Stash busting: Knit Stirrup Pants / OOP Vogue 7630

Last month I made a pair of stirrup pants to wear while doing yardwork and hopefully prevent tick bites.  Yeah, that is a thing now.  But I digress.  The stirrup pants are so comfortable, I've been wanting to make another pair but not for yardwork, just for everyday sort of wear.  

This time around, I used a cotton knit fabric.  I like how they turned out, they feel like they have more ease than the first pair which was made with a non-knit fabric.  I could certainly tighten up that waistband elastic but I'm waiting to try these with the back brace on before I commit to cutting down the elastic.  The pants were shortened just like the first pair.  I did reshape the ankle side widths, used a machine blind hem along the edges and then added the elastic.  

Sewing IS Political

This is another Canadian made and tariff free project.  The fabric has been in the stash for many years, well before the convicted felon started threatening the world.   It came from Marshall Fabrics, a Canadian fabric outlet.  The Very Easy Very Vogue pattern is a made in the USA product but did not contribute to the convicted felon's economy.  It was a vintage find, circa 1989, purchased from a Canadian reseller.  The label is from Kylie and the Machine (KATM), an Australian company.  The scissors used in the making of these stirrup pants are from Merchant and Mills, a U.K. company and were purchased at The Workroom, a Canadian fabric outlet.  The threads and elastic were pulled from the stash, purchased at Fabricland, another Canadian fabric outlet.  

Project details

Seams:  Knit (lightening bolt) stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  1.8 metres

Elastic:  0.8 metres

Label:  1--"me made" KATM label

Pattern:  OOP and vintage Vogue 7690, circa 1989

Additional Tools and Supplies:  Cutting table, pins, pin cushion, tailor's chalk, measuring tape, scissors, thread clippers, canned air, Janome 4120 QDC sewing machine, regular presser foot, threads, Janome AirThread 2000D serger, safety pin, clips and warm milk with honey.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep sewing.  

Stash Busting: Pull-on Wool Pants / OOP Simplicity 2372

This pair of wool pull-on pants has been gifted.  They are made with out-of-print (OOP) Simplicity 2372.  I don't know what to say about them because there have been a few versions made over the years.  I will mention that I had to go back to the very first pair made with this pattern and copy how the elastic waist was created.  

The first pair did not work out in that the waistline was too short.  I made a waistband to hold the elastic on the first pair and increased the height to fix the issue on other pairs that followed.  But it appears that the first pair was the most comfortable of the bunch.  So, instead of a casing for the elastic made by folding over and stitching, there is an attached waistband for the elastic.  I left off the side pockets like on the first pair as well.  

The only difference is the quality of the fabric.  It is a beautiful wool suiting fabric from another era.  I would be hard pressed to find, let alone afford wool suiting fabric of this quality now-a-days.  It really was a joy to sew.  The fabric was pre-treated with the towel method in the dryer (on the delicate setting) followed by a steam pressing before hitting the cutting table.  

Sewing IS Political

This is another Canadian made and tariff free sewing project.  The beautiful wool suiting fabric was picked up at Mitchell Fabric's closing sale about a decade ago.  Mitchell Fabrics was a Canadian Fabric outlet.  The Simplicity pattern is a U.S.A. product that has been in the stash since 2012, pre-boycott.  The fabric scissors used to cut this project are from Merchant and Mills, a U.K. company and were purchased from The Workroom, a Canadian fabric outlet.  The threads were pulled from the stash and were purchased at Fabricland, another Canadian fabric outlet.  

Project details

Seams:  3.0 straight stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  2 metres, 100% wool suiting fabric

Elastic:  1.2 metre

Sewing label:  1--"YOU CAN'T BUY THIS" label

Sewing pattern:  OOP Simplicity 2372, circa some time in the 2000's.  

Additional Tools & Supplies:  Cutting table, measuring tape, tailor's chalk, pins, pin cushion, measuring gauge, fabric scissors, Janome 4120 QDC sewing machine, walking foot, regular presser foot, blind hem foot, Janome AirThread 2000D serger, threads, thread clipper, iron, ironing board, tailor's ham, pressing mitt, safety pin and tea.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep sewing.   

What The Fudge, Nike and Converse

I'm not going to repost the disgusting and sickening ad that has Converse shoes in the news.  If you want to read about it, here is a link to an article.  It is racist and is worthy of a boycott and should also call for Converse's President and CEO, Aaron Cain, to step down.  Their so called apology is as equally as insulting.  

