Tuesday 21 April 2015

Making Jeans- My way. Part 2


I know in my last post I was all about my boot cut , dark denim jeans and now I'm making skinnys??? What? I'm still on my quest to make a great fitting pair of pants that I can just whip up in a day or two. I figure if I can morph together all the things I love from these pant experiences into one pattern, at the end of it all I will have my go to TNT!
Enter Burda 6855!!!!!

 

These are the first pair of pants I have ever made that I did not have to alter- at all!! Okay- maybe the length. It's like they were custom made for me.

 

I'm a happy little sewer. If you kiss enough frogs your Prince will appear. Right?
This is pair #2. I made them with a light weight polyester stretch twill. It's not the kind of fabric I would normally buy but I just loved the print. It went from shopping bag to cutting table within minutes of purchase.That almost never happens!
I thought the poly might not work. I was wrong. It could be mistaken for denim.
This pattern went together just beautifully. It was so much easier to sew with then the heavy denim, and I could still use all the jeans style topstitching details - or not.

This pattern has a shaped waistband so there was no gaping at the back.

I have a feeling these fit me so well because they are a "young" size which translates to old school Misses size. I'm not small enough for petite size and most average woman's are too big so I'm thinking it's almost a 1/2 size- like a size 9. I'm curious to know where all the half sizes have gone!!! It must be a manufacturing cut back of some sort. Trying to find shoes with 1/2 sizes is getting harder and harder these days too.

Oops, I fibbed, one other thing I changed was to make the back pockets a 1/4 inch larger all the way round.

I opted not to put belt loops on so it would present a flatter face when I wear them with form fitting t-shirts.

I used Mettler topstitching thread and had a few issues. It kept shredding when I went through a few thicknesses of fabric. I was using a new Jean topstitching needle too so I'm thinking maybe it just didn't like the polyester?? Any Ideas?

The only thing I didn't love about this pattern is the fact that it does not have a back yoke, which would give them a true blue jean styling. I'm hoping as I gain proficiency at drafting or grafting I will be able to frankenpattern my own yoke. In the mean time I can live with the back darts.

I have also learned how to fashion a non stretch panel, or front facing that acts as a tummy suppressor, I have used it with these. It is especially nice to use this technique with light weight fabrics as it gives body and camouflages my body at the same time;)

This is my first pair. They also fit great but they SHRUNK. Yes- I pre washed. But next time I may have to pre wash 2 or 3 times.
I have to do a few deep knee bends when I first put them on ....... I'll just have to wear a tunic with them!
For topstitching thread I used Güttermann this time and it did not shred. It seems to have a tighter twist to it. This will now be my go to brand.

For a little added custom detail, I used 2 strands and did some cross stitch - by hand - on the belt loops. I really like how it turned out. I thought it needed something because of the absent yoke.

Here on the bum the pockets look like 2 bullseye targets. Another reason to wear them with tunics!! I have been doing a little research on back pockets. There is quite a science to them. Above all you want to avoid the dreaded "mom bum". This is a is something I will be studying further as I have a flat bottom and I get the mom bum look automatically. In the meantime I find myself checking out other women's tushes and back pockets- kinda weird, LOL!! Strictly research. I'd rather learn how to make perfect back pockets then take up the Brazillian Butt workout any day.

Thanks for stopping by:)

 

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