100 inches of hems! Ultra Wide Leg Pants with a High Waist!

I was born in the nineteen seventy's. I love the fashion and hairstyles of that  and the previous decade. The large print vibrant fabrics, elaborate crewel embroidery on fabrics and the sassy Afro hairstyles all attract me. On one of my many resale/thrift store adventures I found some fantastic fabrics that reminded me of those decades.

Aren't they delightful! I didn't measure the lengths of the fabric, but I guess there is about 25+ yards here! I paid about a dollar a yard for it all! 

I was instantly drawn to this fantastic print. It is delightfully obnoxious with the floral motif and neon colors. I thought I would make some super wide pants in this print to wear with a black tank. 

Before I was willing to cut this fabric however, I decided to make a wearable muslin with the brown floral fabric of which there was about 10 yards.

. 

Next, I needed the perfect pattern. I love to sew with retro sewing patterns! They offer styles slightly outside of mainstream fashion and the instructions are awesome! Short and to the point! I love it! So, I dug into my stash and found this pattern from 1972. A pair of high waist wide leg pants; it was perfect!

This pair of pants required 4 3/8 yards of fabric! Look how wide the legs are. I added a spoon to the picture to show scale.

 

The pattern is a size 14 and I needed to reduce the size to fit me. These pants are form fitting at the midriff and stomach then widen to the legs. I used my custom dress form to adjust the pattern to get the proper fit.

Pinned and on the stand

Pinned on the stand from the back

Hanging without the stand

After pining the front and back pieces together for my hip width, I needed to get an accurate crotch sizing. I determined that I needed a chuck of the seat removed to fit. I decided to remove this portion and simply taper to the inner thigh to retain the volume in the remainder of the leg.

After getting the proper fit, I thought these pants needed some pockets. So using the pocket pieces from this dress pattern, I added a couple to the side seams.

 

Granted, my usual hand stitching  projects take a long time, this was a super fast project even with the pattern adjustments I made. I think my completed pants a Dyn-o-mite!

Each hem is 50 inches!

Here is my review of the pattern:

Pattern Description: Wide leg pants and halter.

Pattern Sizing: Size 14 (I had to adjust it to fit)

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? 
Yes.

Were the instructions easy to follow? 
They were very easy to follow and the construction method made the size adjustments I needed to make easy.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
I liked the high waist and super wide leg of the pants. In this era of skinny jeans and leggins, I wanted something different.


I disliked that the pattern did not have pockets.

Fabric Used: A retro cotton twill that I scored at a thrift store. There were no markings in the selvedge to identify it better.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: I added pockets to the side seams. I installed an invisible zipper and only hemmed it 1/2 inch instead of 1 1/4 inches the recommended.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? I plan to make it again as well as the halter in the pattern too. I would recommend it.


Conclusion: Good pattern, fun pants! 

Happy Sewing!