And it feels, as it should, as empty words.  The ad is out there, people around the world have seen it and are rightfully horrified that such an image made it into the world.  Karina, a South Korean member of a musical group called Aespa is featured in the ad.  How did she even think that this was appropriate?  I have no words.  My heart aches for those living with generational trauma and were hurt by this ad.  Everyone should be hurt by the callousness of this ad.  

And now I confront my own shoes, newly washed and worn in.  They are comfortable and disgusting to look at.  I have no desire to slip my feet into them again.  Let along walk around and advertise these brands with each footstep.  Nike and Converse are American brands and there is a boycott already happening due to the annexation rhetoric and tariffs from the convicted felon but this boycott is something that will last longer than the tariff war.  As for the shoes, they're going in the trash.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep sewing.  

It Feels Like a New Robe!

About seven years ago, I made this robe and for the past year, I haven't worn it.  Actually, I didn't wear it often for a couple of reasons.  The length was too long and I would trip on it when walking upstairs.  So I cut the hem length shorter.  

The sleeves are also too long and even though they were meant to be rolled up, I found it too cumbersome to wear that way.  I could either donate it or try to fix the sleeves.  It has been sitting in the donation pile for months but something was holding me back from letting it go.  

I knew this would be an easy alteration if I would get over my fear of removing those hard to see stitches.  My fear was damaging the fabric.  

I mustered up some courage and a seam ripper and got to work.  Sometimes you just have a vision of lounging in an armchair by a fireplace with a good book and a latte wrapped up in an oversized cozy robe.  So not my life but I digress.  I got to work to make this robe fit into my real life.  

There is a small hole from removing the hem on the sleeves, adding one more fix to the mix.  

The sleeves once opened had seven inches cut from the length and were stitched back up with an inch and a half hem.  The length that was cut off from one of the sleeves were transformed into pockets, something that I did not sew originally on the robe.  The other length made two face clothes.  

Tools and Supplies:  Cutting table, fabric scissors, seam ripper, thread clippers, Janome 4120 QDC sewing machine, walking foot, Janome AirThread 2000D serger, threads and coffee.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep sewing.  

Stash busting: Merino Wool Sleeveless Turtleneck Sweater / OOP Vogue 7323

Out-of-print (OOP) and vintage Vogue 7323 has been in the stash for about a year waiting for a decision on a fabric.  There was enough left-over fabric from this cardigan project to make the sleeveless top.  And now, I have a sweater set.  I didn't set out to make one, but happily, here we are.  

It wasn't all smooth sailing on what looks like a simple project.  The initial plan was to make view B, the turtleneck with long sleeves.  The fact that there wasn't enough fabric to cut all the pattern pieces lead to a plan to use some left-over wool from this sweater for the back and cut the front, collar and sleeves in the ivory wool.  My heart wasn't into a colour-blocking project.  That is when plans changed to sewing view C instead.  

I didn't want a "close-fitting" top with a back zipper.  The centre back seam was removed and cut on the fold easing the pattern piece out one and a half inches from the hemline foldline.  Then I needed to add another 5/8" width to the collar back edges.  The front centre hemline has the same amount of additional ease as the back.  And the waistline curve at the side seams was removed providing even more ease.  

I wasn't sure if the extra ease to the neckline and collar would be enough to eliminate the zipper and make this a pull-over top.  Thankfully, it worked out.  It was however tricky to sew the collar into the neckline.  Would you believe I had to use a seam ripper on the merino wool fabric to correct some puckering?    

All thanks to God, I was able to fix this without stabbing a hole into this beautiful merino wool.  Seriously, all thanks to God.  

Sewing IS Political

This is another Canadian made and tariff free sewing project.  The fabric came into the stash years ago from Winnipeg Sews, a now closed Canadian fabric reseller.  The Vogue sewing pattern is a product of the U.S.A., and is a vintage find dating back to the Clinton era.  It was purchased last year from a Canadian reseller and was not subject to tariffs.  The scissors used to cut the project were made in Taiwan and were purchased from Fabricland, a Canadian fabric outlet.  The threads were all pulled from the stash and were not new purchases.  

