Hello all, today is the final 'making of' post before the final reveal! I had my weld dyed wool and silk lining and it was time to get cracking with the trousers. As I didn't have a zip at my disposal (not British metal) I had to come up with another type of fastening. I looked at a couple of options, and found the technique that Megan Nielsen uses in her Flint trousers pattern with a concealed pocket opening to be my favourite.

First I needed a basic trouser pattern which I found in Winnie Aldrich's basic pattern cutting book. This I drafted to my measurements, cut out and sewed up in calico for a fitting. It turned out rather too tight at the hips (illustrated by the drag lines around that area) and a little gapey at the centre back (excess pinned out). 

The next step was to take them off, give myself some more room in the hips and pop them back on again. When this fit issue was remedied I moved on to the width of the legs. The width of the left leg was pinned closer to the leg than the right one and I decided that I liked the slightly looser leg. I also sat down in them just to be sure that they were comfortable to sit in. 

The shaded area below is how much I shaved off the width of the leg. 

In the holidays I ended up using this pattern to construct my checked trousers and to give it a bit of a trial run before I committed to my very expensive fabric. I ended up taking in the crotch slightly which I did in my final pair, and I also slimmed down the legs a bit. I left the legs as they were before this alteration for the final pair though. I think they hang much better in a weightier fabric. 

After the holidays I was then ready to get cracking on the real thing. The outer and the lining pieces were all cut out and put together. I french seamed the pockets with the lining so I wouldn't have wool rubbing against my skin. I made leather buttons from some of the leather scraps left over from making my clogs. They are actually quite irritating against the skin, so next time I would find something else to substitute them with. The buttons are only seen on the inside because they only thread I had available to me was the white silk thread that I used for my shirt, which would have been a logistical nightmare to dye. 

In the picture below you can see how the fastening works in practice. I ended up adding the ties at the last minute as a fix to stop the pocket from gaping slightly and I love the little design feature it brings to some very classic trousers. 

It feels very luxurious to have a pair of silk lined trousers, and next time I would find a slightly heavier weight silk as the wool can sometimes still feel a little prickly through the lining. First both the lining and the outer hems were attached to the cuffs but that was a bad idea because it resulted in them hanging very oddly. Now the lining and outer are hemmed seperately and are joined with swing tacks at the side seam and inseam. 

I had slight issues with the trouser cuffs, and realised after sewing them that they really needed a bit of negative ease to look any good, so out they came, width adjusted and in they went again. 

That's the last element of my outfit completed! Next you get to see the final ensemble worn so you can see how everything fits and looks together. 

Thanks for reading,

Lauren xx