Hem a Dress With a Hotel Sewing Kit

Labor Day weekend we were in Pittsburgh, PA for a wedding. Jess had rented a dress from RTR... something like her 6th rental ---something she loves

The Problem. For some reason the lining for the dress ran longer than the dress itself. Disaster??

The Solution. Here's how to use a hotel sewing kit to make a temporary fix!

We were staying at an Embassy Suites in Pittsburgh. They had a nice little kit complete withe a mini scissors. I picked the white thread to keep it simple but could have also used the pink... or really any color for this minor work.

Had we not been able to find a needle/thread Jess planned to simply use safety pins to hold the material.

Simply fold the material to start the hem. Easiest to have an extra set of hands. If not available simply lay the dress out on a solid surface or use pins. ---we were just about to leave and the alteration is made with the dress on :)

The Stitch. Start from the underside and make two passes to create a small loop. Use three overhand knots to tie the stitch off. No need to pull tight as that could crimp the material.

The Spacing. We tried 4 inches but that was too far. About 2.5 inches was about right.

--removing stitches is a cinch. A seam ripper is ideal but any sharp point will clip the single stitch. Again, easier if it's not too tight.

The whole alteration took about 5-10 minutes. It was certainly cleaner than using safety pins and avoided the cost of fabric tape.

The Dress. It was really perfect for the outdoor wedding. Jess loves the website Rent the Runway and isn't put off by the fact that this dress needed an adjustment... her first time having any issue. A referral code for $30 off is FRIEND30B1E8E (Jess also get's a $30 credit)

Hope you found this useful! Jeff

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