Ah, this poor, neglected blog! I find it so much easier to document my projects on Instagram, where you can also see snippets of my life, family, and dogs. If you follow me over there, you have seen my projects: DVF style knit dresses for my soon-to-be-released video class with Susan Khalje, linen pants, tops for summer... But I haven't posted much here, so let's change that. 😊
This weekend, I decided to make a pair of shorts. I pulled out Simplicity 8389, a pants/shorts pattern that has been in my stash for some time. I made view C. I like the style of this pattern: the front of the garment has a flat waistband and pleats, with an elastic back/side waistband for ease. The pants come in either wide- or narrow-leg versions. The shorts are cut from the wide-leg pattern pieces. There are side pockets and options for self fabric or cord decorative ties or a self fabric belt.
I used Springtime in Paris Lightweight Cotton Sateen (long since sold out, sorry).
Construction
These went together quite easily. Simplicity (and in fact, all of the Big 4/Big 1) uses outmoded construction methods for pants, which I find frustrating. Instead, I use what I refer to as the Burda method, since I first learned it from a Burda pattern. I construct each leg separately, then turn one inside out and place it inside the other, with right sides facing each other. Then I sew the two legs together at the crotch seam. Attach the waistband, and go. And yes, this works with fly-front pants as well if you give it a little thought and planning in advance.
I sewed all the seams on my Juki industrial, and finished them on my Juki serger. The pattern calls for 1 1/4" elastic. I only had 1 inch and 1 1/2 inch, so I used 1 inch instead, and that worked fine. Here are pictures of the insides of the shorts:
I don't know why that one turned out so yellow while the others were fine.
I was pretty pleased with my pattern matching across the CF Seam. The foot of the Tour Eiffel is slightly off because it's at the start of the crotch curve, but if anyone gets close enough to examine it, you can be sure I'll slap 'em. 😆
All in all, these shorts took me about two hours, from cutting out to finishing. Those two hours were, of course, interrupted by Miss Peanut, so they were spread out over a couple of days. But these go together quite quickly. Here are some flat lay pictures and a shot on Shelley.
This is a fun, easy project, suitable for beginners. I think these are really cute, and they will get a lot of wear this summer (and beyond). Not sure what I'm going to make next. But I'll keep you posted over on Instagram.
Happy sewing!
