THE Q & A SERIES

YOUR PANTS FITTING PROJECT QUESTIONS ANSWERED

We’ve had lots of new members join our Curated by ITF community this month who are looking to build their skills in the area of sewing, drafting and fitting pants, and we’re excited to be able to help them learn this valuable garment sewing skill.

We know that, for many people, sewing pants is a no-go zone. Many makers learn the hard way that you’re unlikely to get a pair of well-fitted pants by ‘winging it’. Because pants incorporate the waist, hips, crotch curve and thighs, pants require you to have a good grasp of the fundamentals of the fitting process (or be willing to give it a red hot go!).

Understanding the why, what, where, and when of fitting pants means that when you hit a roadblock you know what adjustment to use to rectify it. It also means you have a process to follow that allows you to troubleshoot the issue, trying different approaches separately, or knowing when to use a combination of adjustments.

We’ve had a few questions come in lately relating to this month’s Pants Fitting Pattern, so this week is a little different to our usual Q&A post. We’re sharing our answers to these questions all at once in the hope that it might also answer any questions you have also had, and get you on the journey to designing, fitting and sewing pants that you love!

Just wondering if this pant pattern is the same as the Wide leg pants, but without the front pocket. I have the Wide leg pants printed out and removed the front pocket to make fitting easier for the first pair. I thought I would save some paper if they are the same draft.

Tracy

Hi Tracy,

The pattern for Issue 14 of Curated is different to the Wide Leg pants pattern, but it is quite similar. The legs are narrower on the new pattern and the back dart is shorter. We also chose not to include pockets in the Pants Fitting pattern, which makes it quicker and easier to toile and make alterations. This also makes it easier to be used as a base pattern that can be used in the future to draft other patterns from (that’s what’s coming for Issue 15 of Curated!)

In saying that though, I think you'd be fine to use the Wide Leg pants pattern you have already printed and started on, as it is very similar and all the resources in the Fit Kit will apply to that pattern. We’re also happy to show you how to remove the pocket, if you’d like to make it more like a block pattern.

You can always make the leg narrower, as we have included a tutorial in the Fit Kit for how to do that.

Happy sewing (and fitting),

Emily

Hello,

I have an existing pant block, but it is from before kids and so my body has changed - mainly bigger and maybe more tummy.

I wonder if I can use this block for my toile and do the fit alterations to it rather than use the pant pattern supplied?

Thanks,
Denise

Hi Denise,

Good question!

We have made the resources so that the techniques apply to other pants patterns and blocks, so you could definitely give it a go.

One thing to note is that when fitting a garment it is much easier to remove fabric, rather than add it in, so I'd be checking that you can make a toile that fits you well enough from the block to conduct a fitting.

If you mainly need more room across the tummy, then you could definitely do a full tummy adjustment to add more room in the tummy area. You could also add a larger seam allowance to the pattern (particularly in the side seams) so that you have more room to play with during the fitting.

It might be worth a go as an experiment. You can see after a fitting how much work is involved in adjusting the block and then decide if you're better off sticking with the block or using our pants fitting pattern.

Happy sewing,

Emily

Hello,

I am interested in joining your community, mainly to learn about pants fitting.

Via Peppermint I got access to you Wide Leg Pants pattern. I really love the style and made already two Wide Leg pants. However, I have the feeling that the fit has room for improvement.

Recently, I bought 3 fabrics for making autumn/winter pants based on this pattern. Would the Pants fitting project of this month work along with the Wide Leg pants pattern or is it compulsory to use the pants pattern that comes with the fitting project?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Kind regards,
Monika

Hi Monika,

You can definitely work along with the fitting content we released this month using the Wide Leg Pants pattern.

The fitting pattern is quite similar to the Wide Leg pants pattern. The main differences are how much width is in the leg and that the fitting pattern doesn't have any pockets (which makes the fitting process easier).

All the resources in the Fit Kit and community group will definitely be helpful to you on your pants fitting journey. Some of our makers (who we like to call ‘Foldies’) are also working on the Wide Leg pants pattern, so you won’t be alone! We created the content to be relevant to a range of different pants patterns so that the resources can be used for different projects.

You will be fine to jump on board and follow the process with this pattern.

Happy sewing,

Emily

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS ISSUE

The Pants Fitting pattern & Fit Kit is the second part in our Pants Sewing project series, which is available through our Curated by ITF subscription. Past issues are also now available for purchase by subscribers. More information can be found here.
The Wide Leg pants pattern can be found here.
How to add seam allowance to a pattern - read the tutorial here.