Leggings! Another thing I almost never wore when I lived in Southeast Asia, but I now wear regularly in a wide variety of ways (for working out, for hanging out, as a warmth layer under pants, under skirts, and so on...).
These are the latest pattern from Helen of Helen's Closet, the Avery leggings! Of all the leggings I've made, I think these may be my favorite... I've made three pairs already, which I think is demonstrative of my love for this pattern!
This pair is View B, with the ultra-high waist and extra-long legs, in size XL.
I love the Avery pattern's features: no outer leg seam, options for high or medium rise, and a wide waistband secured with a narrow piece of elastic, and an easy-to-sew gusset.
For me, what really gets me is the lack of knee wrinkles, though. I always have knee wrinkles, but in these leggings, they are much minimized! I also love the tummy-smoothing wide waistband and the sleek look of the side without a seam!
For the Avery leggings, Helen recommends "four-way stretch knits with at least 70% stretch horizontally and vertically." For this pair, I used a performance knit from Joann that met those specs... I think it's this one. This fabric works great!
I also made two other pairs with fabric that had the requisite horizontal stretch, but not quite enough vertical stretch. One was this stretch french terry and the other a "jegging" knit, both from Joann. They both worked pretty well, but they don't come up as high at the waist, and I do find that I prefer the fit of this version the best. I really want to make a pair from bamboo or rayon lycra jersey for the ultimate comfy leggings!
I really love how these leggings look, and how easy and quick they were to sew, even with the gusset, which I often find quite fiddly. Something about the triangular shape of this gusset, combined with Helen's clear instructions, make it unfussy to sew.
I'll admit I don't typically relish taking photos of pants or leggings on myself because I am self-conscious about my thunder thighs, but methinks these look pretty hot! Paired here with my quilted knit Toaster Sweater 2 on a windy day!
