Vogue Skinny Leg Pants 8859 - The Third is a Charm/TNT

I made my first pair in 2017 (pictured above) and never posted a review.  I basically wear this pair around the house.  They are the best for working out-doors  especially in the fall and winter.  Why I never posted, I can't say.  But since I made my third pair at sew camp, it was about time to talk about how great these pants are.

Vogue 8859 

This is a Marcy Tilton Vogue pattern (OOP).  Vogue describes it as close fitting pants that has elastic waist, three construction methods for pleats in knew area, back yokes/pockets, and stitched hems.  The suggested fabrics are two-way stretch knits and stretch wovens.  Sizes 8-22.  I used a 16 with a few minor modifications.

These are super easy to make taking only about 1.5 hours to finish. The instructions very easy to follow.  Nothing confusing in them. 

What I like most about them is that they are not your typical pull-on legging pants.  They are sturdy and have some attractive details:  tucks, back pockets and yoke.  Love them and because I've made them three times, the pattern is now stored in the TNT basket atop of the other patterns that I own.

Below are pictures of all three pants side by side.  The Fabrics I used for each:

• Heather Purple double knit from Vogue Fabrics
• Marcy Tilton ponte knit from her online store
• Teal scuba knit from FabricMart purchased during sewcamp 

I enjoyed making each of them for different reasons:

• As I said, the purple ones are for working out-doors in fall/winter season. 
• The Black ponte knit ones were part of my beefing up the wardrobe.  The medium weight fabric allows me to wear them in spring, fall and part of the winter seasons.  
• The most recent pair, were made in between two dress projects started at sew camp.  They helped me through the challenges of the McCall's 7890 dress.  The other dress I haven't completed.  

I made only a few minor changes:  I extended the hook on the back pant leg about 3/4" and I lengthen them about four inches.  Because the back has three pieces:  yoke, upper back and lower back, I added  length to both upper and lower back pant legs so that the joining seam at the knee will fall where it should.  For each I did different top-stitching.  For the black I drafted a lower leg for the front and back repeating the same top-stitching.

I really like the comfort and style of these close fitting "legging" like pants.  I can see myself making them in several colors.  Try them if you have the pattern.  So, that's all for now.

Happy Sewing!
C

Simplicity 8643 - My First Knit Top of 2019

This top is actually the forth garment made in 2019.  I'll be posted the rest soon, but I want to get some picture of me wearing them.  Anyway, the pattern is  "quick sew" T-shirt "like tops.  The two differences are:  the asymmetric hem and the front pleating.  These are the two details that convinced me to purchase the pattern.

Simplicity describes this pattern as:  misses' knit top featuring asymmetrical hems with optional cold-shoulder, contrasting sleeve, 3/4 sleeve, or sleeveless view.  I made view D with sleeve from view C.  It's comes in multi- XXS to XXL.  I used between size M and L with some modifications.

My finished top did look like the modeled top, only a more fitted with sleeves.  It's winter, for real, in the mid-west.  So sleeves are the best optional.

The instructions are super easy to follow.  The pleating along the center front are just simple tucks with a line of stitches to hold them in place.  Nothing complicated about making them.  I traced the stitching and pleat lines onto the fabric.  Then pinned the pleats in place and stitched.  All done in less the two minutes.

There is nothing to dislike.  It's basically a modified t-shirt pattern with center pleats.  As I stated earlier, I like the pleats and the hemline. My other like is the neckband.  It looks great if I say so myself. ;-)

My knit fabric was purchased from Marcy Tilton online fabric store.  She really has some great knits.  This particular textile is no longer available, but there are other fabulous knits that you can purchase.  This knit has 4-way stretch with great recovery.  I can't remember the fiber content. Sorry.

I only made a few changes.  For this top, I skipped my regular FBA just to see if will with work/fit.  Instead I cut between M and L at the  half way mark on the front armhole and extended the side edges to the large size in the bust area. Then tapered back to between the M and L sizes.

For the back, I did do a swayback adjustment and created a center back seam.  This works well for me.

I forgot to lengthen the sleeves before cutting them out.  So I added a 1.5 inch sleeve band to compensate for the shortage.

Update - I forgot to add that I shorten the neckband by 2.5" to get it to lay flat.

I almost always fail to mention that I use stitch witchery or steam a seam to finish the hem.  Both of these notions are a must have in my sewing notion drawer.  I keep plenty of both on hand.

This is a good top to sew to help build your staple wardrobe.  I will pair this top with some slim knit pants or leggings.  To complete the outfit during these bone chilling days, I'll throw on a cardigan to fight back the cold.

I am very pleased with how my top turned out and may use this pattern again.  Yes, I also recommend it to others, beginners and advanced sewers.

Happy Sewing!
C