I bought the fabric from Vogue Fabric during their visit to this year's American Sewing Expo. Fabric can be mesmerizing sometimes. I passed on this print the first time thinking it was hideous. But something kept drawing me back to it, so I caved and bought 2.5 yards. It is unlike anything I have in my wardrobe and not a print I would normally wear - especially not like this...
Sewing the jeans actually took about 5 hours at the most. The hardest part was trying to line up the pattern pieces to keep print semi-symmetric. One circle sits a bit higher on one leg, but you can't really tell. Well, actually you can, but whatever. =)
I tried really hard to maintain a vertical line down the outside seam. The end result isn't what I envisioned, but it's not bad either. I'm happy with it. There was just no way to keep it consistent with all the curvature in the side pattern piece.
I cut out two sets of pockets - one with circles and one without. I thought long and hard about putting the circles on my butt. In the end (hah!) I decided against it - I'm too old for all of that "attention."
In the pictures, I'm wearing the jeans with Kwik Sew 3558 (jacket) and McCall's 6078 (cowl-neck top). I'm thinking of making a cardigan or pullover out of a bright yellow ponte knit to wear with them.
The verdict: I
LOVE these jeans. I really do. I am a little nervous about wearing
them outside, though. I think they look like pajama pants. I'm sure I'll get over that eventually. In fact, I might wear this whole outfit skating tonight. I'll let you know how that goes!
L
Totally cool! Love them!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Debbie!
Deletei LOVE them!!! i hope you wear them out tonight...
ReplyDeleteAaah. The jeans are Oona-approved. Score!
DeleteAlllll right now! Love them.
ReplyDeleteThanks Faye!
DeleteNice jeans, and rock them proudly. I'm getting a 70s vibe from them ( and I mean that in a GOOD way). I'm getting and idea of a crazy print I have.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, the print does give off a hippie vibe. I'm liking it more and more. I'd love to see how you work your crazy print. Maybe we should have a crazy print sew along!
DeleteReally cute
ReplyDeleteThanks Serenity!
DeleteThey are beautifully made L! I love the fact that you took a chance, I'm doing the same thing on a project and am apprehensive. You just motivated me to finish.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree that they will look amazing with something bright on top!
That's great news! Your sewing has really taken off and I like looking at what you make. Finish that project, girly!
DeleteI love them, I would never have looked at that fabric and thought jeans.Great
ReplyDeleteThank you! I didn't think jeans either at first. While sewing them, I thought about the many pairs of crazy jeans Kenneth D. King has made. I think he would approve. =)
DeleteIt's worth it to have what you like and different!
ReplyDeleteThanks Dorothy! They are definitely different!
DeleteOoh la la - beautiful and very on trend. Love them.
ReplyDeleteThanks Beverly! Although I don't follow fashion trends much (i.e., at all), I did wonder if printed jeans were still 'in'. In or out, I'm wearing these anyway!
DeleteThese are wonderful!
ReplyDeleteVery cute! Love the whole outfit!
ReplyDeleteThanks Andrea. I'm digging it too!
DeleteWow! I would not have thought pants when seeing this fabric. Dang--they really look great!!
ReplyDeleteAww shucks. Thanks Linda! I'm pretty pleased with the final look.
DeleteI love the print and they look great on you! How long did it take you to get your jeans to fit so nice? I'm on my second try and hoping to figure out my fitting problems.
ReplyDeleteThanks Sherry!
DeleteI first attempted making jeans in 2010 as part of Jennifer Sterns' jeans class on PR. I made five muslins, but was extremely disappointed because the fit was HORRIBLE. I got tired of doing the muslins and just decided to go for it - fit be damned! I put the project aside for a few weeks and started over from scratch.
I cut the size according to my full hip measurement (can't remember what that is and it's not marked on my pattern pieces); added a 0.5-inch wedge at the CB, tapering to nothing at the side seam; added a 0.5-inch wedge at the CF, again tapering to nothing at the side seam; and added an extra 5/8" to the side seams for fit insurance. I ended up not needing the extra width on the sides. The fit could still be improved, but not enough for me to re-work the whole pattern again. I definitely see that I need a full inner thigh adjustment, but I'm not going to bother with it now.
What fitting problems do you have?
These jeans are really fantastic - really fun print, adds definition to your bottom half, and the tailored jacket makes them look really smart. Love them.
ReplyDeleteThanks Sarah! You served as part of the inspiration for these jeans. When I first saw the fabric, I didn't think of jeans. But then I remembered the pants you made this summer out of a blue and white pattern and thought about how cute those looked.
DeleteLove, love, love the fabric. And you are rockin' those jeans. Great outfit!
ReplyDeleteThanks PugMom!
DeleteWowzer.. you did an awesome job and they fit you to a tee. Great job. Thanks for checking in on me.
ReplyDeleteThese jeans are awesome!
ReplyDeleteThese jeans look fantastic! I hope you wore them out last night.
ReplyDeleteThese are awesome! I love how you've used the print!
ReplyDeleteThese look so fun to wear. Great job.
ReplyDeleteSuper cute! Great use of the print!
ReplyDeleteThat fabric is everything!! Great jeans!
ReplyDeleteLOVE THEM!!!
ReplyDeleteI love these! I wore print jeans the first time around, but have been avoiding them this time. You managed to take the trend and not look like an 80's throwback.
ReplyDelete