Jalie Jeans #2 - Fitting that Rise & the Front Pockets

Jalie Jeans 2908, continued.... The Rise!

High Rise, Low Rise, Mid Rise, Mid Hi Rise, Lo Low Rise - the heck with all that, what's MY Rise???   This step, along with the waistband, is what gave me the most angst about cutting into my fabric.  I know where I want my waistband (the top sitting just below my natural waist in front), but how to ensure that my new jeans will sit where I want them?  Finally, after (of course) even more research, I determined that neither the low rise nor the mid rise on this pattern was going to work for me.   Lots of people said the mid rise is really high, but for others it was perfect.   One thing that sewists of this pattern generally agreed on is that the butt coverage is pretty good for both rises.   (ymmv, of course).   Some were fine with the waistband as is (straight band, cut on the bias), others thought it was a fitting nightmare, & cut the band on the crossgrain, others decided that a curved band was the only way to go.

Bottom line:  know your own body, and compare the pattern pieces to a pair of jeans with the rise you want!  As far as starting size, I used my hip size - most people found this pattern to be a very good fit with a minimal of adjustments.   On many different body types, no less!....do we have a "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" thing going on here, maybe???  hmmmm........ food for thought....

I ended up deciding that MY rise was right in between the two views.   The mid rise was definitely a HIGH rise (i.e., "Mom Jeans"), but no one would want to see my body in the low rise (including me!)   I have a very short waist to crotch, which requires an alteration in most pants - this is my RTW pants nightmare.   Anyway, in my naivete, I figured I'd just cut my pieces about 2/3 up from the low rise view,  & I'd have my altered pieces.   I quickly realized that it wasn't going to be quite that simple - there are, after all, pieces that wouldn't quite match up if I just did a simple 'cut one edge' alteration, & grain lines that need to be addressed, so there was a bit of fiddling involved.   Believe me, I still have a LOT to learn about pattern adjustments!

As an example, if you biggify this pic of the Front Pocket Yoke, you can (hopefully) see both View A low rise (the lower piece), View B mid rise (directly on top of the denim) and my alteration (outlined in red).  You may be able to tell that it was tilted a bit, along with cutting in between the 2 originals.  Later I lined up ALL of the pocket pieces & front pants pieces, to make sure that the notches & edges matched, AND that the grainlines on all of the pieces lined up.

Here's the pant front; from top of the pic to bottom:  View B, my altered piece, and View A.  It looks sort of straight forward in the pic, but the pocket lines & the top lines are a bit different on each piece, so there is a small bit of futzing involved.   Again, lining up this piece to all of your pocket pieces is the trick.   And, of course, making sure the front sides will match the back sides!

Showing the altered yoke & lining pieces - note the adjusted grain line - it's minor, but hey, I'm very loose & relaxed about a lot of things in life, but the grain line isn't one of them!  ;^D

I used the same process for the back yoke (sorry, no pics of that).   My intention is to take some darts in the yoke for this pair, & after everything is put together, I'll deal with creating a curved waistband.   

And now, it's time for more fun stuff!   OK, maybe some people think the pattern alteration stuff is fun, but frankly, I'd rather be sewing!   I used a nice quality cotton shirting for my pocket linings (I'll also be using this for the zipper guard & the waistband lining).  I wanted my pockets to have finished seams inside & out,  so (after stitching WS of pocket yoke to RS of pocket lining) I stitched the edges of the pocket facing to the pocket lining, WS together,  stitching 1/8" from edge.   Then turn the pocket RS together, press, & stitch again 1/4" from the edge.  You now have nicely stitched French Seams on your pocket edges :)

left side has first stitching done

left side still with one stitching, right side has been stitched, turned, and stitched again

(Note:  pardon my odd watermarks...I'm still figuring out how to do them!)

I found the next step to be just a little bit tricky, just because I rely on pictures a lot, & the pattern pictures confused me a bit.  Just make sure you have the appropriate sides together before you stitch.  Turn the pocket inside out, then stitch the RS of pocket facing to the RS of the jeans front.

Turn, Press, Topstitch, Voila!

Next up - More Fun!!!   The Zipper!!!!  :D  I've done a couple of practice zips, & honestly, there is nothing to fear here - I'll be doing the real deal tonight.   BTW, I quickly basted the legs together to check the fit, & it's looking good so far!