 

Project details

Seams:  Knit (lightening bolt) stitch

Seam finish:  Serged and Coverstitched

Fabric:  1.1 metres

Pattern:  OOP and vintage Vogue 7323, circa 2000.  

Additional Tools and Supplies:  Cutting table, pins, pin cushion, fabric scissors, measuring tape, measuring gauge, tailor's chalk, threads, thread clippers, Janome sewing machine 4120 QDC, Janome AirThread 2000D serger, Janome 1000CP Coverstitch machine, iron, iron board, tailor's ham, hand sewing needle and a seam ripper.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep sewing.  

Designer, Bob Mackie

Source:  Photo Credit: Harry Langdon/Getty Images

Today is a sad day in the designing and sewing world, Robert Gordon Mackie passed away.  He is known as Bob Mackie in the fashion and theatre world, an Emmy and Tony award winning fashion and costume designer.  

I grew up watching Bob Mackie's designs come to life on the television way back-in-the-day.  My first introduction to his designs came into my orbit via The Sonny and Cher Show and The Carol Burnett Show.  I just dated myself.  

Source:  The dress concept was Bob Mackie's idea and it is current in the The Smithsonian. 

Mackie designed for many other big name celebrities as well, you can read about his influence on the entertainment world in the many touching tributes that are popping up today.  

But did you know that Bob Mackie also designed sewing patterns for McCall's in the late seventies and early eighties?  Here's is a look back at his contribution to the home sewing community.  

Rest in peace Bob Mackie.  Thank you for the wit, glamour and inspiration that you brought into our sewing rooms through your designs.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep sewing.  

Labour Day

Source:  Women shirtwaist makers, 1909

Courtesy of Kheel Center, Cornell University

This weekend, actually today, we're celebrating Labour Day.  There is a lot to be grateful for in the Labour movement.  There are many reasons to thank a union from laws ending child labour and sweatshops to pensions and health benefits.  But today, with trade wars and billionaires actively attacking workers rights it feels like there is more to fight for rather than celebrate.  We're living in an eerie time of AI art that is disrupting workplaces and creativity.  Even sewing factory workers and creatives are not immune from being replaced with robots.  

So what does this mean for us that sew as a creative outlet, a labour of love?  Will there be a backlash?  There has been so many changes in the sewing and creative industry.  What will never change is the joy, that labour of love that is obtained and embraced when a needle and thread is held between our fingers and moved through a piece of cloth.  

"Hands that create deserve our applause."

Inhale, exhale, pick up a needle and keep sewing.  And celebrate a Happy Labour Day.  

Scrap busting: Kyoto Vest / Tessuti Patterns

This is my wearable toile version of the Kyoto Vest by Tessuti Patterns.  

The pattern has been sitting in the stash for nearly a decade.  I don't know why it took so long to finally sew up this project.  Maybe it was fear of cutting into the boiled wool or cotton fleece sitting in the stash without knowing if the pattern would work?  Silly me, just like the Eva and Lily dress patterns by Tessuti Patterns, the Kyoto Vest is a gem.  It's quite simple to sew, only one pattern piece.  There are no side seams.  The edges are supposed to be finished with binding.  The pattern has wonderful instructions and photos on how to finish this vest.  However, I didn't follow them and finished the edges with the rolled hem feature on my serger.  

I pieced together the left-over fabric from this coat project.  Not quite enough length but I did patch together pieces to make enough yardage and get this cut out.  I trimmed the seam allowance and then top-stitched along the seam using my Coverstitch machine.  If I was more caffeinated during the cutting and piecing process, I would have sewn the seam with wrong sides together instead of right sides together, this way the top-stitching would have been on the wrong side of the fabric on that big beautiful shawl collar.  None-the-less, I'm just being picky, I'm thrilled with how it turned out.  I will be wearing this toile for sure.  If I make another, I think I might lengthen the shorter version a bit or give the longer version a try.  

Sewing IS Political

This is another Canadian made and tariff free project.  The incredibly beautiful and warm wool coating fabric came from Winnipeg Sews, a now-closed Canadian fabric reseller.  It came with a tag dating it all the way back to 1984, this is a vintage treasure.  I'm sad they're closed and that this type of quality fabric is rare to find.  A trip to Fabricland to see the new fall offerings recently was a huge disappointment as many of the labels were polyester, polyamide and viscose blends.  I did not find a mention of wool in the new selections offered this year.  But I digress.  The fabric scissors used were from Merchant and Mills and were purchased from The Workroom, another Canadian fabric outlet.  The threads used in the sewing machine, Coverstitch and serger were Gütermann Threads and are labelled as made in Greece.  They have been in the stash for quite some time as Gütermann Threads stopped labelling where their threads are made.  This lack of transparency is so not cool.  The threads were purchased at Marshall Fabrics, a Canadian fabric outlet.  

