Our pants are great for women of every size and shape which we tell you all the time. Today we bring you a testimonial from a sewing pro in Nebraska. Longtime readers of the Sew! Let’s get Dressed blog might remember our friend Ruth.
She is a wonderfully talented custom clothier, teacher and writer. Perhaps you have read her articles in Threads. She made a fabulous Tabula Rasa Jacket that inspired one of my own TRJ’s.
In a recent e-mail, Ruth told me she is also a costumer for the Omaha Community Playhouse and she used the Eureka! Pants that Fit pattern to make pants for one of the characters she had to costume. Her words say it best (sadly she did not have any photos to share):
“I work at a theater now, and I needed to make a pair of 3x pants, 60-inch waist 69-inch hips I used your pant pattern and I just added a few more inches, and they fit beautifully.
For a plus size figure, the Eureka pants that fit are simply BRILLIANT. I marked the dart lines and the horizontal balance lines on the muslin, which made fitting the pants easy. The three choices for the back of the pants, solve “backside” fitting issues!
My only other comment is that I raised up the CF 4 inches, tapering to nothing at the side seam. I am “horizontally gifted” in the belly area, and I noticed on my own pants that the CF often dips down a little bit. The actress had a large belly, and she needed the extra height in the front.
In addition, when I did custom pants, large people often have fluctuations of 4 or 5 inches – on a 60-inch waist. I have always “interfaced” the back of the pants, with non-roll elastic. I cut the pants 2″ bigger, then snug it up with the elastic to 3″ smaller i.e., 60″ waist. Cut 62” snug up the elastic to 59″. When you have the pants on you can’t see the elastic “gather”.
On a smaller person, I do an inch or two I use ban roll (waist stiffener) in the front of the pants, and the non-roll elastic the back.
In addition, on the plus pants, there is a HECK of a lot of stress on the fly front closure. I use a button and two skirt hooks, making a 2”-inch extension on the waistband. AND adding a small square of fabric on the back of the button is a good idea.
I also cut them like man’s pants with excess fabric at the back, and cut a seam in center back of the WB, which makes altering costumes much easier.”
Ruth identifies two pants topics that we talk about regularly: the balance of the pants and the placement of the waist. The best fit for a balanced pant is quickly identified when the horizontal balance lines (HBL), grainlines and dart guidelines are drawn on the mock up.
Ruth mentions positioning the waist on the high side. The current fashion is to have pants that sit low on the body. Many women have a low and high place where pants waist finishes can sit comfortably. With the new Glamour Details pattern, you can experiment with a high Hollywood waistband which creates a very stable waistline for a soft curvy body.
Her suggestions for managing elastic used to fill the waistband are spot on too. This is one of the choices found in the Eureka! Pants that Fit direction booklet to stretch elastic into the waistband.
Her techniques for trousers are all found in our Trouser Details pattern. You can alter your personalized Eureka! pattern with a fly front and slash pockets. Adding extra into the center back and the center back waistband seam is so smart if your weight fluctuates and you will need to alter the pants often.
This weekend in Buffalo, NY Carrie and I will work one on one with our friends in the ASG chapter. They are anxious to develop pants patterns that fit and trust Fit for Art Patterns to help them sew pants successfully. (There are still a few spaces left if you want to join us.)
In June we will be teaching the same class at the Denver Design Incubator sponsored by the Denver Chapter of the Association of Sewing and Design Professionals (ASDP). If you live in that region of the country, this is a great opportunity to start your pants journey.
We are also Licensing Sewing Professionals to use the Eureka! Pants Pattern to grow their business at the ASDP National Conference in October. If you are a sewing pro, this class is for you and we would love to have you join us and, if you are not already, connect you to all the wonderful professionals in ASDP.
And one last note, we are currently testing a 4X, 5X and 6X pattern and would love to have you work with us if you are interested. Contact me at rae@fitforartpatterns.com. It’s time for pants that fit.
Happy Pants Sewing, RAE
