, which sews an invisible stitch quickly and accurately. A blind hemmer sews a chain stitch, using a bent needle, which can be set precisely enough to actually sew through one and a half thicknesses of the hemmed fabric. A rolled hem

presser foot A presser foot is an attachment used with sewing machines to hold fabric flat as it is fed through the machine and stitched. Sewing machines have feed dogs in the bed of the machine to provide traction and move the fabric as it is fed through the ...

on a sewing machine enables quick and easy hemming even by home sewers. Heavy material with deep hems may be hemmed with what is called a ''dressmaker's hem''—an extra line of loose running stitch is added in the middle of the hem, so that all the weight of the cloth does not hang from one line of stitching. File:Hem.tif, Sketch of a hem, showing folded top edge and thread File:5 thread overlock hem.jpg, A five-thread

overlock An overlock is a kind of stitch that sews over the edge of one or two pieces of cloth for edging, hemming, or seaming. Usually an overlock sewing machine will cut the edges of the cloth as they are fed through (such machines being called ser ...

hem made with a

machine, on the inside of the garment. On the outside, it appears as a

. File:Button hole stitch.jpg, A

buttonhole stitch Buttonhole stitch and the related blanket stitch are hand-sewing stitches used in tailoring, embroidery, and needle lace-making. Applications Traditionally, this stitch has been used to secure the edges of buttonholes. In addition to reinforc ...

hems the opening around a button hole. File:Pick stitch hem.jpg, A

hem made with thread that matches the fabric, to appear invisible on the outside of the garment. File:Plain hem.jpg, A plain hem, folded once and sewn with a

running stitch The straight or running stitch is the basic Stitch (textile arts), stitch in hand-sewing and embroidery, on which all other forms of sewing are based. The stitch is worked by passing the Sewing needle, needle in and out of the textile, fabric ...

Hem repair

Hem repair tape is a type of non-woven fusible interfacing available as a continuous, thin length. It is designed for use as an alternative solution to sewing or fixing a hem. To affect a fix, the hem repair tape is laid around the inside of the hem. It is then ironed on a high heat; the heat causes the tape to bond the two surfaces together.

References

{{Sewing Sewing

Methods

Types of hems and hem stitches

Hem repair

See also

References