I have used this pattern eight times now. I’ve made two great pairs of jeans, two good pairs of shorts, and four pairs of terrible pants. This pattern does not work with overly soft fabric or vertical stripes. This pair is almost identical to the initial pair of jeans, except the denim is dark gray instead of blue. I used the same pockets because they are exactly what I like. Front patch pockets are great because they are more feminine than regular pockets and the topstitching adds a few lines to break up the thigh/hip area. I’m also sticking with a slight boot-cut shape forever because it’s the most flattering on me. I’m not falling for the skinny jean trend, as it only works on skinny legs, and makes anyone with thighs & a butt look twice as big. I’ve had so many doubts about this whole project, but the freedom from ever having to shop for jeans for the rest of my life balances the frustrations.
I’ve spent a lot of my sewing time working on systems that will streamline productivity later. I traced all of the small jeans pattern pieces onto cardstock, so I can just lay them on the denim and trace around with a sliver of white soap (a fantastic tip I read somewhere) and cut without pinning.
If you make your own jeans or pants, this is one piece of information that always confuses me, and you have to get this right, even though it seems like it won’t make a difference. Apply the interfacing in the waistband to the outer piece of fabric, not to the facing. If you interface the facing, the outer side of the waistband stretches a little and you won’t be able to topstitch the waistband. Or at least, I wasn’t able to. What this means is that when you cut out the interfacing, make sure your pattern pieces (or template) are upside down. That way the fusible side will line up correctly with the waistband.
If you want to take flattering pictures of your rear, make sure you stand in an asymmetric pose (see example). Don’t keep your feet together, because you want to create a nice big shape between your legs which separates the mass of your body into two smaller shapes. More importantly, it creates a horizontal width greater than the one created by your butt. This works with all body parts, actually. Always shoot for the three quarter view to look slimmer and probably prettier. The other benefit in this case, is that you get to see the profile of a foot.
15 comments:
I like your posing hints...how do you pose to hide a potbelly?
I would like you to answer Julie's question... as I have the same one. I am still amazed by your jeans. They look so good. Next visit (which will be more than 4 hours) I am commissioning a pair. I would like Keiler in gold threat across the right pocket.
I tried to answer Julie's question with a picture, but I can't post pictures in the comments, so here's a link http://www.penwith.co.uk/artofeurope/boucher.htm
It's Boucher's Odalisque.
Moose - maybe you would fit into my "motivational jeans." I'm still looking for someone I can give them to - I will hem to any length. I think they would retail as a 6.
I imagine you meant "thread" but "Keiler in gold threat" sounds even better!
I was just rereading these... um yes.... the Golden Threat, not as widely a used phrase as the Golden Fleece, or Golden Ticket... but equally as effective.
I just finished making my first pair of jeans. Two questions: Where kind I find copper rivets to tack on the pocket edges like on bought jeans?
I tried the stone washed look on my fabric with bleach water & a rag. Any other methods that would do better?
Thanks,
mab
Hi Mab,
Sorry I can't help you. I haven't been able to locate rivets either, and I've never done anything to age the denim, other than wear the jeans every single day while nervously scratching at my legs.
Thanks, anyway. Your clothes are fantastic, and I like that you want to make everyday wearable clothes - My goal too!
Hi,
I was reading your story about your jeans you made for yourself. They look great. Anyway, I am in the process of making 3 pair of jean skorts for my daughter. I found rivets for jeans/leather at www.tandyleatherfactory.com If you have a local Hobby Lobby in your town, they too carry rivets. You may want to try eBay for rivets as well. They are not as fancy as the ones on our store bought jeans, but they will give a nice finish to them.
Very professional looking jeans. I've looked for a long time for a comprehensive online guide to making jeans and as of yet I have not found one. So I decided to make one at http://dartigiano.weebly.com
I've found it pretty much impossible to find good patterns for men's jeans, so I've been making my own from old pairs of jeans. I really like your idea of using cardstock for the small pieces. I think I'll do this in the future. I found that vinyl works well for the large pieces. I really hate using the tissue paper that most patterns use. How did you get your seams to line up so well? I find it hardest to get the back seam where four pieces of fabric meet to line up and to stitch the stitching on the fly straight. Any suggestions?
I was also wondering how you take such professional looking photographs? What kind of camera/lighting do you use? The lighting in particular looks very even.
Hi Daniel,
Thanks for the vinyl pattern tip! That's so smart.
For lining up seams - I sew the yoke pieces to the back legs first, then the center back seam from crotch to waist, then the topstitching along the yoke, so even if the four points don't line up perfectly, the topstitching line would be continuous. I also use a lot of pins and sew very slowly.
At the time of these pictures I was using a canon powershot and natural light. I now use a canon rebel xsi. I only shoot on sunny days, so I never have to set up lights. I always use a tripod. I use levels and curves in Photoshop to adjust the lighting and color. I usually crop out the original background and replace it with a solid color, gradient, or other photo, and this is much easier to do if you shoot against a solid color backdrop.
Thanks for the tips on sewing the jeans and taking the pictures; I'll definitely keep them in mind!
Just in case you are wondering I moved my how to make jeans page from dartigiano.weebly.com to http://fundamentalsofsociety.weebly.com/how-to-make-jeans.html.
I just finished a rough draft of the guide I'm putting together on making jeans. It is available at http://www.fundamentalsofsociety.com/how-to-make-jeans.html
It's the link after the second paragraph.
Any feedback you might have would be greatly appreciated.
I like your posing hints...how do you pose to hide a potbelly?
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