Sunday, February 26, 2012

Pattern Review: Treasure Pocket Pants from Sewing for Boys

This was my first attempt at the Treasure Pocket Pants from Sewing for Boys, the new book by the Patterns by Figgy's gals.  I was quite impressed that they turned out nicely.  


My only glaring error was with the waistband.  When I flipped the contrast waistband from inside to outside, I didn't make it flush.  As a result, I didn't have space for the double casing.  I also didn't understand where to put a decorative button (one of the options), so I opted against it (I just found a sew along by one of the authors which shows this detail- FYI).  The faux fly is ADORABLE, and the pockets are just the right size for hands or treasures, and in a great location.  The topstitching is such a nice detail as well, as is the contrast facing under the hems.


Having made one of their patterns before (the Dapper Dillinger Trousers), I knew they ran big, so I made these in a size smaller than I would have otherwise.  They fit perfectly (or shall I say: my size 4 kid is in size 2/3 perfectly).  The legs are wide, but not in a bad way.  My son, who chose the fabrics and who chose this pattern to make first when we looked through the book together, absolutely loves them.

Below is my second attempt at the pattern.  These are quite possibly the cutest pants I have ever made (and I have made a LOT of pants- maybe around a hundred pairs by this point).  I got the waistband right this time and man, is it cute.  Photos really don't do justice to these pants.  We went out in this outfit, and multiple strangers (adults and children, actually) commented on how cute they are.

I ran into the same issue with the hem facing on both pairs, with it being a tad too small and having to stretch it to fit.  This would have been fine but for that you then need to flip the pant and do the seam that is an inch up.  On both pairs I neglected to pull the fabric here and got bunching and folding.

I love that the hem for the pocket is hidden, and doesn't scratch my son's leg, nor does he feel it when reaching inside.  However, the width of the two pieces that make this pocket weren't the same for me, so I ended up cutting to even them up (no big deal, just something extra).  I thought using bias tape to make the pocket top was quite clever.

I wanted a serger to finish my seams on these, though I used a zig-zag like I always do.  I just thought these were such cool pants that I didn't want them to look homemade at all.


All in all, these are great.  They took me a little while to make, but I think they will get faster and faster each time.  Tracing the pattern off the book's pattern sheet was annoying compared to the ease of printing and cutting from pdf patterns, and the weight of printer paper compared to tracing paper when actually cutting the fabric was less nice.  I also think the accuracy is better in a pdf than my tracing skills (two chances for error rather than one).  

You are going to see my boys in these for a while.
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3 comments:

  1. Hi Nicolle - Thanks for the review.

    I love the pants you've made so far!

    A couple things: I have posted a new pattern piece for the TPP over on sewing-for-boys.com in the Updates section. (http://www.sewing-for-boys.com/updatesanderrata/)

    As far as the hem facing is concerned, with three seams on each leg, it's really difficuly to get the circumference the exact same every time. To make these faced hems, I personally wait until the pant legs are sewn and then measure, as with the waistband.

    I hope that's helpful!

    Happy Sewing!
    Karen

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  2. The pants are adorable! I'm working on a pair also, but in step 4, I ended up with backwards fabric. Typo? or am I just not reading that right?

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  3. There was a spot where the whole thing seemed haywire, and I found that (with all the patterns in the book), I have been much more successful if I lay out and imagine all the steps completed before actually cutting or sewing-- I have ended up with a few backward as well. Post a link when you are done!

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