Project details

Seams:  3.0 straight stitch + coverstitching to patch together pieces

Seam finish:  Serged + rolled hem

Fabric:  0.40 metres + remnant pieces stitched together (the pattern calls for 0.90 metres of fabric for the short version)

Pattern:  Kyoto Vest by Tessuti Patterns, circa 2017

Additional Tools and Supplies:  Cutting table, pins, pin cushion, tailor's chalk, ruler, tracing paper, pencil, paper scissors, fabric scissors, Janome 4120 QDC sewing machine, walking foot, Jean-a-ma-jag™, Janome AirThread 2000D serger, threads, thread clippers, Janome 1000CP, iron, iron board, clapper, snacks and good tunes.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep sewing.  

Scrap busting: Cotton Panties / OOP Simplicity 8229

There wasn't an urgent need to sew anymore pieces of underwear, just a wee bit of left over cotton knit fabric to use up.  This white cotton knit used in this project is left-over from this slip project completed last month.  There was enough left over fabric and picot elastic in the stash to make two more pairs of panties.  The pattern:  out-of-print (OOP) Simplicity 8229.  This has been a go-to panties pattern for several years now and is highly recommended.  

Sewing IS Political

This is another Canadian made and tariff free project.  The fabric had been in the stash for decades and came from Fanny Fabrics, a long-time closed Canadian fabric outlet.  The elastic, found in the stash, came from Marshall Fabrics, a Canadian fabric outlet.  The scissors were from Fabricland, another Canadian fabric outlet.  The cotton thread used in the sewing machine are Gutermann threads, made in Germany.  It has been in the stash that long!  Gutermann threads were appearing in the fabric stores labelled "made in USA," but lately there is no longer any country of origin label on their spools.  Not cool Gutermann.  In a time of global tariff wars, this is important information that affect consumer decisions about price increases and quality.  The spools used in the serger have also been in the stash for many years, and did not contribute to the convicted felon's tariff economy. The serger threads are Surelock brand, made in India, by Madura Coats Private for Coats and Clark in Charlotte, North Carolina.  Oh what a tangled web these threads weave.  All of the threads were found at Fabricland.  

Project details

Seams:  Knit (Lightening bolt) stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  0.8 metres (made 2 pairs)

Pattern:  OOP Simplicity 8229

Additional Tools and Supplies:  Cutting table, fabric scissors, pins, pin cushion, Janome 4120 QDC sewing machine, walking foot, thread clippers, threads, iron, ironing board, Janome AirThread 2000D serger, good tunes and coffee.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep sewing.  

Weekly Mending Pile

Another mending Monday--a portion of the day devoted to examination of existing garments, sewing up broken seams, reattaching or securing loose buttons, re-stitching fallen hems and adjusting fit of pieces that still have some life in them.  

There hasn't been a whole lot of new sewing projects hitting the sewing machine lately, even though there are cut projects sitting on the side and thoughts of new projects floating around. 

First up are these black wool knit Palazzo pants that were made back in March.  I thought to leave the hem unfinished but they made it to the mending pile to take 5/8" off the left leg and hem them with a half inch cover stitched hem.  

Next up was a pajama top that was missing a button.  I misplaced the orange button that fell off and just went with whatever I could find in the stash that matched the size of the buttonhole.  I'm good with the mismatched button.  

And then this decade old dress hit the mending pile.  It has held up well over the years and only ended up on the mending pile because the a section of the blind hem was coming down. The request was made for a top-stitched hem.  

Next up is to take a look at the stitch length inconsistency that is happening with my Janome 4120 QDC sewing machine.  This is how a 3.0 stitch length is coming out, something is off.  The machine might need some TLC as well.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep sewing.  

 

Stash Busting: Cotton Sateen Curtains

One more set of curtains rolled off the worktable this weekend.  This pair is made out of 100% cotton sateen sheet fabric.  I'm not upcycling here, this is a new fabric that I pulled from the stash.  Well, not really new, its been there for years.  But I digress.  

