Well, y'all, today went better than yesterday's horrific pant ordeal. This rainy afternoon I managed to make the size 14. This time I used the cotton sateen that will be my final pair of pants (I bought twice as much as I needed so I could make a muslin in my actual fashion fabric.) The fit was much better, in that I could get the pants around my body:
Working with this stretch cotton sateen was a LOT easier to work with than the stiff twill stretch icky stuff I used yesterday:
It was soft, and much easier to pin. Just like yesterday, I sewed my outside seams so the allowances were on the outside, for future fitting purposes.
These photos don't really show the true greeness of this fabric - they are a little washed out and make the fabric look a little minty instead.
Here's a shot with flash:
I'm no expert on fitting pants, but I suspect I need a little extra room in the high hip, a little less fabric in the front rise, and a little extra in the back rise. But I don't know - it's hard for me to tell without a waistband attached.
I timed myself this go around, and from the time I sat down and sewed my first stitch on this muslin until I finished the zipper was one hour and sixteen minutes. Now, I didn't finish seam allowances, or do the waistband, or hem, but still: these pants are a quick make. One thing I did do that I didn't do yesterday, I edgestitched and topstitched the front pockets to see if I like it. Verdict: I like the edgestitching but the topstitching, not so much.
Here's a photo that shows more of the true green!
I pray this gives Gertie something to work with while fitting this coming weekend. I'm hoping these pants become my sloper for any pants in the future!
