Friday 19 March 2010

Trousers

I complain a lot about trousers. I was strongly tempted to just not post about these, but I am trying to keep an honest sewing journal.
SAM_0245
I was thrilled with this pattern, BWOF 4-2009-118 in the first incantation. I made trouser jeans, and I like them very much. They fit nicely. I know this despite not having worn them since last August because I tried them on this morning after the photographs of the current version. Of course I had to alter the original pattern.
This pair is made from a twill fabric, I think it is cashmere cotton from Michael's fabrics. It reminds me of proper moleskin jackaroo trouser fabric (R.M.Williams gear is very popular in rural QLD). It is quite a heavy fabric, and I found the trousers had less give than the denim pair. Despite this, I had to take them in at the side seams below the high hip, as there was too much room across the backside.
SAM_0249Unfortunately, now the crotch is not quite long enough. I have altered the side seams several times, but cannot quite manage a happy medium between bubble butt and wedgie.
SAM_0246
Scooping out the crutch did not help much, and there is no wriggle room at the waistband seam.
My daughter assures me that the photographs make this backside problem appear worse than it is in real life. Despite this kind comment I do not plan to wear these trousers unless I lose 5kg.
Overall this is a disappointing outcome, as the previous pocket disaster responded very well to Joy and Trena's suggestion to add a flap. I have kept the zipper underneath, as I was rather pleased with it. All the apparent backside width remaining, is, alas, genuine, and no longer a visual illusion.
I am having trouble starting to sew the next pair. Trousers are bad for my mojo.

9 comments:

Mary Nanna said...

I think they're looking good. I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if the twill stretched out through the back - despite its tight weave it may surprise you with how much it ends up giving. That would be nice, wouldn't it?

At any rate it seems a pretty good fit overall. I love the leg shape and pocket flap.

velosews said...

Can I suggest loosen the back waist band. I've done this in RTW trousers to overcome wedgies - whether visible or not. This isn't a guaranteed cure.

Anonymous said...

I think the pants look great. In fact, my first thought when looking at the photos was that you've lost weight.
Personally I prefer the look of slight butt definition in pants as opposed to the uni-butt look. Perhaps you could try taking out the extra hip width at the CB seam instead of the sideseams, which would also increase the crotch length/body space.

Carol said...

I think they look pretty good. The fit is excellent and the style is nice. You're being too hard on yourself. I like them

Anonymous said...

Karen, if you have any room, let out the back crutch extensions. Ie, make the crutch longer in the back, also gives slightly more room at the back thigh. And try scooping the back crutch curve more. I think these are very nice and you don't need much room to make them more comfortable.

KID, MD said...

I agree with all the above - the fit looks pretty good! Although I've always said that if you don't feel fabulous in them, it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks. I was also thinking that you might be more comfortable if you have some room to let out the waist band in the back.

Joy said...

I, too, think the fit is pretty good. I find that the more my sewing skills improve, the worse my clothes fit (: But if you get a chance to do some people watching at a mall or at church (ahem), you realize that most people's clothes don't fit well.

SewRuthie said...

They are not too bad, and you are being a bit hard on yourself. Some of these things are more noticable on light fabrics and in photos. If you let the centre back waistband out slightly, the back waist would sit slightly lower which might just give a bit more room.

Tammy said...

Unless you had put twill tape on the curve or otherwise stabilized that seam, I bet they will stretch if you give them a chance. Try wearing them around the house for a few hours and see what happens.