BWOF Pants

The goal is to make pants that are both comfortable and look good.  I've read books, researched, taken on-line classes, tried various fit alterations, and made many, many test pants.  And rarely have I been happy with the results. But This pair comes pretty close.

This is an old BWOF magazine pattern,  from March 2006.  It's just a basic trouser pattern with fairly slim legs.  It has front pockets similar to jeans pockets.  I made a size 44.

My fabric is olive green stretch woven that I most likely bought at Joann Fabrics.  I've been labeling my fabric for several years and since this wasn't labeled, it's been in my stash for quite a while.   Since it has lycra in it, I was afraid they might really stretch out while I was wearing them.  But after wearing them all day, they stilled looked pretty good.

Alterations I made: I lengthened the side seams by adding 1/2 inch to the top of the waist on front & back and I added 1/2 inch to the back crotch point. 

My main fit issue in both RTW and self-made is a fold/wrinkle under the seat.  It's less in this pair, but still there on the right side.   I feel like I'm making some progress.

Wide Leg Pants

I've been seeing a lot of wide leg print pants, so I decided to give them a try.

In front of the lilac bush.

I used a BWOF pattern from July, 2009.   I used this pattern because I like the size and shape of the legs - loose fit with a slight flare at the hem. The pattern has front & back darts, a back zipper, waist facings, and inseam pockets - I left off all of these.  To get a loose fit, I made the pants a little bigger than my normal size and then added an elastic casing for the waist.  I made my normal fit adjustments: added a 1-1/2" wedge to the back crotch curve and lowered the front waist about 1".    I'm really happy with the fit.  They're loose and comfy without being sloppy.

The fabric is a light weight blend with a slight texture.  I bought it at Joann's probably 15 years ago.  I've always loved it, but never knew what to make with it.  I wanted printed pants, but not brave enough to go too wild.  This fabric is a good compromise.   And it's thin, so should be cool for summer wear.  I have a small piece left that I'll probably use to make a sleeveless top.

Here's a close up

Corduroy Pants

My last item for January is a pair of corduroy pants.  This is my 2nd pair of wearable pants for the year.

I used the same BWOF pattern as before.  It's from the May, 2007, issue.  This time I tried adding a little to the front crotch point, thinking it would help with wrinkles/folds just under the seat.  But, it didn't, so it's back to the drawing board.

For this pair, I added a fly front zipper, wide contour waistband and front scoop pockets.

 Here you can see the yellow and brown flannel I used on the inside.  Aren't the monkeys cute??

So even though I don't have the fit down yet, I'm still pretty happy with my pants.

For February, I want to work on cleaning up the sewing room and finishing up some UFO's.

1st Project for 2014 - Pants

I decided to make a pair of pants as my first project of the year.   I'm working on pants again mainly because I have so few that fit me.  I always have better luck with BWOF pants patterns, so that's what I started with.  I used #112 from the May 2007 issue.   I really like this pattern.  The shape of the hip line and legs are just right for me.  Here's the line drawing:

Alterations I made:  added a 1-1/2" wedge to lengthen the back crotch seam; removed a little from the width of the back crotch seam; lowered the front waistline 5/8"; and removed 2" from back waist.  

I also left out the zipper and added an elastic waistband.  I made the waist just big enough to pull over my hips, so the waistband is flat when the pants are worn.

The fabric I used is a black with blue pinstripe that I  got at Joann Fabrics November 2011 and paid $2.50 yard as it was on clearance.   It's a woven "suiting" blend with a little stretch that I'm sure has some poly in it, but it is very nice.  It sews up great and doesn't wrinkle badly.  It drapes so nicely and feels great.  I wish I had more like it, in a different color.

Here's the front:

They are really comfortable to wear.

Side view:









































There's still some wrinkles in the back of the pants, but overall I'm pretty happy with how these turned out.

3 Summer Tops

The first top is Simplicity 1615

This is a really cute pattern, but I'm not sure how much I like the top - for me.   It has a bit of a maternity look and the front neckline is a little low.  I actually used some of this fabric for another pattern that didn't work out.  And since I love this fabric, I have to wear this one.

I made my usual size 14, but should have went down to a 12 through the shoulders and neck. 

 

Here's how I wore the top today.  Since the neckline is too low and wide for my comfort, I wore a tank underneath it.  Worn this like, it's very comfortable.

 Next up, is McCall's 5665.  This pattern is now out of print.

This is what I would call a smock-top;  sort of the type of top I wore in the 1970's.   It's very loose fitting, and again, has a bit of a maternity feel to it.   The fabric is a quilting type cotton I got on the clearance table at Joann Fabrics.  I used purchased bias binding on the armholes and made my own binding for the neckline.  Why I wasn't consistent on that, I don't remember.   Nothing fancy, but cool and comfortable.

 

Lastly, is a BWOF, May 2009 # 115

I made a size 42 and added a little at the hip area.  The neckline was too loose, so I inserted a black ribbon and use it as a drawstring.  I used black bias binding turned to the inside for the armholes.  I really like this fabric.  It's white with dark gray flowers and very soft cotton.  I had just enough of it for this top.

Pants - BWOF

I made pants.   I worked on pants so much last fall and made so many unwearable muslins, that I was so frustrated and completely sick of pants. But after 3 months, I was ready to try again.

I used BWOF magazine May 2007, # 112.   This is the line drawing.  Very simple style: wide legs (22" at the hem), front zipper, no pockets.  I  didn't add the waist detail.








I cut a size 46, but probably should have cut a 44 as I had to remove quite a bit from the waist and a little from the hips and the legs are very loose.  They were too high waisted in the front,  so I trimmed a little off the top of the waist and narrowed the waistband by an inch.  In the back, I added an inch at the center, top of the waist.  They're still a little tight in the back crotch curve, but completely wearable.

The fabric is a gray cotton/blend that probably came from Joann Fabric's a few years ago.  It was easy to sew (but ravels badly), and comes out of the washer and dryer with only minimal wrinkling - and presses good, They will be nice to wear this summer in hot weather.


These have a wide waistband.  Even after removing an inch, it's still about 2-1/4" wide.  I like about a 2" wide waistband, so next time, I'll reduce it to that size.
 

I used a gold print fabric for the waistband and zipper fly, and since I had one in my stash that matched, used a gold zipper.




 Here's the front:

 And the back: 

They don't look bad, just one wrinkle on the right side.  I'm hoping my alterations on the next pair will take care of that. I've made alterations to the pattern, and have another pair cut out in a "linen look" fabric.

Pants Challenge

Since I wear pants a lot more often than I do skirts, I've decided to really work on developing some basic trouser/pants patterns.  I started a sew-along over on PR, and several women have been participating.  My goal is to come up with some TNT patterns and then make 1 pair of pants per month.  I've found that BWOF pants fit me better than any other patterns I've tried, so that's what I started with.   Since I wanted a pair of trouser jeans, I started with a BWOF that has wide legs, a side zipper and side slant pockets.  I moved the zipper to the front and added back pockets with flaps.  For the first pair I made in January, I used a deep red corduroy.  Those were too big & not quite right.  For February, I used the same pattern (just a little smaller) and used a medium weight denim with just a little stretch.  These fit pretty well, although they are a little big through the legs.  I'm going to wash and dry them again and if they don't shrink, I'm going to take them up a little.


Here's a picture:

 

 

It's hard to see on dark fabric like this, but here's a picture of the pockets.                                     

Here's a couple more pictures:                                                                                                               

 

 For my next project, I think I'd like to make a red pair with straight legs.