Minerva Bloggers Network - Trousers - 1, Waistcoat - 0

As you've probably worked out from the title, for this month's Minerva Blogger Network Project, I had some success and some failure. I decided on a waistcoat and trouser outfit, inspired by this photo of David Bowie, circa 1976:

David Bowie during his Thin White Duke phase, 1976

I started with the trousers, which were copied from an old pair I already had. I purchased these Claudie Pierlot trousers over 10 years ago, and rediscovered them recently when I was having a big wardrobe clearout:

It's hard to see details in the photos (so hard to photograph black!), but they're flat fronted, mid rise, wide legged trousers with a curved waistband. There are pockets in the side seams, as well as one on the left back. There are also little details like this overlapped waistband closure:

The trousers themselves are a bit worn out, with the fabric a bit shiny in places. They're also a bit tight around my backside. So unlike my previous Libertine coat copy, I had no qualms with picking these trousers apart and using them as my pattern, which you'll see below:

The unpicked trousers - from top: pocket pieces, left and right waistband,trousers front and back

This bit was relatively easy - I just added 5/8"/1.5 cm to each seam as well as an extra 1/4"/5 mm to the centre back, then cut the pieces out. I copied the dart from the back onto my new pieces, and stuck with the 2 1/2" hem from the original. I used a cotton sateen with 3% spandex from Minerva which was just perfect for the occasion - it irons well and doesn't fray too much.

These trousers were a great learning experience for me because it's the first time I've used an overlocker to finish seams on a tailored garment, as you can see below:

It all felt a bit upside down to me - I had to overlock many of the pieces before constructing the garment, and so had to re-think the order in which I would normally work. But on the whole I'm happy with the way it worked out. And I'm actually starting to really enjoy using the overlocker; the straight stitch machine feels so slow in comparison!

Here's the finished product:

I changed the original welt pocket on the back to a false pocket flap:

And without focusing on my bottom for too long, I think the combination of the stretch fabric and the extra seam allowance on the back seam has resulted in a pretty good fit!

And I love the width of the leg, as well as the side seam pockets:

Side seam pockets

One thing I added that's not in the original pair of trousers was a half lining to the back pieces. I always think this helps prolong the life of the garment, and prevent bagging in the seat area.

Inside view of the half lining

So where's the waistcoat? Well, that was a total fail. Instead of resembling the Thin White Duke, I looked more like this:

Wendy Jans, professional snooker player

Incidentally, if you Google 'female snooker players' you get a stupid amount of shots of women leaning over snooker tables showing acres of cleavage. This was virtually the only one where the subject was covered up.

I used this pattern, graded up to my measurements:

McCall's 9722, circa 1954

I thought this was the right amount of tailoring, but with enough feminine fit not to look too 'Annie Hall'. But I messed around with the fit for days, and eventually gave up. This is the only picture I took:

As you can see, it's not fitted enough through the bust and waist. The back piece and the arms/shoulders are fine, but I just got bored with it. I've redrafted the pattern, and I think I have just enough fabric left to make another one, so watch this space. I will not let it defeat me!

See you soon!

Minerva Bloggers Network - Manly Trousers

Whew! It's already time for my 4th Minerva project - that went fast! This time I decided to tackle trousers. I love wide, tailored 1940's-style trousers with a masculine look. View C from this Vogue pattern fit the bill:

Vogue 8836

I used a light weight navy suiting, with some matching navy poly lining and came up with this:

 

These are possibly the widest trousers I've ever worn - you have to be careful not to get tangled up in them when you walk. But they feel very glamorous and are surprisingly comfortable.

Some details:

There  are 2 generous pleats either side of the waist, which drape over the stomach, and 2 pockets:

Pocket and pleat detail

 There are 2 false pockets on the back - just flaps sewn directly onto the trousers. Sometimes I love the little details on a project most of all; these little flaps make me smile every time I look at them:

 In the photo above you also get a little glimpse of the belt loops.

Carrying on with the masculine theme of the trousers, I used a metal zip for the fly front. Here is where I slightly deviated from the instructions and added a panel behind the zip. This extra step isn't in the instructions, but all the trousers and jeans I've ever owned have this - seems a bit strange that Vogue would leave it out...

Fly front, with extra panel behind zip

I also added a half lining to the back section of the trousers, to give the fabric some support and also to prevent any transparency issues:

 

Half-lining at back of trousers

 I'm loving wearing these trousers, and would recommend this pattern to anyone looking for an alternative to the all pervasive skinny jean. And they were really quick and easy to make - they only took a few evenings to complete. All of the draping on the front makes them easy to fit  - I'm about a size 29" waist and a 38" hip, so I cut the size 14 (28" waist) and it fits just fine.

And that's that! If you like the look of these trousers, click here to buy your own kit. And click here to see all the other Bloggers projects.


Take care!