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In recent years we’ve been going to a more casual church so I haven’t been wearing nearly as many skirts.

But on Easter Sunday I wanted to dress up a bit more and grab a favorite out of my closet. When I put the skirt on, I realized that the lining was hanging below the hem of the skirt, maybe I had never noticed it before?

I thought to myself that I could leave it but it would annoy me. Of course the benefit of having sewing machines in the house is that I could easily do this quick fix before church. I estimated the lining needed to be shortened about an inch and immediately got to work.

There were a few options for hemming

One option would be to try to turn up the lining an inch from the original hem, and simply stitch without cutting. I tried this method but this didn’t work for my A-line skirt because the circumference of the original lining was longer than the circumference of the new length. Think about an A – it is widest at the bottom and gradually narrows as you go up. The same is true for an A-line skirt. With the first method failing, I decided that the best way to go was with the narrow hem.

Narrow hems, also known as rolled hems or baby hems give a professional finish to light to medium weight fabric. They are sturdier and have a more finished look. A rolled hem is best for most light weight fabric and some medium weight fabrics. This is because it’s a really tiny and it will not slip out so much due to its size. It doesn’t work on really thick fabric because it is so small but it is great for your fancy dresses and skirts made with lightweight fabric.

Method one: how to sew a rolled hem (baby hem, narrow hem) without a hemmer foot

Step 1: pin or iron to the desired length Stitch 1/8″ from the edge.
Step 2: trim the extra fabric close to your stitch, Leaving approximately 1/8 of an inch. Use Applique Scissors to trim for best results

Step 3: fold the fabric over the tiny 1/8 of an inch to make a tiny seam allowance and iron it down.

Step 4: Stitch this narrow hem all the way around. (Refer to the image above)

Method two: how to sew a rolled hem with a rolled hemmer foot

For this method, you will need a hemmer foot. Hemmer feet come in different sizes, i.e. 2mm, 4mm, and 6mm depending on the brand. You will have to choose a hemmmer foot that is most suitable for your fabric because the heavier the fabric, the wider the hemmer foot you will need to use. The stitch length should also be suitable for the fabric.

Step 1: cut your lining to your desired length.
Step 2: place the hem right side down under the presser foot and take five to four stitches on the very beginning of your hem. Hold the thread tails while doing this because the thread tails will help you feed the fabric into the hemmer foot.
Step 3: lift the presser foot and bring the fabric slightly towards you then use the thread tails in your left hand to pull the fabric backward and into the scroll of the hemmer foot.
Step 4: Still holding the thread tails and the fabric, lower the presser foot. Continue holding the thread tails and begin sewing slowly, slightly tagging on the thread tails to get the fabric rolling through the foot and out the back

Please note that too much fabric rolling into the hemmer will make a twisted hem and too little fabric rolling in will cause the upper edge to not turn under. To avoid this, guide the fabric carefully, with the raw edge along the grove to the left of the scroll on the foot. This helps to not guide too much or too little fabric into the hem. You may need to bring the needle a little to the left to bring the stitch closer to the hem fold, but it all depends on the fabric being used.