I am usually a skinny jeans girl, but the idea of having a pair of well-fitting sailor-style wide legged trousers to stomp around in really piqued my interest; enter Shannon.

Trouser fitting is something that I have become quite adept at (out of necessity), and I have a standard set of fit adjustments to account for my long crotch, wide hips, round bottom and long legs (TMI?). I found after making my usual adjustments to the size 8 pattern and toiling the result that the pattern seemed to be drafted for a more petite figure than usual, so I went back in and added more length everywhere and the fit was much better on the second toile.

The modifications I made:

• Added 2” (5 cm) to the crotch rise (front and back)
• Graded out 0.25” (0.6 cm) at the hips
• Smoothed the back crotch curve
• Lengthened 5” (25 cm) above knee and 2” (5 cm) at the hem

There are a lot of resources for trouser fitting, both in books and online, that have helped me learn which adjustments will help with different fit issues. I would always suggest making a toile of a new pattern to tweak the fit before committing to your “good” fabric, but I think it’s totally do-able for an adventurous beginner.

The fabric I chose is a polyester rayon blend with 2% elastane from Abakhan and it is absolutely perfect for this project. It gives the perfect drape and means you can sit down without your trousers digging in (even after a big meal!).

Because I used a slightly stretchy fabric and metal buttons (also from Abakhan), I decided to reinforce the area around the pocket edge with a 2” (5 cm) wide strip of fusible interfacing to prevent it from bagging out.

Overall, I’m very happy with the adjustments, the pattern is well drafted, with a clever pieced waistband and a really classic look. My wide legged trouser dreams have come true and I feel like a total boss wearing them!

See you next time!

– Faye