The after Christmas sales can be very tempting but this year I didn’t buy a lot because frankly I didn’t need anything. I stocked up on some supplies which I will be using throughout the year such as bag findings and yarn (for WIRES pouches) There was one indulgent purchase which I had on my wish list if I saw it on sale.
About 5 years ago I purchased a Hot Hemmer which is gridded ruler that you can iron directly on allowing you to do accurate hems. It measures about 4” x 6” and has a section to do curved hems as well markings for mitred corners. I use it so much that I keep on the bottom drawer of my sewing table so that I can reach for it easily when I need it. 5 years on I still keep it in the plastic wrapper and packaging so that it doesn’t get dusty and the packaging also keeps it flat. The only downside to the hemmer that when you need to keep moving it along when you are doing a really long hem such as on a skirt or shirt. I wasn’t the only one thinking this so Clover developed the Hot Ruler.
The Hot Ruler is 2.5” x 10” making it 4” longer than the hot hemmer. It is narrower than the Hemmer but it would be very rare that you are turning over more than 2.5” of fabric at one time for a hem. The extra length is what is important and the most useful. There are a couple versions of the both the hot ruler and hot hemmer depending if you like imperial or metric measurements. For all things sewing related I prefer imperial. On the hot hemmer/ruler the imperial versions (blue versions) looked less cluttered than the metric (red versions)
Just before new year I made a pj top. I left the hemming of it until I got my new hot ruler so that I could try it out. The top was a cotton jersey and the ruler worked really well on the bottom hem as I only had to move 2 maybe 3 times for each of the front and back. For the sleeves which were narrower I used the hemmer as it was smaller.
I know the hot ruler will be a well used tool. I can use it for not only doing hems but also when I’m doing bag straps which require a quarter fold press (press fabric in half then press each raw edge into the centre fold) At times my pressing isn’t always accurate when doing straps but this ruler will help.
Cassiy
stitchnsewcreates 
I didn’t even know these were a thing! Thanks for sharing. All my walking trousers need me to shorten the hem despite me buying the smallest length available. I must add that to my to do list…and maybe look if these are available in the UK if I struggle to do it without.
These are really useful. As they are Clover brand I think you should be able to get them in the UK