What does one sew during a pandemic?
I was in the middle of sewing the Closet Case Patterns Ginger Jeans in early March, was feeling a bit unwell, took my temperature, and it was 101. No, this isn’t a story about a bout with coronavirus (that I know of) , but sickness and the unsettling changes of sheltering in place led to a month’s lag in working on my jeans.
I got sidetracked by researching mask patterns, sewing several of two different styles, and was ready when my grocery store had a sign “No entry without a face covering”.
I applaud and admire those in the sewing community who have sewn hundreds of masks for donation to first responders.
I also sewed two different “isolation headbands”, the fun challenge offered by Sew Over 50 on Instagram as a remedy to cope with uncoiffed hair.
But I did finish the jeans. I almost titled this post “pandemic jeans”. They’re not a complete disaster, but I lost interest in making them, and a few fit issues mean I expect I won’t be wearing them much if at all.
I chose to sew View B, the high waisted option with skinny legs, and a pocket stay. I shortened the legs pattern in two places taking out 6 or 7 inches.
I narrowed the legs. I did a flat seat adjustment. I deepened the pocket bags.
The fly installation went well. The thing that looks strange on a lot of jeans patterns I see is the fly area is too long! Mine looks this way at 7 inches.
I used the same gold top stitching thread as I used on my denim shorts.
When I basted the front and back together I discovered a big problem: my back outseams were 2 and a half inches longer than the front. I still haven’t figured out where I went wrong, but I cut down the yoke, and matched them up.
When I tried them on I was disappointed. They are not only lumpy, but the rise is about 1 and 1/2 inch too low. When I wore them once to walk the dog, I kept pulling them up. My anatomy dictates where I like my pants to hit on me to fit well and be comfortable. Odd that they’re supposed to be high waisted, and weren’t high enough on short me.
A close up of the “drag lines” indicating a problem with the fit. Ugh!
On a positive note, they are well sewn. The legs don’t twist, the top stitching is good, the waistband is good, and the belt loops and hardware look good. I’ve become a slow, but reasonably competent seamstress.
I find the photos I took in the course of my daily life, while staying home, going to the doctor, and going on walks in the neighborhood more interesting than the photos about my pants, don’t you?
On to happier days (hopefully) and happier sewing!
Stitch It Again 