Pants? Pants. Pants!A lecture on the shape of pants

Gennette Gill

Technical Communication (Comp 321)January 27, 2006

Pants Goals

• Using a sewing machine

• Creating your own pants patterns

• Making new pants styles

• Understand the shape of pants

• Visualize how to sew fabric together

• Alter existing pants to fit better

Non-Goals

Organization

• Develop a pants pattern1 look at the shape of pants

2 come up with a pattern

3 discuss resulting pants

4 if pants are not acceptable, goto 1

• See pants being sewn together

• Discuss altering existing pants

The Shape of Pants

legs in pants basic pants shape the shape of one pant

The Shape of Pants

Modified Pant Design (front)

What Goes Where

waist

hip

thigh

inseam

Modified Pants Design (back)

same length

longer

wider

Putting It Together

front back

inseam

• Sew the front to the back of each leg along the inseam

• Sew right leg to left leg along the U• Sew the front to the back of each

leg along the outer seam

Making Alterations

• If the crotch is too loose, which line do we need to change?

• How do we change it, without adding any aditional fabric?

Making Alterations

• If the crotch is too loose, which line do we need to change?

• How do we change it without adding any aditional fabric?

• Shorten at the top• What else changes?

- Waist may get bigger

- Legs are shorter

- Zipper and belt loops cut!

Making Alterations

• If the crotch is too loose, which line do we need to change?

• How do we change it without adding any aditional fabric?

• Shorten at the bottom• What else changes?

cut heresomehow

- Less room across thigh

- Legs narrower / differently shaped

c1discontinuity

Making Alterations

• If the crotch is too tight, which line do we need to change?

• How do we change it, without adding any aditional fabric?

Making Alterations

• If the crotch is too tight, which line do we need to change?

• How do we change it without adding any aditional fabric?

• What else changes?

- Waist gets smaller

- Less room across hips

- Zipper gets cut!

Making Alterations

• If the crotch is too tight, which line do we need to change?

• How do we change it without adding any aditional fabric?

• What else changes?

- Less room across thighs

Use Your Skills

• Visualize how pants are put together.• Look at the pants you have:

– How they are different from each other?– What properties will you look for when buying pants?

• How would you modify your existing pants:– Too lose? Too tight? What needs to change?– What side effects will possible changes have?

• Avoid mistakes when making pants– Visualize how the pattern will come together.– Small alterations based on your own measurements.

Thanks To…

• Chris Oates, my coach

• Jose Bastardes, my pants model

• Jeff Feasel, for my sewing machine and many valuable pants conversations

Questions?

Pants?Pants? Pants.Pants. Pants!Pants!