Tapered pants with ankle details, be it button taps or ties, are one of the hottest trends of this season. They're everywhere. Since the pandemic, I've been living in stretchy pants and I'm ready to toss them aside. Utility-inspired cargos in everything from twills to suiting fabrics are in my feeds and now on my mind.
I was inspired by this style. And McCall's 8045 just made since. The princess seams were designed to be colorblocked.
For my pants, I sewed them using my Janome Memory Craft 15000 and the Janome AirThread 2000D.
My fabric is two different shades of khaki cotton twills with some stretch. I've had them for a while, but I'm pretty sure they came from Mood Fabrics. I cut the size 16 and graded to the 18 at the hip and back to the 16 through the legs.
These days, there is just no getting around not doing a full seat adjustment for pants.
I made a 1.5" adjustment on the back and the side back pieces and half an inch to the crotch length. I also added three inches to the length.
Before adding the waistband, I took 3 inches off the waist and made the adjustment on the waistband also.
I also added darts to the yoke for additional shaping.
These aren't things that anyone would expect you to know to do if you're new to sewing pants. I've been sewing pants to fit my ever changing body for so long, that I know how I want them look and fit.
I decided to match my topstitching thread to the fabric. It looked "cleaner" that way. I used 3.0mm stitch length.
I used denim buttons. I like the hard edge that they gave the pants.
I added the tabs which are just an epaulet that I pulled from another pattern and played with the length.I really love this detail. It feels so modern. And it's also a great way to draw in and further taper down a straight-legged pant that might look a little boring.These are a fun spin on a pair of khakis or chinos. I needed a good neutral in my wardrobe, but I didn't want basic or boring. And these will be great this fall with sneakers and t-shirts.