Well almost skinny...
Tissue fitting first ...
What I learned:
Wow, leg length is great! For 5"2', it's spot on!
Oh no, the waistband hits my sternum. Will adjust for that.
The pattern info:
MISSES’ TUNIC AND PANTS: Loose-fitting tunic with extended shoulders, front and back pleats, side gathered bands and shaped hem band, topstitched trim. Pants have side front slant pockets, upper inside pocket (that there is no picture of, but I'll show you later), contour yoke with back tab, invisible zipper closing and topstitched trim, above ankle length.
Side note: This is almost exactly what I want in a pant pattern! Initially I planned for this pair to be my muslin. I used fashion fabric that I purchased many years ago, but the weight and stretch is similar to the fashion fabric that I planned to use on my final sample.
NOTIONS: Pants: 7"/9" Invisible Zipper, Hooks and Eyes.
FABRICS: Tunic: Charmeuse and Crepe de Chine. Pants: Stretch Linen and Stretch Crepe. The stretch is very important in the comfort & fit!
Combinations: BB(8-10-12-14), FF(16-18-20-22)
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes! But I was really worried about it, especially after I finished the penny pocket!
Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes they were! And believe me, I read them 2x before cutting, and then again during the process. While making the pockets, I was challenged to visualize how it would fit together, but if you follow the instructions, step-by-step they will turn out nicely!
What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?. I loved the skinniness and the side zip! Front fly trousers send me into a sewing sabbatical faster than.... But I'm working on that.
Fabric Used: Brown black poly stretch with a slate blue pinstripe, with a hint of midnight. It's really nice, probably from Fabric Warehouse before they moved.
Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: The only alteration was to shorten the rise by 1.75 inches! I know! That's a lot, it was risky, but I wanted a modern/trendy waistline. Glad I did! Fortunately, that matched up well. I didn't do much topstitching, wanted to keep the look clean.
Oh yea, after thinking about the unique midnight pinstripe I decided to add a design element to complement the color. I switched the back facing piece to a dark blue linen.
The back tab thingie is a disaster if you already have issues with the back waistband sticking out. On my next muslin I will delete that!
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? Yes, I'm working on a purely test muslin to correct some fitting issues and then I'll do it again on my fashion fabric. On my next muslin sample I'll show more step-by-step details.
Conclusion: Almost love. Will wear with Spanx! LOL!!!!
Changes on the next pair: delete the back tab, slim the legs down a bit, crop the leg a bit, add cool pocket lining, adjust for the FFT (full front thigh, how embarrassing!).
Oh, the top? I made it a couple years ago! It's an RTW copy/modification.
Thanks for reading, really!
