Hudson Pants, 2 pairs
Today I took a few photos of recently completed sewn items. It was pretty cold out and I was wearing long johns in all the photos.
First up are two pairs of Hudson Pants, a pattern by True Bias.
The first pair, of maroon jersey, was supposed to be a muslin. This fabric was bought at Fabricland, I think, and was not very expensive; if it has any lycra, it’s a very low content and is mainly cotton.
I made size 4 in these and used a brown t-shirt for the cuffs, waistband, and pocket edging. I actually completed these in December 2017 and wore them over the year.
I did notice that I had somehow sewn one of the legs off grain and it twists while I’m wearing it. I’m not sure what is up with that but they are still fully wearable.
I wanted to use this thick loopy jersey that I bought years ago to make another version. When I originally bought the fabric, I wanted to make pants. I made a pattern from a comfortable pair of yoga pants that I’d purchased but I could not manage to get the pattern pieces to fit on the narrow yardage so I never cut into it. I found that size 4 of the Hudson Pants just barely fit on the fabric though I didn’t have enough space for the pockets.
I first sewed these with a zig zag stitch on my Janome, earlier this year. But the zig zag stitch added to the waviness of the sewing (I can’t adjust the pressure with my model, the 415, and even when using the lightning bolt stitch, the legs were noticeably wavy. I had used very light thread and it was extremely difficult to pick out in the loopy fabric. It took me months to finally unpick the wavy leg before I resewed the leg to my satisfaction with the straight stitch (though I tend to pull the legs when putting them on and have had to resew them a few times already). Then I had to cut the cuffs and waistband and sew them on.
Because this fabric is so much thicker than the other fabric, I really could have sized up – these fit me much more tightly than most photos I’ve seen posted online. Additionally, I had some weird bunching in my crotch that made them uncomfortable. I ended up scooping out the front crotch area and they are more comfortable now. I like several pairs of Hudsons that I’ve seen online made of wovens (sized up by two sizes, usually) and I suspect that the fit issue would be more prominent in a woven.
I’m also including a shot of the back waistband of both pairs. I often find myself needing to replace the elastic of pants and I find it really annoying to pick out lines of stitching. So lately I’ve taken to leaving a “window” of some kind in the inner waistband so I can (first tighten and eventually) replace the elastic. I know that there are several techniques for elastic waistbands that do not use a channel and while these look more professional, I find they aren’t practical for replacement.
It’s always great to have comfortable pants to wear around the house and I’m happy I’ve finally finished the second pair, which is warm and appropriate for the winter.
Cedars and Water
1/50s, f8, 400ISO, autoWB, 18mm.
I went for a walk down the road allowance and crossed Marsh Creek where it’s very shallow.
Four Bags
1/250s, f5, 400ISO, autoWB, 50mm p.
As part of the reorganization of my office, I’ve been also trying to reduce fabric scraps. I made these four bags recently and filled them with things that I carry around or things that I want to keep dust free. These cinch bags are very easy to make and using up scraps to create bags is pretty fulfilling.
Raining on the Creek
1/20s, f5, 800ISO, autoWB, 18mm.
It’s raining today, instead of snowing, and the grass and shrubs are vibrant along the shore.
Sunlight by a Bend
1/30s, f7.1, 800ISO, autoWB, 18mm.
We walked at Goodrich-Loomis Conservation Area this afternoon; we went along the stream to the bridge and then up the hill and back. It’s beautiful there, as usual.
Sunny by the Pool
1/160s, f9, 200ISO, autoWB, 18mm.
The sun sparkles across the creek as I look upstream. It’s only sunny for a few hours today so I trimmed a few tree branches along trees by the riffle over lunch time.
Blowing by Pines
1/50s, f5.6, 400ISO, autoWB, 42mm.
Fresh laundry blows on the line as we do some new year cleaning.
