Rose Pants Sewalong: Steps 5-7
We’re now on Day 4 of the Rose Pants sewalong! Today we’re going to cover the pleats, inseams, and outseams.
Here are the previous Pantsalong posts just in case you need to go back:
Get Ready for a Rose Sewalong
Rose Sewalong: Print, Assemble, Trace your pattern (Day 1)
Rose Sewalong: Cut and Prep Pattern pieces (Day 2)
Rose Sewalong: Steps 2-4 (Day 3)
Need the Rose pattern? Buy it in my shop: Rose Pattern PDF (we also have printed Rose pattern sheets available!!)
STEP 5 - Pleat front pant
Along the top edge of the front pant, bring each pair of pleat marks together. Fold the fabric vertically below the pleat marks so that the pleats are straight and parallel to each other, and pin each one in place. You don’t want to pleat the pockets, so keep the pockets out of the way while you work on this.
In this post, I show just one way to fold the pleats - facing outward, which is the default instruction method. But there are a number of different options included in the pattern for the front pant! Check out the “Pleating Options” on pp 16-17 of the pattern instructions for all of them.
I made a little video to show you some of the pleating options:
The most important thing in this step: THE WIDTH OF THE FRONT PANT MUST MATCH THE FRONT WAISTBAND. Keep the front waistband handy so that you can check that the top of the front pant is the same width as the front waistband; and if necessary, adjust the pleats evenly to fit.
Let’s take a closer look! You can see here that the first time I pleated the front, it was about 1/2” smaller than my waisband. So then I adjusted the pleats to fit. Usually I do this one pleat at a time, taking out the pin, and carefully rolling the pleat between my fingers to make it slightly bigger/smaller.
Once you are happy with your pleat placement and the widths match, press the pleats at the top of the pant (just the top! no more than 4 inches [10 cm] down), then baste across the top and sides of the front pant to secure the pleats and pockets, 5/8 inch [16 mm] away from the edges.
Steps 6 & 7 - Sew side seams & inseams
In these photos, I’ve combined steps 6 and 7. Pin front and back together along the sides and inseams. Align notches on the sides, and align center (crotch) seams. Ease back pant to match front pant along the inseam if necessary.
hints
If you are sewing your very first pair of Rose pants, I recommend that you baste these two seams so you can check your fit and easily pull out the seams if you need to adjust them. Definitely use this opportunity to FIT AS YOU GO!
Reinforce your pockets: as you sew over the notch where the pocket notch hits the side seam, stitch back and forth a few times over this spot to strengthen it. Adding a small piece of interfacing to the back pant at this joint will also help that stress point last longer!
Sew each side seam from the top down to the cuff (NOT UP!! Always follow gravity when sewing these seams so you won’t get twisting on your pant legs!). Sew in two separate sections, starting at center seam and sewing down to the cuff, rather than starting at one cuff and going up one inseam and down the other.
hint
After sewing the outseams, I like to lightly press the hem allowances before I sew the inseams. This will help visualize the finished length and make hemming (step 11) easier and faster.
If you look closely in the photos here, you can see that I pressed the first hem fold before stitching, so that the raw edge is already secured 1/2 inch [1.3 cm] up.
Here’s what your pants should look like at this point (before finishing the inseams/outseams):
Check Fit!
Now is a good time to try on the pants and assess the overall width. You can adjust your side seams to add/subtract width, and check to see if the side seams rest at a good point on your body. The back, of course, will be loose because you haven’t added elastic yet. If you make any adjustments here, make sure you adjust waistband pieces accordingly!
Once you are happy with the width, finish side seams and inseams as desired (flat fell, zigzag, or serger/overlock is nice here). Press seam allowances toward back of pant (if they haven’t been stitched down during finishing).
Sewing along with these posts? I’d love to see your progress! Tag me (@madebyrae) and use the #rosepantsalong tag if you’re sewing along with us!
Get pattern details, view size and yardage charts, and materials on the Rose Page.