Just over a year into sewing my own clothes, I decided to tackle a garment that I’m sure we all have a love/hate relationship with – the perfect pair of jeans. I’ve always struggled with the fit of ready to wear jeans and was excited at the prospect of getting to make a pair that would be perfectly tailored to my body.
I’d seen a lot of posts on my feed about the Closet Core Patterns Ginger Jeans, which are a stretch jeans pattern for those who haven’t come across it previously, so decided to give them a whirl. Unfortunately, my fabric choices left a lot to be desired, as I purchased some light blue denim from Spotlight that definitely did NOT have enough stretch content in hindsight. This led to myriad fitting issues and while the end pair did fit I could see a mansion full of room for improvement.
Fast forward almost exactly twelve months, and I’ve pulled that pattern back out to give it another go. First of all, I strongly recommend remaking patterns after some time has lapsed – it’s such a great way to shine a light on how far you’ve progressed as a sewist in that time.
I purchased some cream stretch twill from @cassandrev.handmade via her Instagram destash last year with Gingers in mind, and held onto it until I felt ready. I will note that I have sized right down from a 6 to a 2, grading to a 0 at the waist for this iteration due to a combination of previous incorrect measurements and a drop in size across the board. This drop also took into account the fact that this time the fabric has the right amount of stretch!
I also frankenpatterned the rise of the Megan Neilsen Dawn Jeans onto the Ginger pattern until I got the high waist I wanted, and lifted the waistband from the Dawn pattern too as it is slightly curved (we have previously learned that straight waistbands and I are not a good match). I also amended the length of the leg, which got a 10cm chop. In hindsight that was potentially a touch overzealous as they’ve ended up slightly cropped, but hey, apparently it’s in fashion and I’m just on trend for once in my life!
The final amendment I made was to the waistband at the completion of construction – despite making multiple pairs of pants, I have yet to accept that I require a sway back adjustment on any bottoms I make. So, given this fact and my denial, despite the waistband measuring in perfectly, it sat a bit loose once attached. I’d already topstitched the yoke down and didn’t have enough thread to unpick and go over it again (COVID-19 lockdown strikes again), so I used my gal @melt.stitches’ hack to insert elastic into waistbands that are a little too big, and it worked a treat!
I haven’t put hardware onto these jeans as I didn’t have any on hand but I am contemplating ordering some to finish it off.
Comparing these jeans to my first pair has me in awe at how far my skills have progressed in the time that I have been sewing. It really is a great way to stop and reflect on your sewing practice and future intentions – I know I want more construction experiences like this one, where I am confident and delighted with the end result, and I also know I am on the right track for that to happen.
Now taking bets on how long til I spill coffee or something orange on these.
Sarah Eloise Sews 