The open panel shown here is one 1/2 of the width of the fabric.  I actually cut it down the centre.  Same finishing as the previous version, a three inch upper casing for the curtain rod and a two inch hem.  

Sewing IS Political

This is one more Canadian made and tariff free project.  The fabric was in the stash for many years and was discovered in the home décor section at Marshall / Northwest Fabrics, a western Canadian fabric outlet.  The thread was pulled from the stash and is another item that has been there for years since I stopped purchasing Coats and Clark thread.  The fabric scissors used to cut the fabric are Merchant and Mills, a U.K. company and were purchased from The Workroom, another Canadian fabric outlet.   

Project details

Seams:  3.0 straight stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  1.5 metres

Additional Tools & Supplies:  Cutting table, fabric scissors, ruler, measuring gauge, measuring tape, Janome 4120 QDC sewing machine, Janome AirThread 2000D serger, threads, walking foot, thread clippers, iron, ironing board, back brace and tea.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep sewing.   

Stash and Scrap Busting: Back-up Curtains

 

There was quite a bit of yardage of this home décor fabric in the stash.  There was not fixed project in mind other than it was a discounted to the point that I couldn't resist the bargain.  It first made an appearance here last week when I made a pair of curtains.  And at that point I knew that I was going to make a second pair.  Tada!  

I still have 0.49 metre left over and I think I will be able to squeeze out one more reusable grocery bag with the last bit of fabric, we'll see.  

Sewing IS Political

This is another Canadian made and tariff free set of curtains.  The stash fabric was discovered at Fabricland, a Canadian fabric outlet.  All the measuring tools (ruler, measuring gauge, measuring tapes) used have been in the workroom from a pre-trade war era.  The Gütermann threads used in the sewing machine and serger were sitting in the stash and are products of the U.S., purchased prior to the convicted felon's 2.0 tariff war.  The threads were purchased at Fabricland and future thread purchases will, obviously, have to be scrutinized more closely.  Maple washing is not just happening at the grocery store.  The fabric scissors are from Merchant and Mills, a U.K. company and were purchased at The Workroom, another Canadian fabric outlet.  

Project details

Seams:  3.0 straight stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  3 metres

Additional Tools and Supplies:  Cutting table, fabric scissors, tailor's chalk, straight ruler, measuring tape, measuring gauge, Janome 4120 QDC sewing machine, walking foot, Janome AirThread 2000D serger, thread clippers, ironing board, iron, back brace, pins and pin cushion.  

Stand strong, support local, elbows up and keep sewing.  

Book Review

How to Sew Clothes:  Learn with Intuitive, Super-Hackable Patterns

by Amelia Greenhall and Amy Bornman

ISBN:  978-1-4197-6202-4

Published by Abrams, 2023

Canadian price $50.00

208 pages.  

This is a book that I spotted in the book store and its the quilted jacket on the front that actually caught my interest.  In my sewing dreams, I would like to sew a quilted jacket.  In reality, I couldn't bring myself to cut a quilt.  But I digress.   

The hefty price tag for simple patterns lead me to the library to check out the book further.  I was surprised to find this is more than simple patterns.  

This is a wonderful book for encouraging one to start sewing regardless of their sewing knowledge and skill.  Absolutely believe this to be a treasure for those starting out on a sewing journey and wanting to build up their confidence along the way.  Greenhall and Bornman offer practical advice for sourcing materials and making the basic patterns into your own style.  

The patterns included in the back of the book are simple, boxy shaped clothes making them forgiving in terms of fitting issues.  I did enjoy reading the well thought out advice and options provided in the book.  This book and along with the patterns are geared to the beginner.  No pants pattern found in the offerings but there is a section that suggests some pants styles to attempt on your own.  There are lots of photographs and illustrations to help encourage creativity.  I wouldn't add it to my personal sewing library just because I have enough books on this hobby.  But I wouldn't discourage anyone from picking it up and checking it out.  

Stand strong, elbows up, support local and keep sewing.  

Monday's Mending Pile

Well, this mending item was unexpected.  Just when you think you're all caught up, something else makes its way to the pile.  

The duvet came out of the wash a little lighter and the dryer revealed that it's shedding feathers.  Again!  I just patched up some holes about five months ago and today I discovered more spots to patch.  Once the holes were located, I used the sewing machine to close them up.  Despite the duvet becoming a wee bit thinner (lol, I didn't lose that many feathers), it's nice to have this piece of bedding back in use.  

