A Pants Hack

Hello there! A recent post was about some life changes and my upcoming sewing plans. Well, speaking of life changes(!), as you might know, I've had to scrap the plans for my daughter's back-to-the-classroom wardrobe! Why? Well, for one of the best reasons possible. She and her husband are expecting their first child! I'm going to be a grandmother--and I'm still wrapping my head around that.

I am so happy for them. They will be wonderful parents and I want to do what I can to support them. I'm thinking babysitting, meal prep, hugs, whatever--but particularly sewing! Now, as you may know, Mehetabel (my not-her-real-name daughter) is 6 feet tall, and regular patterns always need to be adjusted. Throw pregnancy into the mix, and that adds another challenge. A challenge, yes, but not insurmountable! 

When they first talked about trying to get pregnant, I looked around for maternity patterns. There was nothing in the big four books! I found some current, independent patterns, and made some purchases. I also looked at eBay, Etsy, etc., to look for out-of-print and/or vintage-ish patterns, and made some more purchases. I didn't know what time of year all this would hopefully happen, but now I do: mostly winter. 

I should also mention that I still have many of the patterns I used when I was pregnant in the early-80s. I doubt Mehetabel would want any of those--including Nolan Miller's Linda Evans/Dynasty maternity patterns. I was also pregnant in a much warmer climate and primarily during the spring and summer, so our clothing needs were and are completely different.

On YouTube, several people have videos about how to hack RTW jeans for pregnancy. What a brilliant idea! I immediately bought a pair of Levi's on sale in Mehetabel's size--I could not find any RTW maternity jeans online that would be long enough, so this hack seemed like the answer.  Instead of winging it, I decided to use the stomach panel pattern pieces from a recently purchased older pattern: Butterick 5964. The rather cryptic information on the back of the pattern said to purchase fabric with 15% lycra/spandex for the stomach panel which wasn't easy to find. I did find some--only in gray--at Surge Fabrics online. I quickly bought some and awaited my package.

I was nervous about cutting into the jeans, but nothing ventured, nothing gained. I used the pattern pieces to trace out the area to be removed, and used the stomach panel pieces to cut out the 15% spandex tummy piece. 

Sewing was a breeze. I sewed the panel piece on my regular machine using a stretch stitch, and finished the seams with the serger. I considered doubling the fabric as shown in one of the videos, but I was worried that that would make the garment too hot. So, using the pattern's instructions, I finished off the top of the panel but with my coverstitch rather than the regular stitch of the instructions. By the way, the panel fabric has 50 UPF protection, so her stomach won't get burned!

This was a super quick and easy project. The jeans fit Mehetabel well, and she's pleased with them. Although, if I make them again, I will probably start the tummy panel a little higher up and leave a little more of the front fly. Who knows if these jeans fit her throughout the pregnancy, but we'll find out!

Next up, I'm either going to make some gray jeans for me, or pants--or--a top--for Mehetabel. Definitely on the list: more maternity clothes. Who knows what I'll make?!

Thank you for your kind comments following my recent news. I am recovering very well and am looking forward to new challenges.

Until next time ~ Grammy Peggy

Conference Capsule: A Dress with a Difference!

Well, I'm back. I thought I would be back sooner, but life.  It's all good. Wonderful, in fact. In my last post, I'd written about sewing some outfits for my daughter to wear on hot fall days and nights. My daughter read that post, and she mentioned that I might need to re-think the whole concept. Hmmm. I'll wait a bit before I tell you why. You'll probably guess.

She did need some new clothes for a conference she was attending in Idaho. The other dresses I made were no longer comfortable, so I set out to make something appropriate for her.

I thought about a lot of different options, like the Tilly and the Buttons Indigo Dress, the Love Notions Pemberley Dress, and the Pattern Emporium Every Day's a Weekend Dress. But then I decided just to use the same bodice mash-up I'd used before, blogged here and here. But this time, I cut 3 inches off the length of the bodice. Instead of the flared skirt with a fitted waist I'd used before, I made two rectangles at 26" x 35" for the skirt, and I made smaller and shorter bodice ties.

The bodice was underlined with a mystery knit lining. I added stay tape to the shoulders and a stretch stitch on the seams which were then finished with the serger. The hems were done on the coverstitch machine. I added facings to the neckline to finish it, and they were hand sewn to the underlining.

Here's the finished garment--and it's a success! So after whipping up this first version out of this "Famous Dress Designer" polka dot ITY fabric from Fabricmart Fabrics, I wanted to make another one out of a pretty floral border print ITY from fabric.com. But I ran out of time!

So, do you know why she nixed my earlier wardrobe plans? That's right. She's expecting a baby boy in the spring! She's in her second trimester now. She's got her energy back and is thriving. I am so happy for her and Aloysius. They'll be wonderful parents!

Now you know why the plans have changed. Drastically. I have some maternity patterns in my stash, including ones I used in the 80s. However, I was heavily pregnant in the very hot summer, and her biggest times will be in the snowy winter and early spring. Also, the patterns I used were big and billowy--as things were at the time. Shoulder pads? No problem! Want to dress like a pregnant Princess Di? Sure! But those patterns just don't cut it for the here and now. And I knew Mehetabel wouldn't need a full-term maternity dress for the conference because while her other dresses were too snug in the tummy, she wasn't ready for a big waistline or dipping front hem. This change to the previous conference pattern worked just fine for her then 4 month belly.

Here she is in situ at the conference about a month ago:

That's it for now. Thank you for reading and thank you for your kind words on my last post. I really do hope to be back on the blog soon! Take care ~ Peggy