Sister Sew-along

What could be more fun than a sister sew-along to make the Papercut Patterns Pleated Pants.  Oh, I do love a bit of alliteration!

Pattern:  Pleated Pant by Papercut Patterns

Fabric:  We had each, independently, bought the same denim fabric from The Fabric Store on separate trips to Brisbane.  It has very little stretch.  It is rather stiff, but I am hoping that it will soften after a few washes.

The Process:

There were toiles.

Dare I say, I wouldn't make this pattern without them.  The sizing of this pattern is off.  I made the S (and I am not generally regarded as small) and Bernice made the M.  We were between sizes on the size chart and both started with the smaller one, and then took them in heaps at the sides.  The pattern model does look small, and her shorts are much closer fitting than ours, so I can only imagine that her pattern was specially drafted, as the pattern only goes down to XXS, and I would have ended up smaller than that.

I pleated my pleats the other way, but Bernice left hers as per the pattern.

We both reduced the height of the shorts.  I removed width from the waistband (at least an inch or maybe more), whilst she removed length from the top of the front and back pieces.

Whilst I got the length and width of the toile right, I must confess that I am not happy with the fit at the back.  When I first took in the shorts at the side I was happy, but then I took them in some more to allow for give during wear, and I ended up with pull lines from the buttocks to the inner leg that I could not make go away.  I got a little impatient and steamed on ahead, so  I will have to toile this again for next time. 

The instructions with the pattern were okay, but the methods weren't my favourite.  The fly instructions result in a zip that is very close to the overlap.  Many RTW jeans are like this, but I prefer a bit more room for error myself.  I also like to attach the waistband before sewing the side seams, so that I can adjust the fit a little for each fabric.  I bound the bottom edge of the waistband facing, rather than turn it in.

Lately, I have modified the way I sew the waistband facing to the waistband, so that I don't have a seam at the CF.  Again, this is just to allow me room for error.  I can sew the waistband so that the facing doesn't peek out, but it does require neat sewing and allowance for turn of cloth, so why not engineer this stress away?

There was a hasty photo shoot before Bernice and her family hopped in the car for the long drive home.

So, 2 cute, sturdy pairs of shorts (and in keeping with my 'list') that should only improve with wear.  Perfect for summer.  I do recommend this pattern, just with a suggestion to toile first.

PS See her post here.