Stand strong, elbows up, support local and keep mending.  

Stash busting: Another Curtain Project

Here's the latest curtain project.  I really like this blue printed cotton fabric.  The plan was to turn this fabric into a dress with my eye on McCall's 8090.  And then once again, plans changed.  The fabric was used for a set of kitchen curtains.  The lightweight 100% cotton fabric was previously pretreated with a tumble in the washing machine and dryer and was ready to hit the cutting table.  

Sewing IS Political

This is another Canadian made and tariff free sewing project.  The fabric has been in the stash before the convicted felon's tariff and trade war.  These are times for sewing the stash or just plain reconsidering a project as fabric prices continue to increase.  Even threads are hit with price increases that makes one reconsider colour matching.  A close enough colour of thread will do just fine, as in this case (blue thread for top-stitching and beige threads for the serger).  The fabric was an end of the season discounted item from many moons ago.  I found this fabric at Fabricland, a Canadian fabric outlet.  The Gütermann threads were pulled from the stash and also came from Fabricland.  The fabric scissors used to cut out this project are from Merchant and Mills, a U.K. company and were purchased from The Workroom, another Canadian fabric outlet. 

Project details

Seams / Top-stitching:  3.0 straight stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:   2.5 metres

Additional Tools & Supplies:  Cutting table, pins, pin cushion, tailor's chalk, measuring tape, ruler, fabric scissors, Janome 4120 QDC sewing machine, walking foot, Janome AirThread 2000D serger, threads, thread clippers, measuring gauge, iron, ironing board and tea.  

Stand strong, elbows up, support local businesses and keep sewing.  

Stash busting: New Curtains

This is a simple project after measuring and cutting out the fabric.  This gifted project came to be after it was spotted in the stash and dreams of new curtains started to materialize.  I, on the other hand, saw this fabric at the store as a potential coating toile fabric or perhaps some more reusable grocery bag fabric.  The curtain project won in claiming this fabric.  And I think they turned out lovely, so I am glad that plans changed along the way.  

The fabric was a discounted bargain find in the home décor department.  It was such a great bargain that I bought the remaining bolt deciding that I will figure out its future at a later time.  It now looks like another set of curtains will be made with the remaining yardage.  The curtains are fifty-four inches long, have a two inch hem on the bottom and a three inch opening on top for the curtain road.  

Sewing IS Political

This is another Canadian made and tariff free project.  Everything used to make these curtains were found in the stash.  The fabric was a bargain find in the home décor section at Fabricland, a Canadian fabric outlet.  No pattern needed but the measuring tools used to measure the fabric has been in the stash for years, circa pre-Trumpian economic warfare.  The scissors used to cut the fabric are from Merchant and Mills, a U.K. company and were purchased from The Workroom, another Canadian fabric outlet.  The threads are all Gütermann threads pulled from the stash.  

Project details

Seams / Topstitching:  3.0 straight stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  3 metres

Additional Tools & Supplies:  Cutting table, pins, pin cushion, tailor's chalk, fabric scissors, rulers, measuring tape, measuring gauge, Janome 4120 QDC sewing machine, walking foot, Janome 2000D AirThread serger, threads, thread clippers, iron, ironing board and a good cup of Canadian coffee.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep sewing.  

Monday's Mending Pile

Back in January, I made this top and it hung in the closet until it was reluctantly moved to the donation pile.  And that made me sad because it's made with the most gorgeous silk.  I pulled it out of the donation pile this weekend trying to save it from that horrible decision.    

You see, I thought that if I made it oversized that I would get a lot of wear while wearing the back brace.  And then the back brace was modified and I no longer have a piece of hard plastic riding up my left underarm.  Ahhh, the freedom!  

So I thought, if I just create a centre back pleat maybe it would be a better fit?  

It turned out to be a simple fix and for the first time in a long time, it's back in rotation.  I'm grateful that I was able to rescue this one.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep mending.  

Trending and Stash Busting: Stirrup Pants / OOP and Vintage Vogue 7630

Honestly, I had no idea that stirrup pants were trending this year.  And I swear I didn't go searching for a stirrup pants pattern to be trendy.  Here in the Canadian prairies, land of sweatpants, jeans, and shorts with t-shirts country, we're not well known for being a trendy or a fashion centre.  

