Are you shocked that I'm finally making a summer item when it's near summer? Never fear...I started these in February. It's only on accident that they're being finished in a season-appropriate fashion.
This fabric is a lightweight wool that I found as a scrap from Nancy's Fabric Shop on Queen Anne in Seattle. It's a lovely shop to go into but similar to Global Fabrics in Wellington it can quickly eat up your money! The ladies there really know what they are doing and give thorough advice.
I figured this pair of Maritime shorts would be a muslin for another pair that I want to make in another heavy fabric - a beautiful tweed that I have found...but first things first. Everyone else had some fit issues with the shorts so I wasn't sure how mine would go. Based on chats I had with Lizzy, I cut out a 6 to start. I had some trouble figuring out the front pockets and I didn't feel like the Grainline photo tutorial helped at all. It just showed more pictures of the same confusing thing! Eventually I put all the pieces together in the right way, at least of the pockets, and I didn't have more trouble after that.
The rest of construction was straightforward until I got to the fly. I was making my dad's Burda trousers at the same time, and with similar pieces, but the very confusing instructions led me astray. (The Burda instruction should have helped, but didn't.) Something about my fly is wrong. It took me ages to figure this out, but shouldn't the zip be hidden by that bit of fabric?
Oh and that bit of striped ribbon? Yeah, that was where the waistband was totally not the same length as the lining...
Unfortunately these shorts languished while I was in Switzerland and so they became a bit of a UFO. They were finished in short order, with no real further problems. The waistband was too short. And funny shaped. I had initially put it together wrong but I'm pretty sure I fixed that, but still it has a few wrinkles - and again I found the directions less than helpful. I left my Thurlow pattern in New Zealand but I think I'll buy it again because it has the most straightforward pants explanations, and I prefer to do the stupid fly first and get it over with, rather than leaving it for last.
Sorry about the spots, my mother fixed the camera afterwards but didn't take any more back views.
The size six fit fine, and I didn't make any adjustments. I am not sure I love these enough to make a lot of them (mainly because I don't wear very many shorts except one hideous pink pair that will last me another 20 years) but I might try lengthening them first into knee-length shorts and see what I think.
These were done in time to wear them for Me-Made-May, hurrah!
This fabric is a lightweight wool that I found as a scrap from Nancy's Fabric Shop on Queen Anne in Seattle. It's a lovely shop to go into but similar to Global Fabrics in Wellington it can quickly eat up your money! The ladies there really know what they are doing and give thorough advice.
I figured this pair of Maritime shorts would be a muslin for another pair that I want to make in another heavy fabric - a beautiful tweed that I have found...but first things first. Everyone else had some fit issues with the shorts so I wasn't sure how mine would go. Based on chats I had with Lizzy, I cut out a 6 to start. I had some trouble figuring out the front pockets and I didn't feel like the Grainline photo tutorial helped at all. It just showed more pictures of the same confusing thing! Eventually I put all the pieces together in the right way, at least of the pockets, and I didn't have more trouble after that.
The rest of construction was straightforward until I got to the fly. I was making my dad's Burda trousers at the same time, and with similar pieces, but the very confusing instructions led me astray. (The Burda instruction should have helped, but didn't.) Something about my fly is wrong. It took me ages to figure this out, but shouldn't the zip be hidden by that bit of fabric?
Unfortunately these shorts languished while I was in Switzerland and so they became a bit of a UFO. They were finished in short order, with no real further problems. The waistband was too short. And funny shaped. I had initially put it together wrong but I'm pretty sure I fixed that, but still it has a few wrinkles - and again I found the directions less than helpful. I left my Thurlow pattern in New Zealand but I think I'll buy it again because it has the most straightforward pants explanations, and I prefer to do the stupid fly first and get it over with, rather than leaving it for last.
The size six fit fine, and I didn't make any adjustments. I am not sure I love these enough to make a lot of them (mainly because I don't wear very many shorts except one hideous pink pair that will last me another 20 years) but I might try lengthening them first into knee-length shorts and see what I think.
These were done in time to wear them for Me-Made-May, hurrah!
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