Ginger Jeans The Second Time Around…

I can be very determined at times. After I made one pair of Ginger jeans (Closet Case Patterns), I thought that maybe “skinny jeans” weren’t for me. But, after seeing so many other people successfully complete them, I thought it would be worth the time and effort to make whatever adjustments were necessary to make them fit my body the way I wanted. Well, I’ve (almost) done it. I only say almost because there are a few small additional tweaks that I have already made to the pattern for the next pair. But these are really good. And there were quite a few changes I made based on the fit of the last pair I made (here ).

Ginger jeans

For this pair I:

widened the pant leg from the knee down to relieve tightness in the calf
put in a center back wedge to give more room in the seat
lengthened the center back seam
added a wedge to the top of the center back seam to lengthen it at the top so that the front and back seams would meet
and re-made the waistband and back yokes to give more curve for a better fit

This pair is the best yet that I’ve made. But, I have already decided that for the next pair I will shorten the crotch length just a bit (or make some adjustment to it) and trim a little off of the side hip area. The adjustments I made seem like a lot, but actually didn’t take much time. I used the resources I have and the information provided by Closet Case Patterns on making pant adjustments. I’m always looking to improve my skills and my outcomes so learning new ways is an ongoing process.

I’m really looking forward to making another pair!

By the way, the top in the photos is V9205 that I made here.

*This denim is similar to what I used, but lighter in color. What I used is sold out. HERE this is an affiliate link.

Skinny Jeans Adventure

I am not a person who has ever worn “skinny jeans” so I knew that making a pair would be an adventure. I used the “Ginger Mid-rise” skinny jean pattern from Closet Case Patterns. I absolutely love their Morgan boyfriend jean pattern so that’s why I chose this one.

I’m pretty pleased with the results. I can tell you that this style is not a favorite for me, I did end up with a good pair of jeans and I was glad to try the pattern that so many of you have used before. Like the Morgan jean, this pattern is really easy to follow. Because of the close fit, I did find myself making more adjustments (waist) than with the other pattern.

All in all, I would recommend this pattern to others. I made this pair from a stretch cotton twill. I used this as a wearable muslin since this will also help me to reduce some of my fabric stash! Other that the waist curve adjustment, I really didn’t make any changes to the pattern. They do have some great resources for jean making on the Closet Case website.

That’s all for now. Let me know what you’re working on…

Jalie #3461 Pull-on Jeans!

So, when I saw people raving about this pattern and these jeans, I knew I would have to give them a try. It’s been around 90 degrees here, so making jeans has not been a high priority for me. But now that I feel that Fall is coming, I wanted to get these done. And I am SO glad I did.

I have to say, these jeans are as great as everyone has said they are!

They are very comfortable and are just like jeans, but pull-on.

I used a stretch twill for these. I used this pair as a wearable muslin since I didn’t know how they would fit. While the pictures look like they are really pulling in the front, they don’t feel that way. You must make sure to use a fabric with the correct amount of stretch as the pattern tells you. I used the measurements on the envelope to determine my size and that’s what I made. I needed less adjustments with these than with regular jeans patterns. The only thing I did was to slightly pull in the elastic in the back in order to eliminate any back gap I might have (as is the case with regular jeans).

While there are no actual front pockets, the back pockets are real.

This is a pattern I can see making again. I’d like to find a patterned stretch twill or denim for the next pair.