By Susan Khalje
Do It Yourself Network What makes a great pair of pants? As usual, any successful garment begins with the right combination of design and fabric. I'm working on a great pair of pants, and I'd like to share a few of my thoughts with you as I proceed with their construction. I started with a great pattern -- Burda pants patterns are justifiably renowned for their great fit. They have, as a sewing friend of mine delicately puts it, a "realistic crotch." If you superimpose a Burda pants pattern over one from an American pattern company, you'll see the difference. In any event, I wanted to make a pair of bell-bottomed pants for a friend -- and she requested that there be no waistband. I found a great pattern -- Burda 8513, which had the requested features. And rather than a simple facing at the waist, there's a yoke, which gives me an opportunity to add some reinforcement there -- it will help give stability to the pants and help them maintain their shape. As for fabric, I chose a silk doupioni. It's one of my favorite fabrics for pants -- it's got great texture, the colors are fabulous. It's often woven with two different colors, giving an iridescent effect, it's reasonably sturdy and very comfortable to wear. I usually underline garments, and in this case I chose silk organza as an underlining. It's not too expensive, it's lightweight, it's easy to work with, and comfortable to wear. In addition to giving the silk doupioni a little more "oomph," the underlining will help reduce wrinkling and absorb perspiration. In this case, the underlining is cut exactly the same as the fashion fabric. I first traced my markings on the silk organza, then joined the silk organza to the doupioni by hand-basting the layers together around the perimeter of each garment section, in this case, four leg pieces and three yoke pieces. I decided that the yoke needed a little more strength, so I inserted another layer of underlining as well -- poly-cotton batiste -- which will still keep the garment light and comfortable but will add just a little bit of inner strength to an area that needs it. I'd originally planned to line the pants with lightweight silk charmeuse, but as the pants are going to be worn in a hot climate I decided that the silk organza underlining could do double duty and function as a lining as well. I do have to take care of the raw edges of my seam allowances, though. I could pink them not very good, as they'll fray almost immediately; zigzag them by machine not a bad option, but it's all too easy to create a ridge of fabric under the stitches. Serging is not a bad choice, either, but I don't want that much thread on the seam allowances. I think I'll use my silk charmeuse to bind them with a Hong Kong finish. I'll cut narrow bias strips of charmeuse sew them along the raw edges of the seam allowances (right sides together), fold them over, then machine stitch-in-the-ditch to secure the bias strips. It's a clean, elegant finish. I'll face the yoke with doupioni, hiding the seam allowance of the pants/yoke seam by pressing the seam allowance up, and covering it with the facing. I'll put a zipper in by hand, add a hook at the top, and that's it. Why not add a pair of silk doupioni pants to your wardrobe, and don't forget to underline them with silk organza! (Susan Khalje is the author of Bridal Couture - Fine Sewing Techniques for Wedding Gowns and Evening Wear, from Krause Publications. Contact her at skhalje@aol.com or Box 51 Long Green, MD 21092. For more information, visit www.SusanKhalje.com or www.diynet.com.)
RESOURCES :
Bridal Couture: Fine Sewing Techniques for Wedding Gowns and Evening Wear
Model: 0801987571
Author: Susan Khalje
(May 1997)
To order this title from Amazon, click here.
Krause Publications
Website: www.krause.com
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