one pattern, three pants, the last one.

 

I thought I needed some pants to go to London. Turned out I didn't, but this is another story!

As you know, I sew from my stash. I didn't really have a lot of fabric left for winter, so I went for some plaid. 

The pattern is the same that of my Chanel pants. But this time I didn't make any alteration to the original.

my original sailor's pants

Same length, same back welted pocket, 

welted pocket

same sailor's pants look.

plaid sailor's pants

It's really interesting to use the same pattern with different fabrics. The green fabric is rather sturdy, so the pants really have a sharp clean look. But that plaid one is different. It's all synthetic so I had to line it to be able to wear my pants in cold weather. The feeling is different, the legs don't behave the same way as in the green one. They don't fall straight, I think I'll have to iron them strongly.

underlining

I used a new technique for me: underlining. Basically, you cut your pattern two times, first in your fashion fabric, second in lining and then you work with the two fabrics are if they were one. I think this is a fast method of sewing, but I don't really fancy the result. It is clean but it's not as nice a when you line a garment. I like when the stitching is hidden.

But I was in a hurry, so I chose to underline. You could say that if I was in a hurry I shouldn't have chosen a plaid fabric :-)

aligning stripes

I don't know what's with me and sewing in a hurry, but it's clearly not a good mix!

I managed to line correctly the fabric, and then I realised that maybe I had cut the fabric in the wrong way...

Can you see the black stripe? Should I have put it, because it's strong, horizontally?? I am baffled. I have found explanations on how to cut and align plaid all the way trough the pattern, but no explanation on how to make it look nice!

Look at the side:

 

Horizontally it matches, but clearly something is off. Look at the hip, see how the black stripe finishes its course in the stitching line in a strange way? I makes me wonder...

I think it stresses that when dealing with plaid, you should really have a lot of fabric to be able to play with it and find a appealing way of aligning all this mess.

BUT, all plaids are different right? So,  maybe the smaller the pattern, the smaller the plaid we should use, don't you think? 

Maybe this was my problem, the plaid print was a bit to big. But, I don't really mind too much. You got to love your stuff right? Especially when you make it. I mean, it's comfortable, it's original, I like them. 

Oh, look:

Fancy buttons! Can I say it again? I love my stash!! Gold and blue, it adds a fancy note to the pants, and I'm always happy to know that I wear something that comes from my dear island.

Well, winter related post are almost over. Next my coat and then it's going to be all fun colours and no more plaid!!

one pattern, 3 pants

This month I attended a baptism in London. My idea was to make a pair of pants for the event, knowing that the weather could be cold, maybe too cold to wear a dress. I really don't like being cold!

This is what I made. The fabric is a wool bouclette. At first I thought I would make a coat out of it. But, hey, I can change my mind no? It is really soft, I mean it feels like I am in my pyjamas, elegant pyjamas!

Maybe I should have stuck to my first idea because the fabric is a bit heavy. I have worn it a few time already, but not an entire day's work. Will see if it holds itself  when I 'll go back to work.

Contrary to normal I reused a pattern. I almost never do that.

Excuse the poor quality of the pictures, I took them in a hurry for the blog. Those pants are my favourite. The colour is really bold, a very nice green, and the fabric doesn't winkle or poach at the knees. They are sailor's pants.

sailor's pants

Hum, sailor's pants, it could be the subject of another post. But today I am talking about my beige pants, stay focused Kate!

 

As you can see I changed the front of the pants. No more sailing stuff, just a plain front with no darts (I know I said I would stop this non sense, and I have! I just made the pants before this life changing decision).

Instead I opted for pockets.

In my mind, I was making Chanel pants. The fabric, the colour. I screamed Chanel to me.

There are four pockets. The ones on the front are bigger then those on the back. I had problems figuring out the size of the front pockets. And the placement was not easy either.

I fixed them by hand. I didn't want any top stitching.  These are not sportswear.

Ha, the buttons. Gold seamed to be a good idea. But what golden buttons? I made a first selection from my personal collection :-)

I finally picked some elegant black and gold buttons. I think they are maybe a tiny bit small. I might try and find them in a bigger size this summer. The shop where I buy them has really a huge stock, I might be lucky!

After trying them on, I decided I needed a lining. I know, bad idea to decide that after finishing the last details... But I think it is quite compulsory with this kind of fabric. The weaving is so loose, I am sure that after only one hour of wearing them, the pants would have looked terrible.

