Pattern Fantastique Terra variation

OK, I’m feeling playful. And adventurous. I love the fit on the Terra pants, waist, hips, backside, frontside – so I decided to make a version with straight legs v.s. the pattern’s curved outseam.

Cute, right?

This should have been a ‘no-brainer’, but of course I had to delve deeply into the draft of the legs. I started by dropping the side seams straight down from the bottom of the pocket, and I ended up with voluminous legs. Hmmm. Slept on that, and this afternoon pulled out Butterick 5504, a great capri pattern, and used its dimensions as a guide.

I’m glad for more than just the measurements, because I’m thinking I need to make these pants again. I last sewed this pattern years ago. And I have some lovely black stretch bengaline that would be perfect.

In the end, my draft was pretty simple. Based on B5504, I dropped the outseam below the pocket for a final leg width of 24.5″ at the bottom. I made no changes to the inseam or elsewhere.

Fabric: Kaufman yarn-dyed Essex in black, Fabric.com

How is everyone doing? I’m grateful for a hobby and lifestyle that are not hugely impacted by all the restrictions in place. But I will admit I don’t sleep very well, I am concerned for my family, who are not so easily isolated, and of course I cut my hair.

Warm thoughts to all, Coco

Pattern Fantastique Terra Pants

It’s Terra time! I haven’t sewn these cute pants in 4 years, mostly because I needed to reprint, tape, and draft the pattern in a smaller size.

I also wanted to spend a lot of time working with changes and adjustments based on my notes from the first go-round.

Sewing notes:

• I sewed size 8 – my previous versions were size 12 and were always too large.

• I removed/flattened the jutting pocket edge, and I narrowed the side seam. The latter diminishes the cocoon aspect of the pants just a bit.

• I completely reworked the fly/zipper area. The pattern has only 3/8″ seam allowances and uses a sewn-on fly extension. As a result, the zipper is bulky and poorly covered. My change was really fairly simple: I drafted the center front and crotch seam with 5/8″ SA’s and added a cut-on fly extension. The final touch is a shaped fly shield.

Fabric: Kaufman Essex linen in eggplant, Fabric.com

• The pattern has 3 back pocket options, single welt, double welt, and patch. I seldom put a back pocket on pants, but these are really nice (check out those neat double carriers at center back, also part of the pattern).

More pics!

So I’ve fallen in love with these funky Terras once again 🙂 Bye for now – Coco

Terra Pants – Fantastique!

Okay, I love these Terra Pants from Pattern Fantastique!

I think that, every once in a while, one hits on a pattern that just works – it feels right, looks right, is interesting, unique, and fun to sew. I’ve had such a good time the past 3 days, sewing this funky muslin of the Terra Pants.

It was hard to find any pics of these pants. I found a couple that weren’t very telling, so I decided to just give it a go and hope I didn’t end up looking bow-legged and drowned.

Actually, they’re really cute, extremely comfortable, and, yes, a little bow-legged.  They also fit incredibly well! I love the narrow look at the waist that is accentuated by the fuller cut going down. And I think the cropped length provides a perfect balance.

It’s so hard to see any details with all these dots, but here are a couple closer looks at the waist area. A nice wide waistband, chunky belt loops (a narrow loop pattern is included as well), and an open pleat on each side…

The slant pockets are structured, bagged, and sewn like those on a man’s trouser – I think they’re lovely and by far the nicest draft I’ve ever sewn.

A couple sewing notes:

• I sewed the size 12. Nita-Jane and Ben, the designers/pattern makers, advise a smaller size to lift the waist and achieve a slimmer look. And a larger one for a more relaxed look, with a slouchy dropped front waistline.

• I split the waistband at the center back (as on a trouser) and sewed the center back seam last, after attaching the waistband. This is a great way to keep the door open for backside and waist adjustments. 

Center back just prior to closing it up.

