Athlesiure

Way back in March of 2015 I made a pair of sweat pants to wear in a martial arts class I was taking at the time. I've always thought of them as my Bagua Pants. I'm not doing the bagua class anymore, but I have worn the sweat pants quite a bit. So often, in fact, that they've gotten pretty beat up. I've been meaning to make another pair for a while now, so the last time I was poking around at Hart's I bought myself a couple hunks of jersey and I made two at once.

The pattern is Burdastyle 03/2014 #112 (Workout Pants). They're supposed to be drawstring pants, but I know by now that drawstrings don't work for me. I just used some 1/2 inch elastic instead.

They come up to my waist, even though they look lower in the picture above. That's partly because I have my hands in the (very nice) pockets and partly because I like my elastic loose.

Closeup of very nice pockets

Besides good pockets, these pants have an ankle cuff. The sweatpants of my youth had elastic at the ankles. As someone with sturdy, peasant ankles I always found that elastic kind of annoying. These cuffs are snug enough to keep out drafts but loose enough to be very comfortable. They're also just right to keep my pant leg pulled up out of bicycle-chain reach when I'm out for a bike ride.

I'm really ridiculously happy with these pants. The jersey is just substantial enough to make them ideal for a chilly morning. Considering how quick and easy they are to make, I have no idea why it took me so long.

I may be just fooling myself, but I think they're a little more presentable than your basic Mervyn's sweats. Not that I'd wear them out to dinner and a movie, though in Santa Cruz the dress code would certainly allow it. I think they're fine for gyming and grocery shopping, and for lounging around the house. Since I'm now retired, those happen to be my primary activities. Wardrobe sorted!

My original pattern review is on PatternReview.com here.

Bagua Pants

The Man and I are taking a bagua zhang class every Thursday at the Academy of Martial and Internal Arts. Martial arts is something new for me. I've been really enjoying it. I'm learning to move my body in some different ways, which I think is good for the mind as well as the muscles. Plus The Man and I are allowed to spar, now that we know enough to not knock each other's blocks off by mistake. The Man refuses to take dance lessons with me, so this is the closest I'm likely to come to waltzing with him.

Anyway, my skills are improving bit by bit, but my wardrobe is woefully inadequate. I have a stable of running gear, but apparently shorts or neon leggings are just Not Done in martial arts. I've been wearing a pair of cheap yoga pants (also Not Done, but better then shorts). Those pants are kind of hot and polyester-y, and they only have one tiny pocket inside the waistband; maybe big enough for lip gloss, but nothing else.

So I made me some Bagua Pants.

This is the Snake, with what I think is the Crane stance. I'm a newby though

I used pattern #112 (Jogging Pants) from the March, 2014 issue of BurdaStyle magazine. Burda describes them as narrow jogging pants with an elasticated waist. Short and to the point. They advised using fine knits or jersey, and it just so happened I had a hunk of brown cotton jersey just waiting in my fabric closet.

That makes this project is a two-fer: Burda Challenge (check) and Stashbusting Challenge (check).

This is the Lion

The pattern was super straightforward. There are 4 pattern pieces, one of which I didn't use (the back pocket). They have you draft your own waistband and ankle bands, but even I can draft a rectangle without too much drama. OK, I did initially cut the ankle bands too narrow, but I had plenty of fabric to fix that little problem.

Snake

I do appreciate the front pockets. They describe them as 'hip yoke' pockets; they're the same kind of pockets you see on trouser patterns. They're nice and roomy but don't look too baggy. I won't be able to haul around too much stuff, because this fabric is so light, but they can handle my car keys for sure.

Waistband shot - The Man tells me baby blue satin drawstrings are also a no-no in martial arts. I'll have to swap that out before class.

Burda says the waistband sits about an inch below the natural waist, but the slouchiness of elastic and drawstring puts it a bit lower on me. It feels like just about the perfect rise for a pair of sweatpants.

I'm pretty happy with them. They feel much lighter than the yoga pants, and they're certainly comfy and very easy to move around in. In fact, I have them on now as I slump on the couch writing this post.

You know when you get home from work and you just want to yank off your shoes and constraining office clothes and chill? This is what you want to be putting on. I can see myself making another pair in a perkier, non-martial arts color for lounging purposes. Bet they'd make great jammies too.

I leave you with the Unicorn

My review of the pattern is on PatternReview.com here.

Style Arc Barb and Still More Knits

I finally tried my first Syle Arc pattern and I have to say I'm a believer.

Front view

The Clothing Engineer very kindly pointed me to a joint promo by Style Arc and Threads Magazine offering a free PDF download of the Barb stretch pant pattern. I'm the kind of gal who does not look a gift horse in the mouth. I hopped on over and signed up right quick.

Side view

Style Arc offers their patterns in a single size only. I decided to go for the size 8, even though my hips would put me in a size 6. I didn't want the fit to be too snug. The 8 matches my waist (more or less).

Rear view

What a happy surprise to find they sent me the size 6 and the size 10 as part of my bundle! Instead of printing out the 6 and the 8 and trying to merge them, I just went with Plan A and used the straight size 8.

The PDF was set up differently to what I've seen before. The pages printed so that the pattern lines overlapped at the bottom and the right edge of each page and it wasn't necessary to trim the edges to match up the pattern lines. Does that make any sense? I could just lay the pages out and tape them together with no sicssors required. I had to be a bit more careful to line things up because the print lines didn't go all the way to the edge of the paper, but the whole taping part went much quicker.

Top tucked in so you can see how high the rise is

Looks like I've hemmed these a bit too long. I was traumatized as a teenager by a pair of too-short pants so I still struggle with hemming issues. Otherwise they came out just as I hoped they would; slim but not skin tight and really comfortable to wear. The waist comes up to my true waist, which is just the height I prefer. I could see myself wearing these pants with a shirt tucked in - something that is almost never the case for me with an elastic waist. The pattern calls for 2 inch wide elastic, so the waistband sits nice and flat.

I've admired StyleArc patterns for some time now, but hesitated to put in a order because I wasn't sure of how their sizing would work for me. With one size per packet you don't have much fudge room. Now that I've tried them out, I feel like I can order with confidence.

My pattern review is over on PatternReview.com here.

And, in other sewing news, I made a quick stop by Backstitch over the weekend and gorged myself on more knits. 

Deanna with my pile of goodness

I feel a tee shirt orgy coming on.