And the lining is so comfortable, I smile of pleasure each time I put on the pants, it's divine!!

I added some bias to fancy up the inside. The bias is hand sewed to the waist band on the side where you can see it. Same for the hem.

bias at the hem

This is what I really like about home sewing. I can make myself fancy outfits I would never be able to buy, or maybe just one every once in a while. But never enough to make an entire wardrobe.

And also, I don't know if you have this problem, but in Brittany the weather can be cold in Winter, and our Summers are not the most warm either. But it is really hard to find wool clothes, or pants with a lining at moderate prices. It is sometimes hard to find sweater with sleeves, I am not kidding !

Here in Germany you can buy all sorts of gear for winter. I have to say it's really nice, but I am not staying in Germany, so a round of applause for home sewing and the ability to make clothes that fits us and the weather we leave in!

The pants were fast to make, just long straight seams. But I didn't wear them to the baptism.

Why? They look so good!

Instead I chose to wear my purple dress. Just because.

I thought it would be better for the trip to have pants who resist a long day of walking and who can be worn with flat shoes. Witch is not the case of my beige pants. The hem is for high hells.

That's all there is to say I think. I might call them my Chanel pants. They may not be worn again before Autumn, it seems that spring is already here this year. No complaints from me.

I have two winter related outfits to show you and I am of to spring sewing! Glorious dresses! I can't wait for it !

DIY: a fake bow

Bonjour tout le monde !

Today I have decided to share with you a little tutorial on how to add a cute bow to your garment.

I have a trip planned ahead, and of course I need new clothes. I had a nice stretch wool in my stash and some viscose. Those fabrics are comfortable and make a nice ensemble for a diner out after a day visiting.

    

Actually the pants are a copy of an old favourite from ZARA. I was able to find almost the same fabric, but in another colour of course!

For the pictures I wore heels, but until I get back to work I will wear my pants with flats more probably, it's why the pants appear a bit too short in the pictures. Didn't realise that before...

Man, the weather was really crappy for taking pictures, sorry!

Let's get to the bow now:

This is a nice feature, romantic and most important: it's fun to make!

I also made bows on my sleeves, so cute!

See why I call them fake bows? It's technically a dart.

As usual you need to take your basic pattern.

For my top I decided to move the bust dart to the side. For that, trace on your pattern the new bust dart (in red). Close the "old" dart  by folding the line on top of one another and pin them in place.

Then slash the new dart.

Draw your bow, slash those darts open. Then the tricky part: you have to decide the depf of your darts, mine are 4 cm wide. It's just a question of taste, there is no way of knowing how many centimetres you need. You can play around with you fabric to estimate the final look of you bow.

When you have decided of the size of your darts take a piece of paper to tape under to maintain your darts in position, like below.

 

This is my final paper pattern. I used a ruler to  show you that your center front should be placed en the fold. Mark precisely your darts and then stitch the sort of V created buy the creation of your darts. Do you follow?

Then to create the illusion of a bow, take a small piece of fabric that you have prepared before ( fold it in 2, stitch the big side, turn it around). Then place it in the crease of one of the darts (above). Fold your dart, stitch it (blue line). Repeat on your second dart.

 

 Then you should stitch buy and on three centimetres your darts so that you bust dart isn’t too low. It happened to me, I was quite surprised because I thought my pattern was perfect.

 

There you go, you should have a nice and fake bow!!

Picture of the inside because I know you love it, I know I do.

 I used self made bias to finish the collar and sleeves. Stitched the first side with my machine and the second by hand so that it would be invisible.

The rest of the seams are French seams because the fabric is rather light, and I find it give a nice finish.

Oh and look, it even goes with my Chanel jacket that I made a few months ago, isn't it perfect? what you don't see my top, well yeah! It's the point, it goes perfectly with it's neck line.

This is what is really cool when you are drawn to certain colour, you find yourself having a real wardrobe with pieces that go well together (or a least I hope they go well together :-)).

That's all for today. See you in few weeks, when I get back from my trip.

Cheers!

Phase one : the pants

Dear all, there is a first time for everything, so, for the first time ever, my pants on the internet !

They are straight, more classic you die ! The fabric is a nice piece of wool that holds really well. I have know been wearing those for a couple of hours, and they don't stretch or do anything unexpected, which is nice !