Do you ever find yourself with a list of a million things you need to do? Then all of the sudden it’s like the list never existed, because you’re altering pants.

Ya, that’s me all the time.

I had made these Summer Caye pants out of some Chevron ponte knit fabric. I love ponte knit so I thought it would be good, even though the pattern says it’s for woven fabric. This particular fabric is tricky because it’s a ponte knit but it wants to be woven fabric. It also clings to itself and collects all the lint and dog hair within a two mile radius. I love the look of it, I just hate wearing it. My thinking was, if the pants weren’t as wide there would be less clinging going on. 

What if I just altered them to be the Resolution straight leg pants? That seemed like a pretty good solution. The problem was once my brain thought of it, it couldn’t stop thinking of doing it. There were so many other things I needed to get done but my brain stepped in and said, “No, let’s alter pants!” I literally couldn’t get anything done until I just altered these dang pants.

So here’s what I did.

• remove waistband
• make legs skinnier
• Adjust the waistband
• Skipped the back yoke
• Re-hem the pants

Because the Summer Caye pant legs are so wide I just used my fabric scissors and cut down the inside seam of each leg. Using my seam ripper would have taken too long and it wasn’t necessary. I left the outside seams intact. Then I laid them out flat on the floor, so the back pieces were facing and the front pieces were facing, right sides together. 

I unpicked the hem because I didn’t want to lose any length. I also wanted to make sure the length was right. The Summer Caye and the Resolution both have a fairly straight outside seam so I just lined that side of the pattern piece up with the intact seam. I did that for both the front and the back and just traced it on to the pants. You can see a faint blue line right here. Before I cut the pants into the resoution shape, I made sure it was all lined up by pinning it on the seam from the waist to the hem.   Then I cut through both layers on the blue line. These resolutions don’t have the back yoke because I didn’t need it. I used the Summer Caye rise rather than the Resolution. Once I cute them out I sewed them back together.

The waistband was cut off because I had made my own yoga waistband for the Summer Cay pants and it was wider than the waistband for the Resolutions. By cutting it off I was able to adjust the size a little.

I put the new waistband on and hemmed the legs. Tah-dah! All done. New Pants! They still collect all the hair and lint but it’s much less leg so it’s much less clingy.

Glad I did this quick alteration because now I can move on.

Have you ever had something similar happen to you? Let me know!

Happy Sewing,

Koe

Use Code KOE10 to get 10% off these patterns or any of Love Notions Patterns.

The Patterns

New Year Resolutions, whatever they may be. Included are five views: joggers, straight leg yoga pants, bootcut yoga pants, plain leggings and leggings with a moto panel. All views have two waistband options: contoured with 3/8″ elastic and yoga style. All views also have a shaped back yoke. The joggers & yoga pants have front slash pockets while the leggings have a front hidden pocket option. These bottoms are meant for knit fabrics and are beginner friendly.

Resolution Bottoms Features:

• Meant for knit fabrics
• Five styles included: plain leggings, moto leggings, bootcut yoga pants, straight cut yoga pants, and joggers
• All styles feature a shaped back yoke
• Front slash pockets for the yoga pants & joggers
• Hidden waistband pocket for the leggings

Sizes: XS-5X (See Size Charts here)

Skill Level: Confident Beginner

The Summer Caye pattern brings you light and breezy pants that will be all you’ll want to wear this summer! Make these pants using light-weight woven fabrics or knits. Also included are capri length and two shorts lengths: 6″ & 9″. The pants and capris have three hem options: standard wide hem, split hem, and tulip hem. The shorts have two hem options: standard wide hem and cuffed. Choose from palazzo width or go a little more conservative with the wide-leg width. The front pockets are a slimming style and won’t gape at the hips! The back patch pockets also add a little more style and functionality. These easy, pull-on pants feature a flat front and elastic back to kick up your wardrobe a notch.

Summer Caye Features:

• Meant for woven or knit fabrics
• Wide leg and palazzo widths
• 4 lengths: 6″ and 9″ shorts, capris and full length
• 4 hem options: standard deep hem, cuffed, split hem and tulip hem
• Front and back pockets
• Flat front with elastic back

Sizes: 0-28 (See Size Charts here)

Skill Level: Confident Beginner