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Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Adventures in Breeches....The Finale.

The Breeches are done!

The Man looks great in them too!  I have a few alterations to make to the pattern.  The opening on the sides of the fall front gape a bit, so I need to shorten that. and take out about a cm in the center front so it doesn't bag and it lays flat.

I also have to work out the sequence of construction better.  There were a few issues while sewing that I want to address for the next pair.  Its pretty good for a finished muslin.  I did do two other muslins first and then decided I need to to have a finished one.  These are made out of linen and are completely machine stitched.  I will hand stitch the next pair on all the elements that require top stitching.


Has the right amount of baggy bum....gives him the illusion of perkyness...LOL!
A little baggy in the  CF.  Gonna take out about 1.5 cm and it should lay flat.
I think I need to shorten the width of the band so it hits the back of the knee and you can see the curve of the calf.
The placket opening is a bit too long.  Although you can't see it in this picture.
The gusset needs to be a bit bigger and the waistband needs to be longer.  I want him to be able to gain weight and still be able to wear these.  He tends to get heavier in the winter than in the summer, so I need the extra wiggle room.


They are missing buttons, which I don't have.  I looked through my HUGE button jar and the only thing I have alot of are plastic ones.  I wasn't really feeling up to cutting out a ton of circles and doing fabric covered buttons. 

I also tried to keep the bum as fitted as I could and still allow unrestricted movement.  I think it's baggy enough to give the look of 18th century breeches without the excess saggy diaper look.

I think once I have the pattern perfect then I will try to make a pair out of Chamois leather.  Buckskin breeches would look yummy on him!

3 comments:

  1. These look awesome! I *stink* at breeches--I've only made a couple pairs and I can't figure out if they actually look bad or if I just hated making them so much that I convinced myself they did. Could have been b/c they were wool--and all those layers of thick wool were awful to sew through. Mr. Yuck face.

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  2. Thank you! A trick I use when I'm working with wool is to use a cotton for any facings that I can. I also grade the seams, it helps cut down the bulk as well. I still have to figure out how I'm gonna to the pattern for the leather breeches, But that will come later. At least he has something to wear now. I hate the saggy bum look in breeches. So I tried to get the "look" of period with all the gathers but without the excess material. I'll probably keep modifying the pattern till it's perfect. I still think I have a ways to go.

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  3. Absolutely gorgeous breeches, SO envious of your patterning skills! I've been slogging through muslins as well, but have been working with a not-exactly commercial pattern. I've done so many alterations they barely resemble the original pattern anymore. If it makes you feel better about baggy vs. tight bums, the developer of the pattern I've been using says in the 1770's onward, the bums were not baggy at all. His pattern was created from an extant pair of breeches held by a museum. That confounds me as well, since I see SO many baggy bummed breeches images online.
    I ADORE your pattern, especially the pretty baggy bum you designed. My sweetheart has no cushion on his tush, so I want to bag out the butt on his breeches just to give him the illusion of one. :D
    With only five weeks til the week-long event we're attending, and him without a single completed garment to wear yet, I'd settle for stuff that fits over historically accurate at this point.

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