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I think I love making little pants! The fabric I chose for these used to be a nice pair of J. Crew pants which I wore in my former (working) life. I re-worked the pattern quite a bit, especially the front pocket design and am much happier with it. These are a little bit short—maybe they will become capris for summer.
Thanks again, Meg. It was fun!
Yesterday was good to us! I finished these sweet pants after dinner while the kids were waiting (nagging) for me to come upstairs and watch a movie with them. The pattern is Favorite Things’ Little Smarty Pants which I bought ages ago here.
I can’t say this is the best pants pattern I’ve ever used (okay, I haven’t made a lot of pants) but I found them to be less than a perfect fit for Lauren’s shape. Through the butt and legs they are perfect but around her waist they were too big. They’re supposed to have a nice smooth waistband in the front, with elastic in the back—a design feature I love—but I ended up having to insert some elastic in the front waistband as well. I also found the construction and shape of the front pockets to be fussy. Ultimately we are happy with them; I am happy because she gladly wore them to school today. And she is happy because they are not only cute, but comfy as well. Lauren is not a lover of pants—fashion-wise—so I knew I would have to make them irresistibly cozy to entice her. I did this by lining them with some awesome stuff I got at Mill End last fall called cashmere cotton flannel. It’s unbelievably soft and drapey. Almost like a rayon—but it’s not, it’s cotton.
Anyhoo. I took a ton of notes about what I’ll change on this pattern and plan to cut today and sew another pair tomorrow. Until then…
One more thing. I think Meg has really hit it out of the park this time with all the incredible resources and helpful info she has provided/shared: amazing tutorials, pattern designers, and inspiring photos. Way to go, Meg!
The Kids Clothes Week Challenge starts today! I’m trying to keep my goals manageable: two pairs of pants and a skirt for Lauren. If time allows, I may squeeze in a lightweight jacket or hooded cape. I intended to trace and cut over the weekend, but spent yesterday working on my Tea Leaves (almost finished!) and making two of these for gifts. So, today will be tracing and cutting. Oh, and agonizing over fabric choices…
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Mother’s Day was awesome, by the way. The kids put these on my door:
Hilarious and sweet.
I spent all of last weekend learning how to use natural dyes. Mackenzie Frère (whose residency at MOCC begins this week) was an excellent instructor. The whole process was fascinating, particularly the stuff about pre- and post-mordanting. What a huge difference this makes in the variations of color you can get from one dye! We used logwood, madder, cochineal, marigolds, carrot tops and turmeric and ended up with about 30 different colors. I think the logwood and marigold were my favorite. I would love to see what combining those two would look like.
Books on my wish list now include: Wild Color, The Complete Guide to Natural Dyeing and The Handbook of Natural Plant Dyes. This summer, Kirk and I are going to transform the former laundry room in our basment into a really simple dye studio for me. Really exciting!
Full set of images here.
