I Made It Monday: Printed Pants Refashion

 

I was recently shopping at Big W and saw these pants on the clearance rack for $5.00!  I was immediately attracted to the soft fabric and the pretty blue print. 

Problem:  they weren't my size.  But that has never stopped me before! What was most important was that they were LONG - really long (due to the larger size I guess).

Here is the before shot (sorry, it was a sunny morning!):



Please note: I am in no way mocking wearers of these pants;
I'm simply demonstrating how they were not close to my size, making this an extreme refashion.

As I had plenty of fabric to work with I wasn't very delicate with my refashioning.  I cut up the inseam and the crotch seam.  I didn't want to take them in from the sides because they have pockets... and why would you mess with pockets?!  Also, the depth of the rise (crotch seam) was too long for me and by taking it all in I gave myself extra inseam length - bonus!

Here is how I did it:

I'm loving my new pants!!  Teamed here with a simple white tee, green earrings and tassel necklace (both made by me) and my super comfy Naturalizer sandals from last summer.

 

 

Photos c/o my wonderful Husband

Styling Boyfriend Pants 4 Ways

These pants were a happy mistake! 

I ordered them online from Old Navy for my husband, he's had previous pairs, but these were way too tight in the legs for his muscular thighs... like jeggings too tight, and that's not a good look for a man!

No free shipping or returns when you live in Australia!  So I kept them. 

I love the relaxed boyfriend style, the slight drop crotch (they are for a man!), the 36" inseam and the colour is perfection! 

For reasons unknown a woman can get away with wearing men's clothing but eyebrows sometimes raise if a man is wearing something made for a woman.  Obviously cut and fit is different for the genders, but if you find something you love & it fits you well it really doesn't matter if it's "male" or "female".

Enough about my thoughts on gender specific clothing... this post is about my new pants!

Just a proud Mama note: all of these shots were taken by my 3 year old daughter!  Forgive some of the creative angles!



I've offset the pants with a lace tee (from Big W, on sale for $1), leopard belt (made by me)
& some red heels (old Steve Madden)



She went for a bit of an action shot here, but you can see the detail of the lace &
leopard belt.
Still can't believe I got this top for $1!!!



More of a casual look with flats from Target and a tee from Mix Apparel
(on clearance at Coles) for $2! 
I've been on a roll with the bargain tops!

Being repeatedly told "Mama, you look so BOOOOtiful" does not get old.  Ever.



Another action shot!  My daughter was standing on a milk crate!

I'm trying out the half tuck.  Don't know how I feel about it. 
My head got cut off here, but hey, she's 3!

This pink gingham shirt (made by me) is the softest crinkly cotton, it's FAB! 



Then my photographer got distracted by a bird...



Wishing I'd cleaned my sneakers before photographing them... oh well, this is real life!

If you follow me on IG you'll have seen me wear this Lee Cooper shirt a LOT. 
I love it, it's old & really soft.  Paired it here with canvas sneakers from Target for an everyday casual look.

Photos c/o my wonderful & fabulously talented 3 year old daughter 
(typical overly proud Mama here!). 
Hubs may be out of a job!

Raid your husbands closet or when next shopping check out the men's department - you may just be surprised!

I Made It Monday - 50's Inspired Pants, self drafted

This week I made pants!

I have made a number of skirts, dresses and tops from self drafted patterns (for my non-sewist readers: self drafted means you make the pattern, it's not a purchased commercial pattern) however I have never attempted fitted pants.  I thought pants would be too tricky.

A lovely lady from my knitting group gifted me her 20+ year old Sure Fit Designs kits (they are still available, and I'd recommend them!) so I thought I'd give pants a go.

I love the 50's style high waisted cigarette style pants (sort of a jegging with a back zip!).  However, being tall it's hard to find them with a long enough rise (crotch length) - the tall girls know what I'm talking about!!

I used an inexpensive stretch denim to make a wearable muslin (sewing code for: wearable but okay to make many alterations on & junk if it all goes horribly wrong!).  After 4 fittings and rounds of alterations I was happy with the end result.

I was unsure about the high waist but they are so comfortable!  No muffin top to be found! 

Wool top: Country Road (old) / Pants: Made By Me / Shoes: Old

Photos c/o my wonderful Husband

What have you made with a self drafted pattern?

I Made It Monday - Wide Leg to Joggers Refashion

Whenever I'm not 100% sold on a trend I'll make / refashion it myself first before spending any money on something I may fall quickly out of love with.

If you follow me on IG you will have noticed that my style is fairly classic.  I do occasionally like to try new trends, but I always go back to the classics.

The joggers trend for example.  I like the look on other people, but wasn't sure about it for me.  Plus if I wanted a pair which was long enough I'd have to buy them online and I wanted to try them on first.  Oh the drama!

So I took a pair of wide leg pants that I wasn't that fussed on and refashioned them. 

Top: Long Tall Sally / Necklace: Made By Me
Pants: Made By Me / Shoes: Target

Here's how I did it:

1. Try pants on inside out & pin inside seam to desired width.  I started just above my knee and worked my way down. 

*Important tip* - make sure you leave the ankle opening wide enough to get your foot out!  I may or may not have (totally did) pinned myself into my pants then couldn't get them off.

2.  Sew along line of pins & try them on again to ensure you're happy before cutting off the excess fabric.  Finish seams.

3.  I added cuffs to the bottom of my pants rather than just making a casing to tread elastic at the bottom.  This gave me some extra length.  The cuffs I used were knit fabric.

Ta da!  An easy refashion from old wide leg pants to joggers. 

 

Photos c/o of wonderful Husband

I've already worn these pants more in their new life as joggers than I ever did when they were wide legged.

Have you embraced the joggers trend?

I Made It Monday - Making Pants Longer

Welcome back to I Made It Monday! 

We tall girls run into this problem all the time.  All.  The.  Time.  Pants which are not long enough.

I was given these pants by a well meaning loved one who said "they're really long"!.  But they weren't.  They are really comfortable with fabric that has great drape but they were too short.  I wore them around the house for a while - waiting for a flood - and decided to make them wearable outside the house!



Top: Long Tall Sally / Pants: Refashioned by Me / Necklace: Made By Me / Shoes: Old

This is a really easy way to make pants longer.  In fact, if you don't sew you can use iron on hemming tape to attach some feature fabric (just make sure you fold in the raw edges).  That's right - no sew! 

I sewed fabric to the hems of these pants.  Because blacks are impossible to match I went with a great floral print.  On a side note: this fabulous fabric was given to me by a dear friend who purchased it sometime in the 1970's!  I love it!  I've also made a skirt and top from it which will be featured in an upcoming post. 

To add length simply determine how much longer you want your pants and cut 2 rectangles that length plus seam allowances.  I let down the hems on the pants for maximum length.
Make sure the rectangle is as wide as your pant leg opening. 
Sew up the short side to make a tube.
Match right sides together on tube and pants, sew.
Finish raw edges and you're done!  Long pants!

Okay, so no more stick figures in the diagrams.

Photos c/o my wonderful Husband