Thursday 2 February 2012

A troup of baby trousers!

When a good friend of mine showed me some amazing baby trousers she'd made using this Made by Rae download, I was inspired to make my own - in a BIG way! As the intro to Rae's tutorial states, there is little more rewarding than a quick easy sew that is not boring. So, four pairs later.... and I'm still tempted to make more!

Rae's tutorial is for a unlined pair, but my friend had lined hers and I shamelessly copied her idea. It's probably a bit tragic to be so enthusiastic, but the lining means that these little beauties are not only cute, they are also reversible - see, they really are amazing trousers! I've used soft cotton jersey for my linings so that they will be super cosy against baby's skin. I added an extra inch to the length of the leg on the original pattern to allow room for the turn up - after all, what's the point in a funky lining if you can't see it!

Here is the method I used to make them reversible...

1. Using Rae's tutorial, cut out one pair from cotton, and one pair from jersey -don't forget to add an extra inch to the bottom of each leg. Follow the tutorial instructions up to the end of step 6, but leave a 1/4" gap in the back seam of the jersey pair, 1/4" down from the waist edge.

2. Once you have made up both pairs of trousers, turn the outer cotton pair right side out. Now, place the outer cotton pair inside the jersey pair so that the right sides are together. Align the raw edges of the waist, making sure that your seams are matching, and sew around the top using a 1/4" seam allowance.

Turn the trousers right side out by pulling through one of the legs. Press the seam around the waist and then sew a line of stitching just over 1/4" from the top edge to create a channel for the waist elastic.

3. Turn in the raw edges on both the outer and inner peices by 1/4" at the bottom of one leg . Line up the inner leg seams, and then carefully pin the folded edges of the inner and outer peices together so that they match exactly. Stitch all around the bottom of the leg as close as you can to the edge. Alternatively, you could slip stitch the lining to the outer fabric by hand. Repeat with the other leg.

4. To finish, thread your elastic through the waistband as per the tutorial instructions, using the gap you left in the back seam of the the jersey lining.

Turn up your leg cuffs, and Bob's your trouser-wearing uncle - you have just completed pair #1 - I dare you to stop there!!

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