Monday, June 1, 2009

Corduroy pants for ME!

It took eight attempts to get a photo of me that I didn't really really hate. These pants are very comfy, very warm, but they don't help at all to disguise the extra 10kg I'm still carting around, mostly on butt and thighs! Normally I never EVER wear my top tucked in, but I did it to show the pants better.


They're stretch corduroy with dark brown backing and beige nap, which is an interesting look. The pattern is from BWOF 04/07, #120. I made a 42, but added to the side seams to make it more like a 44. With the stretch I could have left off the extra, and if and when I lose some pounds, I'll take them in.

I also made them nice and long, just in case they shrink in the wash, even though I pre-shrunk the fabric before I began.

I got the idea of making a menswear style waistband after tossing my son's school pants in the wash - makes alterations much easier! From the outside it looks like this:

From the inside it looks like this:

All I did was attatch the waistband before finishing the CB seam. I bound the seam allowances and slipstitched them to the waistband facing. This way it's a lot easier to alter the pants later. If I want to just take a smidge off the waistband it's really easy, and if I want to take the side seams in I only have to unpick the waistband back to that point, and then re-attach it after adjusting the seams. Not as much of a headache as removing the entire waistband.
I'm definitely going to make these again, but with a few minor changes to make them more flattering on me.


4 comments:

  1. Your pants look great! That's a great idea with the waistband finish - I made a Simplicity threads pattern which did the same thing, and so practical with corduroy which can stretch out a lot after sewing.

    I'm sure you'll get lots of snuggly winter wear out of them.

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  2. Nice finish on the seams and waistband.

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  3. Brilliant idea for the waistband finish! Is that purchased bias binding used to finish the seam edges? I think they look good!

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  4. Nice! I love corduroy too, but with my flabby inner thighs you can hear me coming a mile away *swish swish swish*. Great idea on the CB seam finish, I'm going to try that on my next pants making adventure

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