Helloooo! I wanted to share my latest make with you all because, after the Megan Nielsen Opal Trousers, I wanted to try sewing a pair of comfier, loungewear trousers that feel more like sweatpants.
Choosing the pattern
So I have seen so many sewists try Viki Sews patterns and I really wanted to jump on the bandwagon and have a go at sewing a pattern that’s not in English! For those of you that haven’t heard of Viki Sews, she has a massive amount of Russian patterns on her website here and they’re all incredibly cheap! I was hooked at the price and decided to buy the Joan’s pants because they look so stylish and comfy!
Choosing the fabric
When I first moved to Berlin, I popped into a local fabric shop and found this soft, gorgeous fleece (I think) in the most stunning bold print. It has a fluffy backing and is black with cream dots on that have a scribbled drawing texture and it stood out to me straight away in the shop! I’m pretty sure I bought 2 metres of this as I remember it being expensive and I still have a few scraps leftover! It has a medium weight structure and really keeps me warm!
Construction
I love comfy trousers that have enough room for me to not feel restricted but aren’t too baggy, giving me a shapeless silhouette. So I decided to sew a size 38, 170-176. When you buy Viki Sews patterns you have to choose a specific size, so you don’t get all the sizes in one purchase but I don’t mind that which is why I chose a size that if anything would be too big and I might need to take in!
The pattern is in Russian, so you need to google translate the sewing pattern and instructions to follow the construction, but there are also photographed steps which make it easier to understand without the need to always translate. The trousers themselves came together really quickly, although I did leave out the main in-seam pocket and the drawstring element as I was scared I would screw it up! I also don’t use pockets in trousers like these, but I did make the cool wrap-around pockets which were super easy to construct!
I’m really happy with the sizing, I used 5/8″ seam allowance and 28″ of elastic in the waist and it fits so great. I wasn’t sure if I wanted the bottom of the legs to be super baggy, so I cut off 6″ off the hem and then used 10″ of elastic in the bottom cuffs and I like how non-restricting they feel. I have been living in these since I’ve made them and I can’t tell you how comfy they are! Next on my list, I want to try the Hudson pants by True Bias this year as they feel like such a staple too!
