I'm short

I've always been short.  No, I take that back.  I was normal in elementary school, even some of junior high.  But as most of my friends continued to grow, I just seemed to...well, stop.  And I've been here ever since.  Which I don't understand because we Amazon women genes in our family.  I have girl cousins who are 6' tall, 5'11'', 5'9''!  They wear it beautifully.  Why didn't I get at least part of the family height?  I have no idea. I'm literally the runt of the litter.

But I've come to terms with my shortness. I embrace it.  I did my part and always dated the short guys with the exception of Aaron. One time I went on a double date with my date being around 5'7'' and the other couple being 6' and 6'5'' respectively.  I have to admit I felt awkward all night.  Like double dating with my parents.

(I do have to admit I think Aaron is the perfect height for me. Even if he does sometimes make fun of my tiny, toddler hands and my child sized shoes.  My head fits perfectly against his chest, I love tippy-toeing to kiss him and how my hand almost disappears into his.   Hmmm...)

Anyway, why am I talking about this?  Well, I found a tailoring tip that all short people need to know.  I wish I had this years ago. I wear jeans just about every day. If I'm not in my yoga pants. I mean, it's Portland.  Pretty cas' up here.  Anyway, since I wear jeans a whole heck of a lot, these past years I've learned to invest in a few nice pairs.  Ones that will last for years, not stretch out every time I wear them and be as flattering on my backside as they can be.  Most of them come extra long. Well extra long for me. I never wanted to pay the $10-$15 it takes them to get professionally hemmed.  So I would just cut, fold and sew myself which never looked great but it worked.

Well, I found a great tip. Of course on Pinterest.

DaciaRay.com had my answer.  I copied this straight from her blog (I hope that wasn't illegal.) so I give her all the credit. 

"I found this fabulously perfect way to hem jeans on the Cavaricci site, which has since been taken down, so here’s the lowdown. This method keeps the original hem in tact and is especially helpful now that all jeans are made to be 34 inches long for mammoth supermodels. Plus, it took less than 30 minutes.
A couple notes: It’s best to do one leg at a time, so as not to have too much undoing to do in case something goes awry. Also, it’s good to know the length that you want each leg to be. Sometimes, one leg will be a bit shorter or longer than the other before you hem.
Step 1: Decide how much length you would like to take off. Divide that number in half. (Hems should fall just below the bottom of your ankle. Also, if you generally wear high heels, or a certain height of heel, you might want your hem a bit longer – it should fall an inch to a half inch above the floor at your heel.)


Step 2: Cuff the jeans. I wanted to take two inches off my hem, so I measured one inch out from the original hem line and pinned. (Do not include the distance from the hem to the end of the jean in your calculations.)


Step 3: Pin around the rest of the cuff, taking care to measure each time you pin.


Mind the seams while you’re pinning. Make sure that the stitching lines up at each seam.


Step 4: It’s time to stitch. You want to place your needle and continue sewing right next to the original hem. Stitch on the right side of the hem, or the side farthest from the bottom of the jean. Sew all the way around the cuff. Be sure you don’t sew through both front and back sides of the jeans (making it so that the foot hole is sewn shut)!


You can either cut the excess off, leaving about a half inch for fraying, or iron the extra material in.


Turn the leg right side out and press the new seam flat, revealing the old hem.

Voila! No more slouchy, unflattering leg."



I've already hemmed two pairs of jeans and am loving it.  Sometimes it's the little things in life.

So all you shorties out there, you're welcome.