Shortening jeans with original hem

What I did:

Before

My client had two pairs of jeans that were too long.

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cuffed jeans on wooden background

Before: my client wore this pair of jeans cuffed, but got tired of that style and wanted them hemmed instead.

blue jeans with one leg folded up to indicate desired new hem

Before: my client also wanted this second pair of blue jeans shortened. The folded up leg shows the length she wanted them shortened to.

Closeup of cuffs of blue jeans on wooden background

Before: closeup of the cuffs on the first pair of jeans

closeup of bottom of blue jean legs with one leg folded up to indicate new desired length

Before: closeup showing the amount my client wanted hemmed on the second pair of jeans

After

Rather than cutting and re-hemming, I shortened the jeans by taking up (i.e. folding, sewing, and cutting) some of the fabric above the hem. This technique allowed me to keep the distressed denim and original top stitching intact, so that the jeans still had that distinct "jean-look."

jeans on wooden background, legs are shorted than before but with original hem

After: full view of the second pair of jeans, made shorter with original hem intact

jeans on wooden background, legs are shorted than before but with original hem

After: full view of the first pair of jeans, made shorter with original hem intact

Closeup of jeans with patch over hole on side of pocket

After: In the course of doing the leg shortening, I noticed that there was a small hole at the side of the pocket — the common "cell phone hole" in the first pair of jeans — so I patched it with some of the material I had cut off from the legs.

closeup of jeans showing shortened legs with original hem

After: closeup of the hems of the first pair of jeans