3: Lekala pattern for Sport trousers

I actually cut these out last winter but due to endless DIY I never got round to sewing them up. Well it has been cold the last few days in the UK so I decided to have a go. I did them entirely using my serger except for a bit of finishing hand stitching on the fold back cuffs. They are made from red sweatshirting with a fleece back and plain knitted front. They have two very deep pockets which are brilliant. Usually I find womens clothing has rubish small pockets but these are great.

The instructions are very vague but I made it through them. I did reinforce the front shaped bit with iron on interfacing. Turn back cuffs are doubled and sewn on the bottom. The pattern is from here:
http://www.lekala.co/catalog/women/pants/5277

It seems you now have to pay for this but I got it for free a year ago. They still do lots of free patterns though so worth checking out. Its the first Lekala pattern I have used and I am quite happy with the results despite knowing the trousers are far from perfect. Thats my lack of expertise though and not due to teh pattern. Still I have learned that I cannot make a pair of trousers entirely using a serger. Or at least not just yet. Maybe when I have a bit more practice.

To be honest if I make another version which is likely since I love them I will NOT be making them entirely with my serger because its hard. I think much better to just do the inside seams and then to use a twin needle or even a stretch zigzig stitch or some other stretch stich to make these. Mind you I broke a needle on my serger and had to learn to thread and re-thread so it was all part of my learning curve so not a wasted effort. Also I have yet to work out how to use a twin needle. That is my next project since serging alone was very difficult for this. I know you can trun off the cutter bit but I did not do this so I ended up with uneven seams and having to redo the cuffs several times which made them shorter because I cut them off first time by accident! That did not matter since I found the pattern is quite generous in all directions. Being someone who wears their clothes loser rather than tighter this suited me but if I make a very fitted garment using Lekala I will make sure to do a muslin first I think. I hand sewed the sides of the cuffs to get a decent finish else would have had the serged edge showing and a gap where the cuffs are meant to join with a slit opening. They look great now and I really enjoyed wearing them.
My dog is Reggie. He was enjoying a walk on the Ridgeway at Weylands Smithy in Wiltshire.
Thanks for reading and see you again soon

Bracken