• I had to redo the zipper insertion completely. The seam allowance in the crotch is only 1cm, and the instructions just can’t don’t set the zipper back far enough to hide it. Being a good sport, I first sewed the zipper using the instructions…then took it out, added width to the seam with a folded band, and redid the insertion. Ah. Won’t do that again – I’ll be using a 5/8″ allowance for both the back and front crotch seams in the future.

  If you need help with the zipper – Jen, at Grainline Studio, has a great tutorial as part of her Maritime Shorts sew-along. Note: please increase your crotch seam allowance to 5/8″ before you cut your fabric!

• And I used a hook-and-bar closure at the waist, instead of a button. Buttons under a belt buckle make me nutsy.

• The instructions. The drawings are great and the text is awful 🙂 If you have experience sewing trousers, you won’t have any problems. If not, prepare to read carefully and perhaps back up your understanding with a google for more info. 

A view of the back, which has single darts and a nice fit. I opted out of the back pockets for this muslin, but the pattern comes with both patch and welt pocket patterns…and even directions for either a single- or a double-seamed welt!

Well, these are my new spring/summer pants! I’ve already ordered two print denim fabrics, and I also have a solid marigold twill that will make a ‘dressier’ look. I plan to crop this Salme Pleated Tee shirt (I’m not fond of fussing around with tucking in a shirt) and also make a couple cropped Pattern Fantastique Aeolian Tees to go with…

Ciao! Coco

Aeolian Tee – and more Laguna blue…

Before I get into the Laguna blue tee (I’m doing my best to use up this fabric), I’ll share a pic from the wedding, walking in with my son… The photographer has sent a few teaser photos to Ashley, but it’s only been a few days. This was taken by a guest.

I’m planning a post on my dress once I get more pics.

Inspiration – Anna at Blogless Anna and Lara at Thornberry have sewn some absolutely delightful versions of this tee! Theirs are beautiful prints, both knits and wovens. I’ve been really anxious to give this a go, but have been consumed by MOB dress stuff. Ah. It did feel good to tape 32 pages of paper together last night and sew up a muslin this morning 🙂

Fabric: Emerald Robert Kaufman Laguna stretch jersey from Craftsy

The pattern is very simple. Boxy, with straight sides, wide raglan sleeves, and deep hems. Nice, and a very quick sew. Check out all the lengths!

There are some mysteries here. Like the size ranges:

S = 6 – 10   (10 bust is 35.5″/91cm)
M = 6 – 14  (14 bust is 37 5/6″/101cm)
L = 10 – 18

Finished bust measurements aren’t given, but it’s pretty easy to get them from the tissue. I sewed the short tee in size Medium – the finished bust measurement is 45.5″. That’s a lot of ease for me, knit or woven, but I went with the ‘boxy’ definition.

The length of the garment is given but it’s from the highest point of the shoulder, ‘HPS’, where the shoulder and neck join. For the short tee in Medium, it’s about 25″/63cm. For the traditionalists among us, I measured the finished length from the back neck edge, came in at 24″/61cm.

I love the deep hems on this tee and will borrow the technique on future makes. I decided to use a decorative topstitch just to break up some of this bluuuue. I serged the hem edge first, and topstitched right on top of the serging from the right side. 

Sewing Notes:

– I left off the back facing. Cannot figure a purpose for this, and it adds bulk to the back sleeve and neck seams.

– And did not use iron-on interfacing on the neckline. More bulk. I stay-stitched the neckline edges just inside the seam line.

– I used a neckline binding rather than a neckband. Just personal preference, because the inside stitching on neckbands irritates my skin.

Well, not much of this fabric left. This muslin is now in my PJ drawer, it really is nice and soft. The pattern? hmmm. I also have the Patterns for Pirates Raglan pattern – I have a suspicion it’s really similar! Something is drawing me to these patterns, so I’ll give this some think time and go through my stash for some fun fabrics to try.

Ciao! Coco