It's All About The Pants Part 2

Best laid plans :/
I apologize for not getting back to the post yesterday, so sadly I am a day behind. But, we'll catch up :)

Before I begin the Islander Patterns Easy V  Express Top sew along, I wanted to do the follow up post to the pant fitting retreat. As I told you in the previous post, I made 2 pair of pants and a pair of shorts. Although the same pattern was used for each pair, there were slight changes made.

I used a wool crepe for my first pair. If you have worked with wool crepe, you know that it has a looser weave than other wools, so it can grow a bit. The side seams were taken in to get a closer fit, but all in all I was happy with the outcome.   Just a note, I have not hemmed my pants, and I also need to add the hook closure to the waistband.

Since I used a black fabric, it's a little difficult to see how the back fits, but they feel great and I am happy with how they hang. 

I LOVE having a beautiful lining in all of my clothes. Kinda like my own little secret, that just might get a slight reveal at times ;) This fabric makes the pants feel like a dream when I slide them on.

For the second pair I made, I used a herringbone from Pendleton Wool. A gorgeous piece of fabric. 

There's just a slight caving in at the back of my leg in this picture, I'm not sure if it's the pant, or how I'm standing. I have a feeling that it's how I'm standing.

This pair also appears to be just a little snug in the back crotch seam. I have not clipped the seam, so once that is done, I think it will make a big difference. 

Once I made this pair, we then made some alterations to the pattern which I did not want to do after the wool crepe pair due to the fabric characteristics. 

I used a basic bemberg lining in this pair of pants. Boring!!!

I had intended to use a fun piece of silk, but I was just a little short, so I used it as my pocket lining, just to add a fun touch. In the wool crepe pants, I used the wool crepe as my pocket lining. I really prefer using a lining fabric for the pocket lining as I feel that it makes pants and skirts alike fall a little nicer over the body.

For my final pair, I made walking shorts. These were made from a denim with 3% lycra. 

I decided to have some fun with them and do lots of topstitching. 
Due to the fact that the fabric has the added lycra, I had to take the side seams in a little more from my original alterations to the pattern. By doing this, it made the pocket opening just a little smaller. So I have made a note of this and if I make another pair with lycra, I will know to alter the side seam prior to adding the pockets. 
  

I even topstitched the darts.

And I used a red zipper. Why not? :)

The back. There's just one more detail that I would like to add and that's back pockets. As you can see below, the center back seam is a flat felled seam. The crotch seam is also a flat felled seam. By doing this, I sacrifice a little fit in the crotch, but I love flat felled seams, so oh well :) 

Since I wanted more of a walking short, I widened the leg a little on the outside and inside leg, and then added a cuff.

The back. Although I sacrificed a little of the fit with the flat felled seams, I'm really happy with how they turned out.

If you think that you might like to take a pant fitting class, Karen is thinking of doing another class either in September, or October. If you are interested, email her at karenssewunique@gmail.com.

The master mind behind this pant fitting system is Joyce Simmons Murphy. Be sure to check out her website HERE. Her new website which will be devoted to pants should be up soon at Pants4U.com

Pants that fit is no longer just a dream :)