i am Cassiopee, not for the first time

 I finally made this pattern with the recommended fabric. 

Here are the previous iterations in orla kiely and ice dyed fabric.  Size 36.

Rayon that's been in my stash with this fantastic print. I got it at Tessuti Fabrics when I was buying something else. The colour scheme isn't my usual and I thought it would be nice for a change.  

I shortened the dress a few inches, I shortened the sleeves to below the raglan attachment, enough that I thought it wouldn't gape when I raised my arms. 

I always sew down the facings but you know, I never thought about how I could make it a skinnier facing and sew it down closer to the edge.  I thought about that too late and didn't do it.

Pockets harvested from something else on my floor.  

It's really such an easy sew, there's not much to say.

 

 

I wore it that night to dinner.  I am finally happy with this pattern.  A fabric with no body is best suited to this very wide dress.  I see there's a new jersey option, which would be interesting.  It's so wide that I feel like you would need to narrow it to make a nice jersey dress though.  All the online pictures don't make it look as wide as I felt in my previous iterations! 

Anna Allen Helene Jeans pattern review

I think I had this pattern from the print shop last August, and the fabric was a splurge from Blackbird Fabrics last year...this is a clear example of the things I wanted to sew Right Now when I fell down the work and travel rabbit hole from October to June!  And oh, they are amazing.  Utterly fantastic.  All the jeans will be Helene jeans from now on.  Except for one more pair of Gingers, because my only pair are starting to fall apart and despite the terrible fit, I have worn them quite a bit with long shirts to hide the waist.

(On which topic, find the high rise Ginger pattern that has gone awol in mine or Tessa's stashes??  Or find a way to add some length to the top of the rise of the midrise pattern?  Also, will I finally suss out how to get rid of the extra fabric in the thighs?  And finally, why do people like those idiot tummy-stay pockets?)

Back on task. 

Made size 4, matches me on the size chart and is what I have usually made with Anna Allen patterns. 

This recycled denim is beautiful to look at but it has an oddly sticky feel at times while sewing.  Not when wearing - it's just fantastic feeling on.

32" inseam, slim straight version - I wanted to do the straight version but for some reason I didn't find the pattern pieces first and had already adjusted this one. 

Shortened rise a mere 1/2" because I compared it to the Persephone pants and the rise is like 2" lower in the front, so I didn't go crazy. 

I did, however, do a different crazy thing when cutting these out.  For some reason I decided I was Done With Leg Twist.  On the Cone Mills website they have a cutting layout to avoid leg twist and I used it.  I don't think that it uses more fabric to do things that way, although it does mean you can't use the selvedge. On which topic - how can you BOTH use the selvedge AND avoid leg twist?? 

(To find this link: Look up Cone Mills prevention of Leg twist and it will download the pdf with a diagram, also via Fashion incubator.)

Topstitching thread is Mara 70.  It's great on many things, but I think I can use heavier topstitching thread when I really want a nice topstitched effect. My Bernina can handle it, and this sort of vanishes into the fabric in places.  Rivets are KATM but I had to order them so they aren't in the pictures. 

The zippers in my stash were Riri "trouser" zips which I do think I bought specifically for this...back in October, in Switzerland, and the zip was a little too short. I made a tactical error of leaving a gap at the top of the zip.  Don't do this!!  The trouser zip is a bit hard to grab and bitey on my fingers, which I will survive, but the 1 cm gap at the top of the pants below the waistband is right where there is a heavy lateral pull anyway, and it worsens drag lines, pocket pulling, and pulls the front belly open.  All bad things. I will have to hand sew a little snap or hook in there.  

 Sorry these photos are rather poor.  I definitely don't think they display that these jeans are amazing.

Putting these together was relatively drama free. The zip fly instructions are not the best.  The Persephone add-on zip fly instructions are much better.  Overall, the Dawn Jeans instructions still win as the best jeans instructions EVER but these are still very good. 

And of course the final exciting shocker: these have the best butt and thigh fit I have ever gotten in any pants.  I read on a review that some people have been sad by how loose their Helenes are compared to the designer's photos.  I did not find this to be true at all.  I know there's all sorts of panty line in my photos, but these are not tight.  The butt and the thighs are supremely comfortable.  I have full range of motion in these, my butt feels lifted and supported, my thighs are cuddled, there's no excess fabric anywhere....it's shocking. 

I still need to do some work on the rise though, I think it's too high and as is always the problem with AA patterns, I can't get my hands into the pockets very easily. I will need to lower, maybe another 1" and then widen the top back up a bit.  It's not as easy as with Philippa pants, where I literally just cut off the top inch of the pattern.

I have dreamy designer fabric and for once I'm enthused to go straight in.  However, I've had thoughts.  I'm doing a different leg version - the straight leg I was more keen on.  And I'll actually size up to 6 but shorten 1.5" from the rise.  Thinking it will be a 30" inseam and I plan to leave the hems raw.  Unfortunately I already cut out all the pattern pieces as a size 4 so I've been a bit slowed by this!