This project ended up on the work table because I am trying to find yardwork clothing that will keep me covered up to, hopefully, prevent tick bites.  Something I can tuck into a pair of work socks and rain boots.  Man, I miss winter.  And words can not adequately express how much I miss the tick free summers of my youth.  But I digress.  This is not a post about climate change.  But here I am sewing clothes because of the effects of climate change.  

History of Stir-up Pants

Stirrup pants are a tapered style of pants with its signature feature of a strap or loop attached to the hem that sits under the foot.  This design feature helps to anchor the pants in place and prevent it from riding upwards.  They became popular as equestrian clothing in the late 19th century and were adopted as women's riding wear in the 1920s.  In the following decade this style of pants moved into other sports, such as skiwear, marked with an appearance in the 1936 Winter Olympics.  

In the 1950s and 1960s, stirrup pants remained in wardrobes moving into casual everyday wear.  

Stirrup pants returned to its athletic roots and reinvented itself into aerobics wear in the 1980s where its evolution continued into a mainstream fashion wear.  The pants became known as a wardrobe staple moving from sports and dance spaces into everyday wear.  

And then it quietly disappeared from our everyday wardrobes, but not for long.  Stirrup pants are showing up on fashion runways and according to British Vogue, stirrup pants "are replacing tailored trousers."  I'm not ready to go that far, these stirrup pants are entering the wardrobe as strictly work pants styled with rubber boots not heels as styled on the fashion runways.  

I was over the moon when I found this vintage pattern, OOP Vogue 7630.  The closest thing to stir-up pants found on the Simplicity website are patterns for leggings.  But there are a lot of stirrup pants patterns found via Etsy and eBay resellers of vintage Burda, Vogue and Kwik Sew patterns from back-in-the-day.  

The fabric is a medium weight woven cotton with some stretch.  The fabric's stretch did not meet the pattern envelope stretch guide suggested amount of stretch, but none the less, this fabric worked out well for the pattern.  The fabric was previously pretreated with a tumble in the washing machine and dryer before hitting the ironing board for a press.  

There were some alterations to the pattern.  They were shortened a lot!  I'm not hitting five feet at this stage of my life's journey and if I wanted the ankle design to work on the stirrup there was some adjustments to be made.  The casing for the elastic was sewn with a one and a half turn down and I used a one and a quarter inch elastic.  I made these in a size sixteen since my fabric didn't meet the recommended stretch and cut the crotch and ankle curve at a size fourteen.  I could have cut the crotch at the size twelve line but instead if I revisit this pattern, I will shorten the crotch length.  Again, Vogue patterns are not designed for the petites in mind.  This pattern did not contain any finished measurements on the pattern pieces and thankfully, the adjustments worked out just fine.  

Sewing IS Political

This is another Canadian made and tariff free project as the convicted felon throws more tariffs at Canada.  [Insert eye roll here.]  But I again digress.  Everything with the exception of the pattern was found in the stash.  The fabric has been in the stash for years and was found in the discount section of Fabricland, a Canadian fabric outlet.  The vintage Vogue pattern, circa 1989, was a recent Etsy find purchased from a fellow Canadian.  The fabric scissors are from Merchant and Mills, an U.K. company and were purchased from The Workroom, another Canadian fabric outlet.  The elastic was also pulled out of the stash, not sure where it was purchased, could be Fabricland?  The label is from Kylie and the Machine (KATM), an Australian company and were purchased from another Canadian Etsy seller.  Side note:  KATM labels are now shipping from Canada--Yippeee!  This means domestic shipping and no extra fees or tariffs to pay.  And the thread, all pulled from the stash, are cotton Gütermann threads and were purchased at Fabricland.  

Project details

Seams:  2.8 straight stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  2.10 metres

Elastic:  1.10 metres

Pattern:  OOP and Vintage Vogue 7630, circa 1989

Label:  1 -- "MAKE ᐧ WEAR ᐧ WASH ᐧ REPAIR"--KATM label

Additional Tools & Supplies:  Cutting table, paper scissors, fabric scissors, pins, wrist pin cushion, tailor's chalk, Janome 4120 QDC sewing machine, Janome AirThread 2000D serger, walking foot, safety pin, threads, thread clippers, cello music and coffee.  

Stand strong, elbows up and keep sewing.