Greetings gators! Today I’m just bringing you a little snippet regarding the sacrifice I recently made to the denim gods. My favorite jeans recently bit the dust. The the dust biting was a long time comin’ – they were a pair of artfully distressed Calvin Kleins that sprung a leak the first time I wore them and pretty much had to get the zig zag treatment after every wash and wear. Eventually the tear wrapped all the way around my leg and when I needed a pair of cut offs last week to go under my babydoll dress, I figured I may as well just make my favorite jeans my favorite cut offs. Very, very short cutoffs…
Showing posts with label Trouser fitting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Trouser fitting. Show all posts
Greetings pygmy goats! I think I’m a day late, but I decided to play along with last week’s Sew Weekly challenge “Kidding Around” and make an outfit based on a childhood photo of me. I posted the inspiration photo a few days ago, but here it is again with my ‘now’ photo – 1980 versus 2011. Sigh… nothing like typing that to make you feel your age, right my hoppy small goat friends?
Evening fillies! Spurred on by the Me-Made-March need for regular, every day clothes as well as Tanit-Isis’ recent denim do’s and don’ts post I decided to jump in to jeans-making. Of course, with my love of making everything difficult, I ended up with a pair of trousers that bears a suspicious resemblance to riding breeches… they also strike me as a tad bit on the martial side.
Happy Monday fellow flamingos! Here in Minneapolis we’ve gotten another foot and a half of snow, pretty much ensuring that Minnesota, at least, is entering a new ice age. Luckily, my manic focus on making trousers will serve me well in these new, colder times. Also, my dog-eared copy of the Mammoth Hunters will enable me to catch my food after the inevitable breakdown of our industrialized society. Does anyone remember how exciting it was when Ayla invented the sewing needle?
Hunting and gathering aside, I’ve actually got a real, non-muslin pair of pants to show you today! And there’s elastic involved!! I’ll give you a moment to recover from the shock… OK. Welcome back. Here’s the thing – I mentioned at the end of my last post that I was going to try the Hot Patterns Marrakesh Drawstring pants. What I didn’t realize was that these pants not only have a drawstring, they have a clever drawstring that involves elastic. Who knew? Anyway, after all of the fitting and butt-shots of the recent past, I just wanted to get a nice pair of pants for wearing around the house. While I would gladly wear dresses every day in the summer, I really don’t have an actual need for trousers (you know, pricey fabric, lined, matching suit jacket also in closet)– I just really want to make some that fit! Pants, though, I’ll wear those. I thought the Marrekesh drawstring pants looked just the thing. And, it turns out, I really like them and think the pattern may work well for some NON-elasticized versions! In keeping with my recent theme – here’s a butt shot…
Alright duck billed platypies. I’ve more pants for you. These pants are quick and dirty and not pleasant to look at. And unlike the last post I don’t have much for you other than pictures. Over the last day I’ve thrown together the Hot Patters Razor Sharp and Everyday pants, and then a hybrid…
First trousers were the Hot Patterns Razor Sharp trousers – I cut between a size 26 up to the hips, then veered to a size 24. For the muslin (a poly wool blend) I taped up the pieces to skip the pockets and I also left off the fly. I give these pants a so-so rating – they have an incredibly angled crotch curve – like an L – and it’s very, very deep in the back. It’s actually quite an odd feeling… here’s a photo of the pattern envelope – all the action shots will be lined up together below. I will say this, though, they are QUITE comfy!
Sorry for the blogging blackout. I’ve literally spent every spare moment poking myself with pins in an effort to figure out this &(#^&)@ trouser fitting! Must teach Mr. Bug how to drape. I have lots and LOTS of photos of my failed experiments for you, but I’ll just jump to the end. With the help of the wise ones on Pattern Review, I now have a reasonably well fitting pair of trousers. Of course, they are lacking in shape, but we’ll get to that later. Here they are in their completely unpressed glory, with me holding a temporary waistband on to see if I like the look…
I have good news and bad news. The good news is if you’re in the mood for a blog post that meanders aimlessly with no finished projects to show off or clear direction as to fitting trousers, you are SUPER in luck. The bad news is that I didn’t bring enough popcorn for all of you. Let’s just jump in, shall we?
