So far I've been nervous about taking on trousers. I tried making jeans earlier in the year and was pretty pleased with how those turned out but thought that trousers might require more skills in terms of adjusting for fit. That's why I signed up to the Sew Over It Ultimate Guide to Sewing and Fitting Trousers Online Class. The class comes with two sewing patterns, videos and a whole suite of fitting guides to help perfect your trousers. Such a useful class!
The class comes with two patterns to make - the loose fitting Carrie Trousers and the more tailored Ultimate Trousers. you don't need to complete the patterns in any order, but the Carrie trousers are a little easier because they are looser and have an elasticated waistband. The Ultimate Trousers have a concealed zip at the side and are close fitting. Although I have been looking out for the perfect fabric for my Carrie trousers for a while, I haven't found anything that I think will really work for me yet....if you have any suggestions do leave them in the comments below. Instead I now have two pairs of Ultimate Trousers!
One of the handy things about the Sew Over It fabric store is that they will suggest fabrics for their patterns. The online class has videos with tips for fabric suggestions, but I find the shop itself to be most useful. For my Ultimate Trousers I decided to make a wearable toile from a polka dot cotton that I already had in my stash, with my polished version being made from a colourful stretch cotton for about £13 per metre. The polka dot cotton was handy for making the toile from because it was easy to sew with and manipulate as I was trying to get the fit right. The stretch cotton is definitely the best choice though because it is a more comfortable wear. The stretch cotton I used was similar to some denims in terms of weight and feel and the added stretch means that it is a little more forgiving when moving around.
The class includes videos and instructions for each step of trouser making, and is suitable for dressmakers with limited experience because of the amount of guidance included. I wouldn't pick these as the first garment you make, but they could be early on afterwards. What I really like about this class is the amount of fitting guides that come with it. For every fit issue there are clear diagrams to help you diagnose what the problem might be, and how to adjust the pattern to take care of it. I thought this could be something to return to with other trouser makes, not just the pattern featured because it's so comprehensive. It's £45 for the class, but bearing in mind how much detail is included along with the two patterns it's pretty good value. (If you aren't desperate to start immediately, Sew Over It sometimes have discounts for their classes so I would wait for one of these).
I made a size 10 and only needed small adjustments to the darts to get a good fit. I usually make this size in Sew Over It patterns and it was fine again here. I decided to follow some of the additional alteration ideas to create some Capri trousers for my holidays, going for a cropped and tapered leg. This alteration required a bit more work that the fitting adjustments made at the top of the trousers but was still fairly straightforward. For my next pair I will probably insert a waistband and keep the legs as they are to create something a little more formal.
Would I make this pattern again? Yes. I'd like to try out a few variations of these trousers but think that this is a straightforward pattern that can be quite speedy too. I think the information included in the online class is what makes these trousers so successful and achievable so would definitely recommend signing up if you are interested in at least one of the patterns.
Would I recommend this class? Again, yes. I think you would get the most out of this class if you haven't made trousers before though (but I doubt you would sign up for a class if you knew what you were doing!). Being able to select appropriate fabrics especially for these patterns makes a big difference too.
Have you tried this or any other classes for sewing and fitting trousers? What did you think?
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