3 years ago
This has been quite an epic project and took way more time than I actually thought it would. My husband had been asking me to make him some smart culottes as he’s been experimenting with his clothing style recently (after the tartan suit I made him in September - you can read about that here). I also decided that I’d like some work-appropriate culottes that would take me through the spring months and would be transitional. I also wanted to have a waistcoat to match. I had made a waistcoat a few years ago, which I loved, it was a tall pattern and I thought it would work perfectly with my very long torso. It did fit very well, but it just had the effect of making my torso look even longer. This time I opted for a cropped version. So our his and hers culottes were born.
First up - the fabric. This is a poly/ viscose suiting with elastane. Navy with a light pinstripe. This has to be the nicest stretch suiting I have ever worked with. It has a really nice feel, it drapes well, but also when interfaced holds its shape. Perfect for a suit combo. I was really glad about this as I have had some bad experiences with suiting fabrics in the past, but this one is absolutely beautiful. It will crease, but these do drop out quickly once the fabric is hung up for an hour or so and the elastane provides great recovery.
For my culottes, I used a tried and true pattern that I’d made several times before. It’s a Burda-style magazine pattern (114 from 03/2016). I cut a straight size 38, as I know it fits me well, but deepened the back darts and took a smidge from the centre back seam. I have also curved the waistband slightly for this one. I think the only thing I would change on this is to use a slightly longer zip - My hip is large compared to my waist measurement and it takes a bit of wiggling to get these on. As always I interfaced the zip fly, pocket edges and waistband to prevent these from stretching out with a lightweight iron-on interfacing. I bound the edge of the inner waistband with a strip of pink bias binding, which gives a lovely finish to the insides and I love that the pocket bags are secured to the centre front, which means they don’t move about too much. And they are DEEP! The hems were finished by hand, which always ensures that fullness can be evenly distributed.
The waistcoat was also a Burda pattern from the very first magazine I owned. (10/2011). It is very cropped and low cut, so I added about 5cm to the centre front to make it more modest. I am glad I did, as it would have been too low-cut for me otherwise. I cut the whole of the outer layer from the suiting and used the lining, just on the inside. I also omitted the waistcoat belt at the back. Apart from these minor changes, I made a straight size 38 and the fit is spot on. I interfaced the whole of the front with a medium-weight interfacing and actually wished I'd have used something a little lighter. But it’s done now! I’m wearing this on its own, but that was only because my white shirt was in the wash! I don’t think I’m brave enough to go out like this ! haha.
My Hubby’s culottes took a bit more work as I didn’t have a pattern to work from. I used the pattern I had drafted for his tartan trousers as a base, but as this fabric behaved very differently I ended up making a few changes along the way. He had said he wanted very full culottes, so I drafted the fronts with two pleats and made them slightly A-line in shape. I also think the waistband could have been a bit firmer, as it sits low on his body and I think he will need a belt with these. Once they were made, I noticed that the side seams weren’t hanging quite right and I ended up taking some of the width in on the lower leg. They are not quite as wide, but they hang much better now. It can be quite tricky sewing larger menswear sizes are there are very few patterns that accommodate my husband's measurements. I know we have seen an increase in size-inclusive sewing for women, but maybe it’s time for the same for menswear patterns. It certainly would have made this a quicker and less stressful make if I’d had a pattern in roughly the correct proportions to start with! That being said, he loves these and now wants a waistcoat and some regular trousers in the same fabric - but that is at the bottom of my sewing queue right now.
#minervabrandambassador #minervamakes #minervamakers #sewingformen #sewover50 #burdastylemagazine #suiting #culottes #menswear #sewnshownseated #workwear #memadeeveryday
First up - the fabric. This is a poly/ viscose suiting with elastane. Navy with a light pinstripe. This has to be the nicest stretch suiting I have ever worked with. It has a really nice feel, it drapes well, but also when interfaced holds its shape. Perfect for a suit combo. I was really glad about this as I have had some bad experiences with suiting fabrics in the past, but this one is absolutely beautiful. It will crease, but these do drop out quickly once the fabric is hung up for an hour or so and the elastane provides great recovery.
For my culottes, I used a tried and true pattern that I’d made several times before. It’s a Burda-style magazine pattern (114 from 03/2016). I cut a straight size 38, as I know it fits me well, but deepened the back darts and took a smidge from the centre back seam. I have also curved the waistband slightly for this one. I think the only thing I would change on this is to use a slightly longer zip - My hip is large compared to my waist measurement and it takes a bit of wiggling to get these on. As always I interfaced the zip fly, pocket edges and waistband to prevent these from stretching out with a lightweight iron-on interfacing. I bound the edge of the inner waistband with a strip of pink bias binding, which gives a lovely finish to the insides and I love that the pocket bags are secured to the centre front, which means they don’t move about too much. And they are DEEP! The hems were finished by hand, which always ensures that fullness can be evenly distributed.
The waistcoat was also a Burda pattern from the very first magazine I owned. (10/2011). It is very cropped and low cut, so I added about 5cm to the centre front to make it more modest. I am glad I did, as it would have been too low-cut for me otherwise. I cut the whole of the outer layer from the suiting and used the lining, just on the inside. I also omitted the waistcoat belt at the back. Apart from these minor changes, I made a straight size 38 and the fit is spot on. I interfaced the whole of the front with a medium-weight interfacing and actually wished I'd have used something a little lighter. But it’s done now! I’m wearing this on its own, but that was only because my white shirt was in the wash! I don’t think I’m brave enough to go out like this ! haha.
My Hubby’s culottes took a bit more work as I didn’t have a pattern to work from. I used the pattern I had drafted for his tartan trousers as a base, but as this fabric behaved very differently I ended up making a few changes along the way. He had said he wanted very full culottes, so I drafted the fronts with two pleats and made them slightly A-line in shape. I also think the waistband could have been a bit firmer, as it sits low on his body and I think he will need a belt with these. Once they were made, I noticed that the side seams weren’t hanging quite right and I ended up taking some of the width in on the lower leg. They are not quite as wide, but they hang much better now. It can be quite tricky sewing larger menswear sizes are there are very few patterns that accommodate my husband's measurements. I know we have seen an increase in size-inclusive sewing for women, but maybe it’s time for the same for menswear patterns. It certainly would have made this a quicker and less stressful make if I’d had a pattern in roughly the correct proportions to start with! That being said, he loves these and now wants a waistcoat and some regular trousers in the same fabric - but that is at the bottom of my sewing queue right now.
#minervabrandambassador #minervamakes #minervamakers #sewingformen #sewover50 #burdastylemagazine #suiting #culottes #menswear #sewnshownseated #workwear #memadeeveryday