A tale of folly and redemption, these pants!
I made these beautiful pants, with what I thought were beautiful interior finishings.
And then I had to take them apart to adjust them because I am lazy and didn't make a muslin, against my best judgement. Sigh.
These are the Taylor Trousers from BF Patterns, which I thought looked like a great classic pant pattern.
The Taylor Trousers are high-waisted and straight-legged. They have a functional fly and front slash pockets. There are two views: one with a double-pleated front and back welt pockets, and one with a flat front and squared-off patch pockets at the back.
I really loved using the pattern- lots of nice construction details, such as a bound inner waistband and pocket stay-style pockets. The instructions for the zip fly were great- I'm very happy with how mine turned out!
I went with view B, the flat-front trousers intended to be made in heavier-weight fabrics such as denim, cotton twill, or canvas.
I chose a beautiful heavy weight cotton twill from Stash in the colorway Olive Loaf. Love this fabric- rich color, beautiful sheen, sturdy workwear feel. This fabric and pant pattern combo is giving a little bit of a park ranger vibe, but I'm here for it.
The Taylor Trouser pattern comes in sizes 0-32 (up to a 65" hip). I cut size 18 from Range 1, which fits a smaller waist-to-hip ratio. But turns out I should have graded up for the waist! The waistband, which I had sewn beautifully, I thought, was unbuttonable.
I shoved the trousers in a corner for a few weeks out of frustration. But I finally took them out to adjust them in the new year.
I didn't want to completely re-do the waistband, so I unpicked it from side seam to side seam in the back. I let both side seams out a bit, as well as the center back seam, giving myself an extra 1.5 inches.
I ended up cutting the waistband at the center back and adding an extra 1.5 inches, there, too, to correspond with what I'd let out on the trousers.
It's not elegant in the back, but it worked, and now I am really happy with my Taylor Trousers! Plus, I rarely wear a fully tucked shirt, so I don't think anyone will ever see my mistake.
