more fittings

True to my word I have taken the really wrong pants out of circulation and have been dissecting the pants I put in the could be better pile.

First up a quick fix. These jeans were OK, a bit big but not enough to either jetison or bother with a major renovation. But really it was their colour that didn't work for me so I tossed them in the washer with a couple of packets of black dye and voila, much improved. I try not to have an all black wardrobe, but can't argue that with my colouring, I really think darker colours work better for me.

Next I tackled the jeans I made myself in February. While I was pretty happy with these, I wasn't 100% - particularly with the waistband. Since I decided to pull it off, I took the sides and the back seam in a little while I was at it. I would have fiddled with the leg inseams too, but with a whole lot of top stitching as well as regular stitching to fight through, and a fit I was pretty happy with I called it a day. I redrew the waistband, particularly the back section, and re attached it. A better fit and more comfortable. I bought a piece of cheap denim when I was out on the weekend so my next step will be to go back and redraw all the modifications on the pattern (including the leg inseam modifications I thought I should make but didn't) and then make another pair to check that I have it right.

Although the 'after' pictures on the right look much lighter, these are indeed the same pair of wide leg black bengaline pants. I removed the wide, shaped waistband, took in the side seams, took in the leg inseams (more from the back than front) and re sewed the crotch. I took in the waist band and then sewed it back on. I think these are much better (though still not perfect!)

I took off the waistband, took in the side seams, took in the leg inseams and took quite a bit out the backseam all the way through the crotch, took in the waistband and then reattached it. pretty much teh same as above - lots of improvement, not perfect but certainly closer to the right fit.

I was tempted to set to on a skirt I wore the other day, but I managed to stop myself in the nick of time. I thoroughly recommend this focus on a single garment thing. I really feel like the subtleties of fit are much easier to see if you aren't distracted. I've also gotten a lot from a few books about fitting and alterations, such as Fast Fit, which demonstrates a range of common alterations for body shapes and problems. Very worth while.