Rolling on from Me Made May and my pledge to myself to construct more separates I dived into my Barcelona haul of fabric and pulled out some grey twill - 1.3 metres of perfectly soft cotton, just right for a pair of 3/4 pants.
The pattern used for construction was a Patrones Number 364 from 2008, pattern number 51 - 3/4 trousers with faux pocket flaps and a cute leg split. I didn't actually keep the split in as my original intention was to bling up my pants with some nice buttons on the flaps and splits but when I found these babies.........
...... I decided less is more and opted for embellishments on the pocket flap only. A good job as the buttons were a costly £2.60 each from my local fabric emporium.
Construction commenced with sewing the pockets first, then the fly front which I was very pleased with, not having sewn a fly closing for a not insignificant amount of years. I followed my Readers Digest sewing bible to the letter and inserted the fly shield just right. Onto the leg seams; previously I have made trousers by constructing each leg and then fitting one inside the other, right sides together, and stitching the crotch. I opted for a different make up with these and instead, after sewing the crotch/back seam, sewed the inside leg seams together. After laying the trousers out on the floor this is what they looked like:
After basting the side seams it appeared the fit was too big for my frame and I ended up lopping off a good inch or so to bring them in to my measurements. This is where I was glad I had sewn the inside seams first as it saved a lot of unpicking and, fortunately, side seams amended, fit nicely.
Post fitting they felt a little low slung but the wide waistband with self facing soon fixed that and after a few tweaks the trousers fitted like a dream.
I didn't go in here (today!). I would've spent a fortune!
Next time I think I would consider the addition of belt loops but, in the meantime, what a joy it is to have pants that fit.Ease factor: Not so bad, say a 4 out of 10 with the fly zipper being the most head scratching part of the make. I did have to " re-sew" the outside seams to take them in to fit though.
Cost: 1.3 metres of twill at 7.90 euros a metre, so just under 10.3 euros.
Happy sewing
Linda x
Those trousers look fantastic, and a good hint about the different way to make then up
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Thank you Vicki, they're going to get much wear! Glad you found the tip useful.
DeleteOoh, they're fab!
ReplyDeleteThank you, I do love them.
DeleteThese are fabulous! I just love them! And those buttons are so cute too :) definitely a good idea opting to go for those :)
ReplyDeleteGeorgia
satiablefashion.blogspot.co.uk
Thank you Georgia. I like 3/4 pants - they make a change and are more dressy than jeans. I do love a little embellishment on my makes too.
DeleteGeorgia, those are really cute! Thanks for writing up that way of fitting trousers. It's the way my mother taught me, but I thought I was the only one who did it. What inspired you to try it?
ReplyDeleteHi, thanks for your comment. it's nice to see the old ways used sometimes. I just thought it would be good to get all the middle seams aligned instead of having to fiddle about later.
DeleteGlad you enjoyed the post.