Laela Jeyne Patterns Wanderlust Collection Blog Tour
January 30
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February 1
February 2
Laela Jeyne just released the Wanderlust Collection and it has pants for everyone in the family kids, women, and men. I sewed up the new Ivy Trousers and made the Emily T-Shirt to go with them.
This was my first experience making a zippered fly and double welt pockets - so my construction is not perfect, but I did learn a lot. I also did not have time to muslin the Ivy Trousers, so there are definite changes I would make when I try these again.
According to the size chart, my waist and hips would put me in a size 16. However, my hips are larger than what is listed on the size 16. Since these pants are made with a non-stretch fabric, I decided that I should probably grade out from the hips to the knees.
If I had made a musling, I would have discovered that I did not need to grade out at all. I ended up taking a lot of the added width out of the legs. I ended up slimming the trousers all the way to the ankles, as after I slimmed the thighs back down, the legs were not hanging right and had some weird wrinkling.
I am 5' tall and typically need to shorten all pants patterns. These I only removed 1" and with the slimmed down ankles - the length was perfect. The back double welt pockets are angled, and I'm not sure if it was an error in my sewing, the way I am shaped, or if it's a flaw in the pattern design, but the pocket opening stays spread open when worn exposing quite a bit of the pocket lining. There has been a tutorial added to the pattern to add a button closure. I typically wear longer tops like the Emily T-Shirt - so I'm not too concerned with the gaping, but I think I'll definitely add a button closure on future pairs.
The fabric I used for the Ivy Trousers is something I've had in my stash for awhile. It's a very nice dark brown suiting on one side and a lighter tan flannel on the other side. I thought of making a jacket with it, but with the cold of winter upon us, I thought it would make wonderful pants for cold mornings in the office.
The front slant pockets are handy to have. My pants ended up a bit big through the waist and I ended up slimming down the sides a bit to get a better fit. In doing so, I think it altered the pockets in a way that prevented them from laying perfectly flat. Again, I wear long tops like this Emily T-Shirt - so no one is likely to see this imperfection.
I love the Emily T-Shirt. It's a very simple sew and has a few options to it to make the pattern versatile. I wanted something that looked office appropriate, while still feeling like a t-shirt and made the Emily T-Shirt with a waffle weave sweater knit. My T-shirt ended up being so soft and cozy that I'm thinking I need more sweater knit t-shirts.
Here's a look at my buttoned waistband and fly on the Ivy Trousers. You might notice some bagginess and that is why a muslin would have been a great idea. Since I am short, the rise is a bit higher on me than intended. My Ivy Trousers button is right at my belly button (if not slightly higher). I should have removed about 2" from the rise to get the waistband to hit at the appropriate spot.
Even though my Ivy Trousers may not be "perfect", they gave me a wonderful learning opportunity. I wanted to really focus this year on making more of my wardrobe and the part that has been lacking is my pants. This was a great learning experience and now has me ready to go at it again and try to make another pair. The Ivy Trousers, Emily T-Shirt, and almost every other pattern is on sale for a limited time for $5 (swimsuits are $6), some are less. Sale ends February 3rd.
Even if making trousers isn't your thing, I'd suggest trying the Emily T-Shirt. I'm planning on grabbing a swimsuit pattern for myself - there are some really cute options.
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