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—lisa g.

Thursday, February 7, 2013

thurlow in denim

for months i've wanted to make some thurlow pants, and i finally got around to it! i went with a denim because i found some for a great price. basically (not including the pattern) these pants cost me less than $10. that's a definite win in my book!



i measure a straight size 6, but when i used this pattern before i went with a size 4. there is still plenty of room for these to be comfortable, in fact i've already spent two full days wearing them. i love this type of pant because i can look nice without being dressed up.


it does feel weird cropping out my head
so i can properly show you my bum and
then posting it on the internet... but whatevs.

any changes i made are subtle. i changed the order of construction slightly, using the method i learned from the jalie jeans pattern. it allows you to construct the fly without having the back of the pants attached yet. once the fly is constructed, and the back pieces are sewn together, you sew front to back by sewing the entire inseam and then the side seams. i really like this for a few reasons. first, you can topstitch the crotch flat, you can topstitch the inseam, and you can adjust the legs as needed to get the fit you want.



my denim is a little heavy and bulky so i needed my seam allowances to be controlled as much as possible, hence all the topstitching. i was concerned that my topstitching would detract from the look, but you can barely see it because my fabric is so dark. fine by me!

i decided to go with a single inset welt for the back pockets. i felt the double welts were a little oversized and perhaps a touch low. i made the single welt where the top of the double welt would be, if that makes any sense. i used poppykettle's fab tutorial to make my pockets and they turned out perfect. i also added a button hole just as extra insurance against unsightly back pocket gaping.



as i mentioned in my last post, i adjusted the fly extension piece so that my waistband would line up correctly and everything would be in it's proper place. i ended up trimming off the extra seam allowance in the back. as i said before, my denim is fairly heavy and it was just creating unnecessary bulk. i fit a straight size 4 so i think in the future i'll just trim the excess out to begin with.


hammered in a shank button. p.s. the dritz jeans buttons suck
big time. gonna have to find a different brand, these are
nearly impossible to get in!

i added 1" in length and they are just a touch long for wearing flats, but i figure they'll shrink up as they get washed. i can always adjust the length later as needed.

as i've said before, this is a GREAT pattern. other than tweaking maybe the front crotch depth, i really have a good fit. hopefully i can get around to making another pair (or two or three or ten) because i could really use more pants!



okay, if you don't hear from me for a while it's because i've been buried in snow. we have 18-30" (45-76 cm for you metric types) of the stuff coming our way tomorrow through saturday. blizzard! so, i'm off to stock the pantry...

—lisa g.

29 comments:

  1. Wow! These a truly beautiful and look so professional. You've given this beginner some great pants inspiration!

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    Replies
    1. thanks! pants are really no harder to fit than dresses, it's just a different set of things to learn!

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  2. Oh they turned out wonderful! The details (pocket, topstitching...) look amazing, and the fit appears just right. And I know it's probably silly, but I'm jealous of your incoming blizzard. From the perspective of someone in central TX who doesn't even see a snowflake very often!

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    1. thanks! we're kinda looking forward to the crazy snow since we haven't really had that much this winter or last. i figure if it's gonna be cold, there may as well be snow on the ground!

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  3. These look so great, Lisa! I'm going to keep all your tips in mind when I get around to making these.

    Stay warm!

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    1. thanks! you definitely need to try this pattern!

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  4. Those are amazing. Like, people-are-not-going-to-believe-you-made-them-yourself amazing.

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    1. thanks! that's pretty much what i strive toward. :)

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  5. They look fantastic! Great fit and perfect execution! All the details are spot on.

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  6. I was about to say "fantastic" but it looks like Karin took my adjective =) how about "Awesome!" They look better then store bought.

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  7. I always construct pants in the order you described. The fly is the most frustrating part, and less fabric on the table makes it a tad easier!

    I've never done welt pockets but yours are really nice. The whole project is great!

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  8. You're stitching is always perfect. I want you to give me sewing lessons! Your jeans are perfect, well done. I think the single welt is much more attractive than the double, so good call.

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    1. Ugh I said "you're" instead of "your." Forgive me, grammar gods.

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    2. forgiven :)

      and thanks, dark thread on equally dark fabric is very forgiving!

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  9. Love all the details on these! On my first (and only) pair of Thurlows I chickened out and skipped the pockets all together. I would really like to try the single welt when I make a second pair. On the news tonight they showed how crowded the grocery and home improvement stores were in the NE with people doing storm prep. Good luck and stay warm!

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  10. lovely work every time I see a version of this pattern I want it more and more

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  11. These are so great! Okay, now I really need to get moving on my (half cut out) Thurlows... Thanks for the construction order tip, and the fly correction, I'll keep them both in mind when I get there (because for some reason I can't at all understand pants-sewing-descriptions until the actual item is in front of me, even though I'm pretty good at visualizing other garment construction techniques in my head... ah, pants.)

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  12. These look fabulous - I only hope to get mine looking as beautifully finished!
    A pair of Thurlows to call my own are on my list when I finish my current pair of pants, using my newly minted pants block.
    As an FYI, I get my shank buttons from Snap Source and find them great.

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    1. thanks for the tip, i'll check out snap source!

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  13. These look absolutely brilliant, perfect fit and I love them in the dark denim. The construction method is the same as used in Burda patterns too, and it makes for a really good fit :)

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  14. Thanks a lot for mentioning the little mistake, I had so much trouble adding the waistband, and I didn't understand why my waistband was too short. I will remember next time and hopefully everything will be smoother. Those Thurlow of ours are really nice by the way!

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  15. I'm just making my (hopefully) wearable muslin for these. I tried the welts last night and wasn't 100% sure about them but I love your single welts so reckon I'll go with that too! They look lush on you, I'm very jealous!

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  16. Amazing. Just amazing. I am so envious that you can sew a pair of pants that look so darn professional and well fitting. One of these days I'll figure it out...

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  17. They look pretty darn good! How awesome are single welt pockets? I'm really liking your button addition though - am going to have to try that next time. Your denim fabric looks lovely too - a bit of texture and depth to the colouring. I like these!

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  18. I've purchased the Thurlow pattern. I've been sewing for precisely 40 days but I have that lovely beginner spirit where I don't know what I'm not supposed to do! ;-)

    I skipped all the home dec, straight stitch projects and dove in headfirst. It's FUN.

    I am hoping I get to this point where I can make a lovely pair of trousers and jeans and the HUNDRED + reviews on PR alone means it's not too far fetched.

    GREAT job. These look amazing on you!

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i appreciate all the feedback, but will no longer be responding to comments left here. i have moved all my content to wordpress (see link at the top of the page!) and will now be posting there. all my posts can be found in my wordpress archive. thanks for reading and please visit my new page!