I decided that as this pattern also makes overalls I would make the top of the overalls as well, but have it so that it was detachable from the trousers giving me two garments in one. I'm not going to lie, as this was my first time properly using a sewing pattern I was quite nervous about starting this and kept putting it off. This wasn't helped by the fact that I knew I was going to have to make some changes to the pattern to get it to fit my body shape and that I'd already read through the pattern and confused myself a little bit.
As I was intending on wearing these trousers quite a lot (they're basically the only everyday trousers I own) I wanted to get quite a hard-wearing, but relatively thin fabric so I went for a wool suiting fabric in a lovely navy colour. The amount I planned, and actually do, wear this item meant that I also decided to bind the seems, even though you don't normally have to do much with wool fabrics as they don't tend to fray easily, using bias binding. This did add quite a bit more work and a little bit more of a cost to my project, but I am glad I did it.
Of course, I couldn't be all serious about the decisions I was making and the buttons I'm using for this project have smiley faces on them.
Once I had gotten used to the language in the pattern it actually went quite smoothly, though it did still take me a few days to get it completed. This was mainly because it took me a while to accurately get the modifications to the waistline right. I had had to start the pattern off with a much larger size so that it fitted around my hips, and then work on the side seams and darts to get it reduced enough to fits my waist comfortably. Thankfully I didn't have to also add length to the waist of the trousers like I did with the shorts. I've left the extra material in the darts in case I need to increase the waist size in the future, but for now, it fits perfectly and there's something really nice about having a pair of trousers I don't have to wear a belt with.
Once I had finally worked out how much of a reduction I had to make for the waist it was a lot easier to work on the top section as, again, I had to use a larger pattern to fit the chest and then bring it into the waist. This time I did make the waistband a little bit larger so that it could fit comfortably over the trouser waistband when the two are joined together. If I'm being completely honest I still haven't quite gotten round to adding the attachments which would then allow me to wear the two pieces together, but I'll get round to that soon. With the weather being the way it is at the moment it would probably be a good idea to get that done very soon.
I really like these trousers and I've worn them a lot. In fact, I've worn them practically every day that I've been off. Apart from some spot cleans, I've also not had to wash them very often either. Which is a joy seeing as laundry is a never-ending task I'm very happy to reduce. The only thing I might possibly change about these is the turn-ups at the bottom of the legs. They are a little bit thick and I'm not sure how I feel about the size. I might reduce them a little bit or even get rid of them altogether, but that's still up for debate at the moment and I'll wear these a little longer before I make any final decision. I've also cut another strip for the waistband but at a larger size, just in case I need to expand these.
Now that this project is complete I'm glad that I pushed through being nervous about starting and just got on with it. I really like the outcome and it's given me a little bit more confidence to try out other patterns for items of clothing that I want in my wardrobe. Which is just as well as I do have quite a lot of sewing planned for 2022.
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