Sew Chaotically! - The Tale of the $10.00 pants - B5895

Sooooo (or perhaps...sewwwwww!)....this has been a chaotic experiment!!!  This pattern got good reviews and I was in need of some slim pants that would not be mistaken for leggings and thought perhaps these would fit the bill.

Never having made pants before, I didn't want to ruin expensive material, but didn't have anything that I could really practice with in my possession.  I found some "bottom weight" stretch cottons at  LowPriceFabric.com priced at $5.00 a yard.  Okay!  2 yards please!  Here's the first attempt:

I think the bootie fit turned out pretty well.  I usually make a 10 or 12 in the Big 4 patterns, but after reading up and measuring carefully, went with the 10, adding about 8 inches to the leg length, obviously.  I had to take a good bit off the side seams at lower hip...but that was not big deal. The waist band was a bit of a disaster.  First, the material spazzed completely out when I tried to use iron on interfacing.  (Should have cut another right there...but I moved on.) Second, the pockets are super cute on the pattern and part of why I liked it.  They were easy to make and seemed to fit together very well.  But, once the front pant was sewn to the back...they wadded up very strangely...pulling the entire front of the pant into weird folds.  Not sure if I did something wrong or if this fabric...which was a bit more flimsy and thinner than expected....stretched out too much in the sewing process.  Anyhow, solved this by cutting the pockets out...so the appearance remains...but there is no actual pocket.  Third, the straight, long, rectangle of a waistband, that you simply fold over in the middle, stood straight up around my waist!!!  So...I wrangled it into submission by making very awkward darts at each side seam.  It works.  I will wear them, despite the fact that they require ironing after washing!!  Weird for a stretch cotton in my opinion.  I've even gotten complements on them...but...hmmmm.....

We begin again....  Still with $5.00 a yard fabric from the same source....but this was a thicker...verging toward a soft, stretch denim, with a pin stripe.  Given the prior pocket adventure, especially in the presence of the stripe, I omitted them entirely here.  So, no problems there....although I think the "with the pocket" look is much cuter.  I took up the sides along the hips when cutting...so that worked out.  I fixed the waist band by making my own "contoured waistband" per this amazingly easy (once I wrapped my spatial relation lacking brain around it!!) and awesome tutorial:  A Fashionable Stitch - How to create a contoured waistband  I'll be using that pattern piece on other things!! Bootie still good.  Think there may be a bit too much fabric in the crotch.  But...a girl does have to be able to sit!  Still thinking about it.  I'll probably take it up a bit on the next pair!

So...one more time we sew!!! While wearing my Alder shirtdress with ruffle! styled to accommodate the cooler weather!! Perhaps it will bring me luck!!!

While both these pants are ok and will be worn - please...please...please...a little better outcome this go round????  I mean, this is a stretch corduroy that went for $6.00 a yard!!!  Going for the pockets and the whole she bang this time!!  Hee hee!  Lord knows, I Sew Chaotically!!! -  c