My new favorite pants!

These past few months I have been seriously contemplating what I want to include in my wardrobe and the specific reasons for including each piece. I decided that each piece should have a purpose yet also be flexible enough to dress up or down and also be worn with any other piece in my wardrobe. So that meant I needed a color scheme to use and also a climate range.

After I figured out what I'd ideally include, I went online to all of my favorite stores to find pictures of each piece to work from.

Next I headed to the fabric district in LA. If you've never been there you really should check it out! It is a little chunk of town that is cram packed full of fabric stores that sell just about any type of fabric, notions and other fun stuff imaginable. The kicker is this, it's all at wholesale prices. I made sure I was getting a good deal by checking out the prices per yard for the fabrics I wanted at a regular fabric store before I hit up the garment district. The difference was significant.


Now, I decided that for a number of reasons I didn't want to include jeans in my garment selection. They don't travel well and I just don't prefer them in general. Pant selection number one: I wanted something similar to this linen pant from J. Crew except I didn't want to pay $80 for them and I didn't want a drawstring.


I think linen is incredible stuff! It's breathable, drapes nicely, cool in the summer and packs up fairly small. Bummer thing is that it also wrinkles easily. I checked out a normal price for linen and it ranges from $12-$18 per yard and I would need about 2 1/2 yards for pants like this. Gross. When we got to the fabric district I immediately started searching for a mid weight linen, preferably in slate grey or olive green. Unfortunately, I couldn't find either color and had to settle for a dark charcoal instead. Guess how much I spent? $22 for 5 yards!! Amazing!!

Since I got the linen for such a great price I was also able to get a semi sheer silk print ($7 for 5 yards...seriously love this place). More about that fabric later.

After we had spent a few hours in the fabric district and feasted on street food we headed home. As soon as we arrived I began cutting out the pattern pieces I would need. When I finished that I laid out my fabric in the hallway (only place long enough to fit it) and cut out the fabric pieces. The pattern i had was actually for capri pants so i just added about 7 inches in length to the leg pieces. There was supposed to be interfacing as well for the pockets and waistband but I didn't have any so I figured it would be fine to do without.

I began sewing the pants according to the instructions but after I had gotten about two thirds of the way through and tried them on I decided that they looked too formal. I then backtracked and took out the zipper, sewed up the spot it occupied and instead of making a regular waistband I opted for a very lightly gathered elastic waistband. After a couple little alterations they ended up how I wanted them. The pockets and darts make them not look like lounge pants but I didn't have the regular waistband or zipper to make them dress pants either. Perfect! Somehow because I didn't follow the directions I ended with a little pile of extra pieces. Oh well.

**note: hair straightening iron works great for ironing darts! In fact if you're traveling and there isn't an iron you can use your straightener to iron your pants or touch up your shirts. **


Next I had to deal with the hemline. I hadn't pre washed the fabric (dumb idea) so I would need to add a few extra inches in length to allow for shrinking. I put on the pants which were SUPER long and had my mom pin them evenly for me. Then I sewed the hem but didn't cut off the extra fabric just in case I should need to let them out after washing.


As soon as I finished the hem I threw them in the wash and prayed that I would still fit them when they got out. Thankfully they shrank the perfect amount so I didn't have to change the hem at all! Now they are my favorite pants and I am contemplating making a couple more pairs :)



Happy Independence Day week!