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Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Pajama Party! KS 2257 & Simplicity 3696

With all this sewing the past 7 months, I haven't made a single thing for my husband. Poor thing. :( This is mostly due to men's clothing being much more labor intensive and tailored than simple women's clothing. It's not like I can sit down and whip up a quick skirt or dress for him. And then it dawned on me - pajama pants! This was particularly timely as the last few months of the year finally got cold enough at night that he started regularly sleeping in pj pants again.

When I went shopping for fabric in the fall, I couldn't find a nice plaid flannel print to save my life. So, I opted for a wacky golf print from the snuggle flannel line at Joann's. I mean, seriously, this fabric is ridiculous, but I thought it was a funny nod to his new obsession and a good way to make a wearable muslin without spending a ton of money on the fabric.
I was originally going to use a unisex pant pattern, but quickly realized that it didn't have a fly front, which just seemed silly to make for Jim. Instead, I bought Kwik Sew 2257, a basic men's pj pant. I have to say, this is only the second KS pattern I've used, but I'm becoming a big fan.
The fly front went together very easily and looked just like the RTW pants he owns. I also particularly like the method of making and inserting the elastic waistband. After folding down the fabric for the casing, you sew the elastic into a circle, slip it under the fabric and stitch the casing closed while stretching the elastic taut. The top of the waistband is then stitched to hold the elastic in place. Gives it a really clean look.
The only major change I had to make was to lower the waistband by about 2 inches, which included shifting the top of fly front down as well and shortening the length. Oh, and I omitted the tie at the waist because of a time crunch - oops. In hindsight, I could probably go down a size for him, as they're a little bigger through the legs than is really necessary.
I wrapped these up for him for Christmas Eve, so he'd have new pajamas to wear for Christmas. I know a lot of people have this as a tradition and I think I'm going to adopt it for our family. Since I knew he was getting pjs that night, I thought it only fair to have a new pair to wear as well.

After being unhappy with the sultan-esque lounge pants from Amy Butler, I bought this Simplicity pattern to give the wide leg thing another go. Not wanting to ruin another pricey piece of fabric, I found some snowflake flannel on the clearance table at Joann's and thought it very season appropriate. And, if I hated them, I was only out a whooping $4.

I'm happy to say that this pattern is a much better style for me. Still a wide leg, but more reigned in than the AB ones. The only change I made was to copy the waistband from the KS pattern, including using a much wider elastic than was called for in the pattern. This lowered the waist band by about 1.5 inches, which was perfect for me - they now sit just above my hips instead of at my natural waist.

And here we are, in front of my in-laws tree, in our new pajamas! We both look so happy in this picture, right?
For some reason he is fine posing with me, but ask him to pose by himself and you get this:
You'd think I was making him stand before a firing squad, not a camera. Although, I guess it's better to only have one ham per family:
Heh. ;)


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After several suggestions from some of the folks on Pattern Review, I think I'll recut the AB lounge pants using this pattern. There should be plenty of fabric and I think it will turn them into something that I'll actually wear instead of something that is just kicking it at the back of my closet.

17 comments:

  1. Fabulous, A! You two are adorable in your pjs!

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  2. i am obscenely impressed that you just started sewing in july. really? i mean, really? man. i would love to take up sewing. my mom made our clothes growing up, and she gave me her old machine, but i don't know how good it is. hmm. maybe will look into beginner classes... if only boy clothes were as cute to make as the little girly dresses!

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  3. Way cute!!! PJ pants are one of my favorite things to sew. They are such instant gratification and who doesn't love cozy flannel pants? Nice job on yours!

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  4. You did a fabulous job on those pajama pants. I have this pattern. I used it to make Christmas bathrobes for my mom and my BFF. I'm definitely going to have to try the pants on this one. Thanks.

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  5. i don't think i have the words to express just how stinking cute you are.

    and brave - there's no way i'd try to sew something to wear for the metro i'm married to :/

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  6. you guys are so cute. if i knew how to sew, i doubt the bear would wear anything i made for him.

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  7. You two are so dang cute in those PJ pants! I'm so impressed with your talent.

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  8. cute couple in cute PJ pants!!!!

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  9. I've been meaning to make myself new pj pants, and you're post has inspired me to just do it already! Glad hubby liked them, my DH hates posing for sewing pics, too!

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  10. Those are cute. I love myself so PJ's.

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  11. I'm a hardcore pajama girl, and those are seriously adorable! I love that even in pjs your hair maintained the awesome flip!

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  12. I'm sorry but you two are too cute for words. Love it.

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  13. I love the look of AB's lounge pants but being rather curvy myself don't think they would suit me either... might have to give this one a go!

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  14. I love the look of AB's lounge pants but being rather curvy myself don't think they would suit me either... might have to give this one a go!

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