Khaki Cropped Trousers and a Love Sewing Mag Star Make!

It's been a busy week with a couple of great sewing hits! Here's the first success, a new pair of summer trousers in khaki green cotton.  Cut, sewn and straight into circulation hot off the machine.  They were off to work meetings shortly after this picture was taken, so a smart and sober ensemble for you here.

I've already made these exact same trousers in blue here, and as they are such a great fit it was only a matter of time before they were reproduced.  I love some of the khakis on the high street just now as it is a colour that can be dressed down, or dressed up.  It is a colour that can work with brights or look chic with sober neutrals. So I scooped up a metre and a half of plain cotton poplin from my local market at lunchtime, along with matching thread, and onto the top of the project pile it went.

Of course back in March when I made the first ones, I had a to take a deep breath, grit my teeth and brave the weather in order to bare even a few inches of ankle.  But now we're in balmier months these should see plenty of wear.  Of course the forecast today is a 'high' of 10 degrees and rain, but what the heck, I'm wearing them anyway.  

There's not much more to say about the pattern itself than I have already done back in the last post (see here for pattern details and more about construction).  With the first pair I made, I cut a size 12 and was prepared to let out the seams if necessary as this is a slightly dropped waist that sits below my natural waistline. I always find a 12 to be rather tight on the hips in this style if I get the legs narrow enough, or if the waistline is right then the legs are baggy and too big.  I've adjusted this waist:leg ratio to perfection now with this pattern.  

After much dithering about with various button colours and styles, I decided to choose plain black ones.  Very unlike me!  But I wanted the trousers to be quiet and versatile and not have shouty embellishments this time. Nice, well behaved buttons they are.

The cotton poplin is a tiny bit creasy for trousers.  However it is also really lightweight and summery, as well as being very iron-friendly, so I don't might a bit of late-in-the-day crumple.  I should say, the above photo was taken before I'd ironed that waistband down properly and got rid of those pesky wrinkles.

I had a black zip of the right-ish length, chosen from the various sizes/colours/ages in my zip collection.  The pattern actually asks you to insert a longer zip than you need, and then cut the bottom section off.  So I could have used up any roughly long enough zip of the right colour.  The fly construction does a great job of concealing the zip although for some reason when I was sewing this one in, I didn't managed to get it quite as far behind the fly as the first attempt, possibly because the zip itself was much narrower than most of the others I've used.  (For my blue version of these trousers, I was testing the pattern and so used a very non-matchy beige zip of roughly the right length from my stash.  It is really well hidden and is only when doing something particularly athletic that you can see a glimpse of it!).  I'm not too worried about this one, it is reasonably well concealed apart from the tiny black zip-pull at the top.  

It's lovely to have a tried and tested garment that really fits well and that can be sewn together quickly and easily.  It's also pretty much become a wardrobe stable, so I might even make a pair in black!  How practical am I being just now eh?!  Don't worry though, it can only be a matter of time before you see me prancing around in a pair of eye-achingly bright or busy patterned ones.

But for now, a very wardrobe-friendly khaki set of trews is suiting me just fine.  And a good chance to show off my slightly less sensible new leopard loafers. Grrrr!

Onto the second success of the week and that is, my Colour Block Top made back in March, which was chosen to be Star Make by Love Sewing Magazine this month!  Go me!  I am extremely proud to be in print and delighted to have won a fabric bundle to play around with.  I'm especially pleased as it's a top I wear regularly and so I would also classify it as a 'star make' of my own.

Right, off to defy the weather forecast in my new trousers and shoes.  By pure will and sewing power alone I will banish the rain and summon the Summer.