Good morning (or afternoon, or night) to all of you out there! I am very excited about my most recent Minerva make. I’ve been eyeing some of the wide legged trouser patterns making the rounds, and decided on the Paradise Patterns Protea Pants for the Core Range Mill Washed 100% Linen fabric, in Camel. First of all, this fabric is great! It is listed as medium weight, but I would consider these to be medium-heavy. Sewing with linen is always so rewarding. It softened a little when I pre-washed the fabric, and has become even softer with each wash. It sews up wonderfully, and presses like a dream. The color is just what I was hoping for, less a traditional “camel” color, and more like a creamy latte. This linen has the perfect weight and drape for these wide legged beauties. They swish impressively when I walk, but don’t feel bulky or uncomfortable. The feel of these pants would change quite a bit depending on the chosen fabric. I might try a lighter weight linen for summer, or a nice tropical weight wool suiting would be lovely (I live in the subtropics, so even in winter, heavy wool pants are still too hot!). As for the pattern, it was a pretty straightforward sew. The only part that I messed up were the pockets - somehow I sewed them on incorrectly and had to unpick and resew. That is always a pain, but the end result is very tidy. I learned a few new tricks, such as hidden sewing to help keep the pleats from falling open. The zip insertion was different from what I’ve experienced with other patterns. At first I found it a little annoying, but it worked out in the end. I think that if I make these pants again, there are things I can do to make the zipper look a little more neat. One change I would make if I make the Proteas again (which I likely will!) is to the waistband. It's very curved, which is great for my large waist to hip ratio. The waistband and facing, while separate, are each a single long piece. The result is that the ends of the waistband, nearest the closure, were on the bias and I had to sew it a couple of times so that it didn’t look twisted. I know that a bias-cut waistband is fairly common, so I might just need to chalk this up to user error. But I *think* that adding a seam at the center back would help with this issue. To end - I will definitely use this linen again. It’s the perfect weight for trousers and it would work quite well with simple pull on elastic waist pants. I also loved the pattern, and will definitely make them again! Thanks for reading! 🙂 #minerva #minervabrandambassador #minervamakers #linen #proteapants #paradisepatterns