Thursday, January 19, 2017

Sweaters and Skinny Jeans 1

Hello Readers. I hope you are doing well. I am in the middle of new year cleaning. I am trying to make my way through a small collection of sweaters and jeans/pants. They all could use some refashioning so, here is the first outfit. 


I started with a big navy blue cardigan. They are great for cold days to layer over another top. But this one is a little plain, a lot plain actually. I wanted to jazz it up a little by adding something useful. Pockets! I also want to make the sleeves more fitted so they do not hang over my hands .


I love hand-me-downs. These jeans were given to me. (Thanks Sue!) They have been waiting for me to put them to use. I removed the pockets from these beige denim jeans. I just unpicked the stitches.


It was easy pickins. (haha) Anyway, They are ready to attach to my sweater. I pinned them in place.


I stitched over the original stitch marks on the pockets. This was a super easy way to add pockets. I was inspired to add these pockets because of a sweater my daughter has. It is the photo below on the right. Her sweater is a bit more posh with faux leather pockets. Mine isn't an exact copy, but it's close enough for me.

Copy sweater.                                         Original sweater. 

I took the sleeves in a couple inches at the wrist. I also took a little off the upper sleeve and the body of the sweater. I like the loose fit but when the sleeves are too big, it just looks sloppy.


The second piece of this outfit is a pair of mid-rise corduroy pants. These fit of these pants is so awful. The word depressing comes to mind. Why bother fixing saggy pants like this?

I look like a grandpa. Yikes.

They are soft and warm for winter. In a bright light you can see the pattern of the fabric. It is a much more subtle pattern in natural light. I don't have anything in my closet with this pattern on it.  These are nice pants and they want to fit better. They just need help.


I decided to make these into a skinny jeans kind of fit. I want to be able to tuck them into boots. It's winter, I'm cold. I want multiple layers, thick socks, and warm boots. This is an easy fix. I do it a lot. 


After trying them on I found that they were too high at the waist and there was too much room in the crotch. That is an easy fix too. I just made a new seam on the inside of the legs by following along the original seam. I stitched over this several times so it would be strong and secure. (I don't want to split my pants in public.) I also shortened them a bit at the ankle.


The new fit is much more flattering and feminine but it's still comfortable, casual, and easy to wear.


These corduroys have serious stretch. I love that. 


That's all for today. I hope you are cozy and warm where ever you are. 


Thanks for reading, now go make something fun for yourself.

4 comments:

jenny_o said...

I love your demonstration photo for the stretchiness! And I'm so glad you posted how you fixed the too-long crotch length. I have this problem a lot because I'm very short-waisted. I never thought of reducing the length this way. Thank you!

I Can Work With That said...

Hi Jenny_o. thanks for commenting. I don't like really low waist pants but when they are too high it isn't comfortable either. I hope it works for you too.
Chickie

My Card Attic: Hazel said...

I LOVE what you do with all your clothes that need a new 'life', and they always end up looking so trendy! Thank you! Hazel x

I Can Work With That said...

Thanks, I am glad to hear you liked the post.
Happy sewing to you!
Chickie