Jeans Part 10: The Finished Product!

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Finally, my jeans are complete!

You might recall these jeans were originally intended to be a muslin, for a followup made with sangria (or “hot strawberry”) denim.  Being made with stretch denim, and having never made the pattern before, I had no idea how well they would fit.

The answer: much better than I expected, and good enough that these jeans certainly earn the title “wearable muslin”.  In fact, aside from one or two fit issues, they can be considered “finished product”.

You can tap or click on any of the photos in this article for a zoom view.

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The waist is perhaps a tad roomy, but that’s probably just the effect of the stretch denim.  Leg length, rise, and crotch depth all seem really good.

The big fit issue is an extra bit of bagginess along the rear thigh.  This photo shows the issue well.

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I’m thinking about how to alter the pattern to take in some of this slack for the next pair.

There’s also a funny pucker where the pocket facing runs up against the side seams.  It happens on both left and right, moreso on the right side.  The above photo shows you the issue for the left side, but the other photos don’t show the right side so well.  I’m not so sure what happened here – it might have been a problem with the stretch denim, or the way I constructed the side seams. In any event, it’s very minor.

I’m thinking the next pair might be made from some of the white stretch corduroy in my fabric stash, given that the stretch denim pair turned out so well. All of my crabbing about stretch denim notwithstanding, I think I learned a lot from working with it and can do a better job next time around.

All said, I think Kwik Sew 3504 is a real home run.  The fit is really good, needing only minor alterations for the body size it was intended for.  It produces a pair of jeans that look great, and could pass for something off a store shelf.  The instructions were great, and at no point did I feel either the pattern or the instructions were “dumbing things down” so that little Mr. Home Sewer could get through the project.  I’ll certainly be making this pattern again.

8 thoughts on “Jeans Part 10: The Finished Product!

  1. Matt C.

    I had the exact same pocket pucker with my non-stretch denim of this pattern. I thought it was just a mistake in my sewing, but maybe not. Perhaps the pocket notch is a bit off in the pattern? Just a guess. I will try to figure it out next time.

    Overall I think your work looks great.

    That red ribbon tag is interesting. I was also wondering if I should come up with my own “brand name.”

  2. mportuesisf Post author

    Matt,

    Thank you for compliments!

    I noticed the exact same “pocket pucker” on a pair of Levi’s I was wearing the other day. I’m not sure that excuses the KwikSew pattern, but I still felt better about it nonethless.

    The red ribbion idea wasn’t mine, but it is fun to do. I noticed on Taylor Tailor’s site, he puts rectangles of canvas or some other material on the waistband in back to mimic the labels on a pair of Levi’s jeans. You’re right there’s lots of possibilities here beyond mimicing the look of ready-to-wear. Looking forward to seeing what you do with your jeans.

  3. Joe

    Excellent job Michael. I’ve had this same pattern waiting on the sidelines. I was going to wait until next winter to give them a try. Your’s and Peters came out so well though I may just have to go ahead and make a pair.

    1. mportuesisf Post author

      Joe, I was really surprised by how well the pattern went together, especially since it was my first attempt at making any sort of pants. By all means give it a try. I really recommend Peter’s Jeans sew-along for covering everything you need to know beyond the pattern directions.

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