I made a pair of Lander shorts not too long ago, and finally got the fit right, so I wanted to try again on the pants. I made a pair of the pants out of cotton twill maybe a year ago, and got very overzealous on fit. I found them quite big in the waist (I saw from my old pattern pieces that I’d cut out a size “7” in between a size 6 and 8 based on my measurements) and ended up taking the waistband off and recutting a size ZERO waistband based on the new dimension of the waist I ended up at. They fit great at the time, but then I washed and dried them and I HAD pre-washed and dried the fabric! I swear! But they shrank more and became horribly uncomfortable and I know I’m not going to wear them anymore because they basically give me a horrible wedgie. It’s not a nice time. So I decided when I jumped back in, I’d go for the shorts in the same twill in black instead of navy, and not be so ridiculous about fit. And I love them. I’ve worn them loads since posting about them, and have washed and dried them with no problems at all. So it was time to try the pants again.
I’ve always been a corduroy lover, and after sewing a Farrow with it, I couldn’t wait to make something else with corduroy! I got this Robert Kaufman corduroy at Patch‘s 4th birthday party on Saturday and cut into it before the weekend was over. I started a new two-year degree last week (which BETTER BE THE LAST ONE GOOD GRACIOUS) and one of the profs assigned 250 PAGES of readings just for this week. Including 100 pages of curriculum documents. Which let me tell you, is not the most exciting thing I’ve ever read. But I finished all of it yesterday. It was a lot of reading, and these Landers provided a much-needed mental break. I dove into the sewing on Monday and finished them this afternoon! I’m really happy with them. I love the colour of the fabric, and it’s a slightly different weight than the stuff I used for my Farrow. I had considered getting the zipper expansion pack for my next pair of pants, especially if I did corduroy, but then I completely forgot about that and went with the buttons as usual instead. I do want to try them with a zipper fly in future, because I think having multiple pairs of pants with the exposed button fly makes it way more obvious that they’re copies of the same pants.
As far as fit goes, I’m pretty happy with them! I’m hoping they might tighten up a TEENY bit in the wash (they’re in the dryer right now), but if they don’t that’s not a problem. I had to move the location of the waistband button in a bit – more on that below – and I’m noticing a bit of bagginess in the upper part on the back when I look at the photos, but it’s nothing I couldn’t fix with minor tweaks next time. One of the details I really love on the pants is the really wide 3″ hem! I think it adds such a great effect to the pants and really amps up the 70s vibe they have, especially in this colour.
As I mentioned above, I decided to move the button on the waistband in by a little bit to tighten up the waistband. Unfortunately, I only decided this AFTER I’d made a hole with an awl and nailed a jeans button into it. So I had to yank it out with the back end of my hammer, which ripped the fabric a bit. Luckily it was going to be covered by the left side of the waistband anyway, so I wasn’t too concerned. Once it was out and the new one was in, I fixed the hole that was left behind and it’s not even visible when the pants are buttoned up so it doesn’t bother me at all. My sewing machine also decided to have a hissy fit about the top buttonhole (super helpful, thanks), so I had to push and pull it aggressively to make it do something that vaguely resembles a buttonhole. I’m not someone who gets anxious about buttonholes, but it’s things like this that make me understand why people do get a mental block about them. Things can be going great and you’re just running through fields of flowers and you make multiple beautiful buttonholes in a row, and then BAM – angst and drama and 284513 stitches in the same exact spot on your fabric. Luckily I triumphed over this one, but I’ve definitely had buttonhole drama in the past that didn’t turn out as well!
I read the Wardrobe Architect series on the Colette blog more than a year ago, and I never went through the process explicitly, but I’ve noticed since I read it that I’ve been thinking a lot about the colours I gravitate toward. I’m never going to be someone who has a minimal wardrobe, because I like too many different things and colours and prints, and I also don’t always gravitate toward colours that “work” together as a colour palette. I bring this up because in the past I always picked up mustard-coloured things in stores, and now I want to pick up mustard fabric, but then every time I tried the clothes on they just didn’t work on me and I didn’t actually like how they looked on me. I’m thinking that this rusty orange colour might be the twist on my strange mustard obsession that actually works on me and with my skin and hair and everything! I feel like I’ve unlocked the solution to divert my colour fixation into something that will actually work! I even used some of the leftover linen/cotton from the rusty jumpsuit I made recently to line the pockets on these pants, as well as the thread I had leftover from that project.
My next project finish will be an amazing jacket for my sister’s birthday, although I have to confess I’m currently suffering from snap anxiety. I’m worried about taking the plunge and poking holes in the anorak to install snaps – the point of no return! But I will get over it in the next few days, I’ll be methodical, and the finished product will be glorious. I’m really excited to show it to you all!