I posted the beginning of my search for trousers the other day, and included a shot of my three major contender patterns – Hot Patterns Razor Sharp and Everyday pants, as well as one of the ‘vintage’ reissues from Simplicity (4044). I cut the patterns and re-read through Pants for Real People (honestly, they need to restyle that book. It burns my eyes.) I couldn’t decide which pattern to start with. The Hot Patterns ones seemed so frumpy, the Simplicity pattern… well… it has pleats. I pulled the back pattern pieces and laid them out to compare. First, The Razor Sharp pants – a faced waistband, front fly zip, angled pockets, creased and supposedly wider leg.
Alrighty, jackrabbits. First up, old business. Yes, Lady Katza, I’m planning on doing a quickie how-to on making the sweetheart Sencha. And for those who suggested that I start draping (Andrea? K-Line?) I was sort of thinking of that too – except that I’d have to get a dress form. And then I’d really need to do something to make it more me-shaped than just a plain old dress form. Then I’d have a me-shape, lurking in the guest bedroom, freaking me out during early-morning mouthwash forays. And finally, as to all the wondering why the torture of a thousand muslins, when I already have a perfectly good Parfait pattern that fits… fair point. I will refrain from pointing out all the significant differences and clearly state that the February dress is much, MUCH more close-fitting than the Parfait – nearing corset-style snugness in the bodice area!
I’ll be getting back to the February dress in the next day or two – all the pattern pieces are cut, I just need a few hours to sew. I’ve also been working on a rather extensive thrift-store-cashmere-restyle project as part of the Colette spring palette challenge. There are satin roses involved. It’s very anthropologie-slash-hot-glue-gun-tragedy. You will roll your eyes extensively at the unveiling. Here’s a sneak peek on the sweater-restyle project…
Spurred on by my increasingly obvious need for more casual clothing, I went shopping yesterday and picked up a couple of pieces of corduroy for the making of trousers and Jenny skirts. I spent the night puttering away and am quite happy with my first official** self-made trousers!!
**Ok, I've made pajama bottoms and trousers for my mom. My first non-elastic-waist trousers!!
So here's my Day 4 outfit, self-made trousers, Old Navy (of course) tank, and New York and Co cardigan (and orange Rocket Dog wedding shoes!!)...
**Ok, I've made pajama bottoms and trousers for my mom. My first non-elastic-waist trousers!!
So here's my Day 4 outfit, self-made trousers, Old Navy (of course) tank, and New York and Co cardigan (and orange Rocket Dog wedding shoes!!)...
One more muslin and a few more changes and I think I'm ready to start on my first real trousers not made from bedsheets! Here's the final lineup...
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| front view |
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| side view |
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| back view |
I finished the second muslin for my trousers yesterday - it was actually the FIRST muslin of Simplicity 2562, after having tried out Butterick 5221. I've added the new muslin to the pants lineup below...
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| really like the shape of the legs! |
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| the side view is alright, not my favorite, though. |
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| the back is the most troubling - lots of folds! |
OK. This is the part of the fall wardrobe I've been dreading. Pants. I've tried making pants and shorts a few times and haven't come up with anything usable. What I've done the few times I've tried before is to make WAY too many adjustments right off the bat - lengthening the crotch depth, scooping out in the back, widening the legs - it goes on and on. This time I decided to just take it slow, one muslin at a time.
To start out with, I decided to go with Butterick 5221. I like the way the drawing shows nice, wide legs. I'm also waiting for Hotpatterns 1053 to arrive, but the more I look at it, the more I'm not sure I want a waistband with a facing. I want a real, honest-to-god waistband.
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