WordPress is telling me that it has been already 14 days since my last post. Life has been sort of busy: work, college, social gatherings, working out, a new tattoo, so I made very little progress on the leggings, but there was some progress.

1. Larger pattern

The pattern shown in the last post was done using a very stretchy pair of leggings, while the fabric I was going to use had less stretch, so a larger one was needed. Using as a base the one I had done already, I added a bit less than 5 cm on each side.

I also learned how to calculate the stretch of the fabric (it was 30%) and check the measurements. Spoiler alert: the leggings are a bit tight but they fit.

If you are curious on how to calculate the stretch, there are plenty of very good explanation on google, but to sum it up get a ruler, place a piece of fabric from 0 to 10cm, then stretch and measure the stretch fabric. Mine was 13, so it had a 30% of stretch.

2. Cutting

If there’s one thing I can’t do to save my life is cutting straight, and that affect my ability to sew straight. Anyway, I used my pretty pattern, added 2 cm of seam allowance, and cut. The fabric didn’t like the chalk, so I used a bit of soap to make the marking (thanks mom for the suggestion).

3. Assembly

With my far from straight but freshly cut bits, the next step was assembling. This is my first pair of trousers/pants ever and this is the tutorial I used for this part. It was simple overall and I won’t bore you with many details, the only thing I’d like to mention, more as a note to self: if you add a larger seam allowance so that you have a bit more wiggle room for correct sizing, do not sew right on the seam allowance. When I realised they were a bit tight, I wanted to sew them again with less allowance, but the seam was pretty sturdy, so I gave up and decided to keep them tight.

4. Check the fit

I said that before, but I’m going to repeat it because, yeah, it surprised me they actually fit. They are bit tight on the calves, but the crotch and waist parts were ok.

5. The band

Here I improvised a lot. I looked around for a good way to do it, but I couldn’t find anything, so I inspired myself from a tutorial to sew a bra I read a while ago where they encased the elastic using the two layers of fabric.

First, cut two bands of the length of the waist plus seam allowance. As the leftover of fabric wasn’t long enough to have two, the inner one is two halves sewed together.

Second, sewed all the edges for both bands. A small suggestion, for the one that has 2 parts, make sure you sew the wrong and right sides matching. Not like I did that… nope.

Anyway, once I fixed the little mishap and all parts were properly sewed to their matching partner, the next step was to sew each part together. Place the right sides facing each other, pin all around and sew with a straight stitch. The seam should leave enough space for the elastic.

Then place the elastic between the two layers of fabric and pin it all around. I used a piece of elastic of the same length of the band as it’s only to add some extra support.

Next step is to sew with a zig zag stitch on the 2 layers of fabric and the elastic. Make sure to sew the elastic, so it won’t twist around when wearing or washing them. The elastic should be all covered, but as I can’t cut straight, there are some bits that are not.

Now it’s time to turn and press the seam. I hate ironing….

And that’s it for this update. The seams are being pressed, now it’s time for a coffee break, so until next time for the final part: sewing the band to the pants.