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The Wide-leg Linen Trousers: Inspiration

June 9, 2011 Comments

Let’s talk about high-waisted trousers. I know they aren’t for everyone, but somehow everyone managed to convince themselves of 7-inch rises, whether it flashed the world or not, right?

High waists are one of the few resurrected styles that seemed to take forever to trickle down to the mortals, in an era when fashion and manufacturing cycles seem to be on speed. Fashion-trickle-down (or trickle-up) is such a dinosaur of the pre-internet past. But it took Urban Outfitters like 5 years to knock this off:


When this Chloe collection first appeared in spring 2005, I was in love and went on a mission to find a more affordable pair. This might look pretty normal now, but I’m telling you people were whacked out when they saw this. There was a lot of NO WAY.

At that point, their polar opposite, low-rise skinnies, were just starting to take over the world, but boy, did I hunt. And I managed to find a pair of very form-fitting, squish-me-in-70s, high-waisted jeans–I mean crawling-way-above the navel-high-rise.

I’m beside myself now, since high-rises are everywhere.

{credit: asos.com (ponte polyester–now that’s 70s!), Marc Jacobs Spring 2011 ad campaign, Alice & Olivia (shopbop.com), Adam (shopbop.com), and Tucker high-waisted flares.}

Back down on Planet Sewing, it will probably be another year (or 5) before there’s a comparable pattern from which to work. Since most of these are clearly 70s-inspired, I could always go with a 70s pattern but lack the confidence or pattern-making skills to fit something so, um, fitted. I will stick to buying them for now. Plus, I am dreaming of linen and stretch linen is hard to find–I think something that slim needs to stretch–how did they ever breathe back then?

Of course the 70s don’t have the high waist cornered, I just happen to be partial to them. We’ve got high-waisted 80s, which exaggerate the opposite shapes, like the “carrot” pants which I’m still not sure about on me. Jeans from the 80s were really high-waisted but so freaking sackish. Except for Brooke Shields and her Calvins. Things went tent-like after that.

{Via 39th & Broadway. A resurrected 80s rocker look from French Vogue 2009.}

Then we’ve got the looser Katherine Hepburn trousers of the 30s/40s. The mannish trousers, if you will, that seem to fall so eloquently from waist to floor. I could probably live in these, no doubt, and will have a much easier time fitting them than my 70s inspirations.

Soooo. I have a gorgeous length of cobalt blue linen that I washed over a year ago and is just waiting to be cut. I wanted the perfect pair of linen wide-leg trousers that I could live in all summer. I went through a couple of patterns trying to figure out which would be best.

Like many sewers, I’ve never been completely happy with the fit of pants patterns so at some point I gave up. Last summer I thought of using the linen for the semi wide-legged HotPatterns Marrakesh pants, but after making a muslin I wasn’t so sure. I wanted something a bit more fitted and higher up on the waist. It’s a great everyday trouser pattern, just not exactly what I envisioned.

After seeing some beautiful versions of Wearing History’s Smooth Sailing pattern, I decided these would be a better idea. These recent Elizabeth and James trousers (right) are almost identical in styling, down to the sewn-down pleats in front. And I can have my very own.

{Top photo credit: Grey Ant jeans, Terry Richardson for Vogue Nippon, 2007}


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Super 70s Summer Dreaming

May 7, 2011 Comments

The White Jacket is almost finished. I went on a couple of sewing marathons last week to get caught up with the RTW Jacket Sew-along–having others interested in your progress really encourages things along, right? I just need to get the buttons in and fix a couple of wonky things. (As far as progress photos, my sewing room-studio is terribly lit and I have just about given up trying to photograph white details in badly lit situations, so pictures will have to wait until this thing sees the light of day.)

In the meantime, I’m trying to plot out my summer sewing ideas. I’d love to go for this Groovy Bellbottom challenge, but I think I need a wee breather from challenges & sew-alongs. It caught my eye because I’m kind of a sucker for 70s patterns and have a few I’m thinking of making this summer. I put these in my inspiration notebook a couple of months ago:




{from style.com: Salvatore Ferragamo and Marc Jacobs, Spring 2011}

I don’t normally go for peasant-y styles but there’s something about the “I’m traipsing around Assisi in my bare feet” look on the left that gives me hope for summer. I have a 70s pattern for the top and some lovely butterscotch-colored poplin that will be perfect. I’ll probably cut the sleeves down to a 3/4 length for summer:

Anyone have any pattern ideas for the skirt, vintage or new?

Last summer, I really wanted a couple of pairs of breezy linen trousers and they are still on my endless to-sew list. I lost confidence in sewing pants sometime around 1995 and need to find a way back in. I so love high-waisted trousers–I went for the crazy super-high-waisted jeans a couple years ago and I’m hooked.

This pattern floats everywhere on Etsy and eBay, taunting me, and at the moment seemingly only in 46-inch hip sizes.

{I here do solemnly swear that I will never wear a pair of patchwork-printed bellbottoms. They looked better on me when I was in kindergarten.}

Or perhaps I’ll try something more in a 40s direction. I really dug Steph’s Weimar-inspired Smooth Sailing pants and I’d love to try out the pattern with some pretty black linen I stashed last year.

And there has to be a maxi dress in my summer somewhere. Does anyone ever notice how maxis (both rtw and patterns) almost always have empire waists? There must be some kind of design-consensus about how to wear them, but I personally like when they hit my actual waist. These were among a few rare non-empired dresses that caught my eye:




{credit: asos.com, shopbop.com}

Just looking at their colors cools me off. The left has a great 70s Jean Muir-ish vibe. The nude dress is “oooh, pretty”–so simple but fun with that sheer peekaboo panel. I’ve been hunting maxi dress patterns for a couple of years but haven’t found any I really love. I guess I could always Frankenpattern a dress.

This is a UFO maxi shirtdress I started last summer, but um, it was in white cotton and I think I need to chill on white, no? And I’m thinking the long sleeves might haunt me in our weather. But I’m a sucker for 70s fly collars.

But first, I really need to sew a couple of breezy tank tops. I am going to have to be very, very tactical this summer to keep cool. Texas is in the middle of a terrible drought, and my part of town has had no rain for almost four months. (Wildfires have ravaged over 2 million acres of Texas in the last month, including parts of Austin.) So–we completely bypassed spring and went straight to summer and are looking forward to 100-degree averages in May. Ugh.

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