Still plodding along on the pants, friends. A lot should come together today, including, hopefully, the backs and fronts. Yesterday I managed to complete my back welt pocket and insert my front fly zipper.
I'll say this about welt pockets: It's not so much that they're difficult, though they certainly require accurate measuring, stitching, and cutting. It's that most sewers don't make them often enough to master them. The last true welt pocket I made, on my cranberry corduroy pants, was more than a year ago. So every time I make one, it's like I'm starting from scratch. With something like a front fly zipper, I've already done them enough to know the routine pretty well.
I decided to follow the instructions on my pants pattern for the welt pocket; not the best, not the worst. I wasn't sure if I needed to raise the pocket placement a bit, since I'd shortened the rise in the pants, but I measured against some RTW pants I own, and the center of the welt is generally three inches below the bottom of the waistline, so I left it as-is.
I marked, I stitched, I matched, I cut...
I took a deep breath and I pulled (my welts) through. I poked, I prodded, I pressed, I panicked (a little). Then I pressed some more.
I stitched down those little triangles on either end, and edgestitched around the perimeter of the pocket. After considerable toil, it looked like this. Not perfect, but acceptable. I'll likely press it more down the line. How someone can do this accurately with a zigzag machine, I will never know.
Whew -- glad that's over!
Not much to say about the fly. It went in without too much drama, though I still have to topstitch in front and trim a bit inside to keep things tidy.
Today's concern is the side pockets. When I took 1 1/2 inches out of the rise, I also changed the angle of the slanted edges of the pockets and facings slightly, relative to the angle of the edges of the pants fronts, if that makes sense. I may have to trim a bit or even cut new pocket facings. But there are worse things, right?
And that, friends, is that.
I'm not sure how far I'll get today. I've been trying to limit my sewing hours so as not to exhaust myself. As far as crotch reinforcements, a much livelier topic than I'd expected, I did include one, and I'll share it with you down the line.
Send good pants karma my way, please.
Have a great day, everybody!
My compliments on the welt!
ReplyDeleteDid you try it out on a scrap before hitting the pants?
I'm used to do that with procedures that I don't do very often.
i have a Dritz welt pocket dooverlacky thingy, but as yet have not had an opportunity to use it.
ReplyDeleteYours looks great!
*claps* very good! I actually made a little progress yesterday, too. :) Once I get through the prelims, this should go a lot faster... it's just that the prepwork takes sooo long!
ReplyDeleteWow your "plodding" pace would be my race to the finish. The pants look great!
ReplyDeleteWhat a perfect welt!! It looks amazing!!!!
ReplyDeleteI am always frustrated when I sit down to sew and realize that I have *forgotten* how to do something (like a welt pocket) and must go look it up and practice it before I cut into the fashion fabric. I always think, Geez! I've been sewing this long and I can't remember this?! But on the other hand, I guess that is why I like to sew because each garment brings new challenges and I am always learning.
ReplyDeleteThere is nothing wrong with that welt!, good job
ReplyDeleteVery impressive! Sending good pants karma.
ReplyDeleteWelt looks great Peter, I have just made my first welt pocket on a pair of school pants being made for my son, so can appreciate the level of skill required to get that result.
ReplyDeleteThanks for inspiring me to do better, and being so witty and entertaining at the same time!
Regards,
Richard
Said in a Groucho Marx voice, "If I could make welts like that, I wouldn't need the talcum powder."
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I'm not just fishing for compliments, that welt looks a little wonky to me. Maybe I have welt dismorphia....
ReplyDeleteHey peter, Nothink linked to the suit but I could not but think about you when I saw that link. It should inspire you :
ReplyDeletehttp://www.vintageous.com/clothing.htm
xxx from here !
Something which always surprises me when bloggers show off their hard work to make welt pockets: a lot of talk and pictures about the outside construction and next to nothing about what goes on on the inside. By now, I'm an old hand at welt pocket making but when I started out I really had to think through the process of attaching the pocket bags and finishing edges quite carefully. Let alone the great importance of the order in which things are sewn which you have to deal with if you happen to decide that a back welt pocket needs a functional button (which is also very important if you want to do that topstitching along the edge which you did. I tend to forget about that sort of thing because I don't like topstitching).
ReplyDeleteI know that there are probably loads of tutorials online which do show everything, but still. And it doesn't help that many sewing patterns are produced with fake welt pockets (just welts, no pockets)
Beautiful job on the welt pocket!!!
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to say, I think you're a brave man for putting it in at this stage, on a pattern you haven't used before. If you end up with a fitting problem involving that dart, you'll have no choice but to re-cut and re-sew... I'd advise putting the welt in last, after you've had the opportunity to identify and resolve any fitting problems there. But I'll cross my fingers for you that the pattern fits you like a glove on the first try!
That welt pocket looks almost perfect. I dread welt pockets, and I've been sewing for years. I worked with a professional stitcher when I was an intern in a design studio. She was from Honduras, where she had been trained, and could make a welt pocket with a scrap of fabric which she laid on the placement markings and stitched without guide lines or pattern or instructions. Made it right out of her head! Always came out perfect. I bow down to her.
ReplyDeleteI didn't even know what a welt pocket was. Now I do. You do an amazing job. I can't even make a simple pocket.
ReplyDeleteJosette