Completed: Dawn Jeans

As someone who specializes in teaching Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshops, I’m admittedly not the best at trying out new jeans patterns when they get released. Part of this is due to budget restraints (both monetary and in the sense of “ok Lauren just how many pairs of jeans do you really need?), part due to style choices (like, not gonna sew flared pants. I’m sorry. Maybe that will change in the future), and part is just because I know it’s a losing battle to try to keep up with everything as it gets released. That being said, I do enjoy seeing new things that are being released – especially when they cater to different styles and sizes! – and I’m especially receptive to anything that fulfills a personal style need in my own wardrobe.

I’ve been looking for a couple years now for a good non-stretch jeans pattern that will easily transition into shorts. Specifically, I wanted a shorts pattern that looked like – well, cut-off mom jeans. You know what I’m talking about – the super high waist, the tiny little back yoke, and the slight flare at the bottom of the leg. Bonus if the front pocket bags hang out! I’ve seen these all over the world – both in real life and on fashion blogs – and I haven’t found a sewing pattern that quite mimics it and is also readily available (i.e., not a vintage Calvin Klein pattern that costs $$$).

But, here they are! And I love them!

These are the Dawn Jeans from Megan Nielsen patterns – the mom jean pattern that I have been waiting for! With an ultra-high rise and four leg options (slim, straight, wide, and shorts), these are made with non-stretch denim and look like your classic jeans from the 70s/80s. They have all the features that make you think of jeans (including the option for a button or a zip fly) and a couple of different inseam choices so you can go long/tall, normal, or cropped. I loved this pattern as soon as it was released but it look me a little while to get around to making them. I’m glad I did though because this is definitely a new favorite for me!

I made the size 4, based on my hip and waist measurements, and chose the regular inseam (for the record, I am a little over 5’2″ and have a 28″-29″ inseam) and the slim leg. I find Megan Nielsen patterns to fit me pretty accurately right out of the envelope, so I threw caution to the wind and cut this shit straight out of my denim without making a test version first. There are NO adjustments to the pattern – this is exactly how it is drafted. Like I said, MN tends to work really well for me and you can see just how good they look! It’s like magic!

Also, I took a lot of photos so you’ll just have to suffer through them. Sorry.

My fabric is a medium weight Cone Mills denim that has been sitting my stash for probably about 3 years now. I’m sorry to say that I have absolutely no idea what weight it is, but it started out fairly rigid and has softened up with multiple washings. I like that it’s a medium blue color, instead of the dark wash that most shops carry. This was given to me by Jennifer at Workroom Social when I was up there to teach a workshop (again, a few years ago) so I’m not sure where it can be purchased now!

I had just enough to eek these jeans out (seriously, I think I had mere fumes of fabric left over by the time I was done cutting haha) and I’m so happy it worked out!

I used some quilting cotton that was in my stash to make the pocket bags. The topstitching thread is Mara 70, which is THE BEST topstitching thread imo. It is thick so you get the nice look of topstitching, but not as thick as the stuff that most fabric stores carry (which I find most home sewing machines don’t like at all). I keep loads of it in my stash and highly recommend all the shops I teach at to carry it for my workshops! If you have issues with topstitching thread in your machine, seriously, try this stuff! It’ll change your life! FYI the classic coppery color is #448 😉

All other notions – the rivets, the button, even the leather back patch – are raided from my stash. This was a very economical make for me, ha!

For construction, I followed the directions rather than use my own methods. Most of it is pretty similar, although the fly construction is completely different. Many of sewing patterns (including Ginger) use a “fold-over” fly construction which is really simple to do (and SUPER simple to teach!) but not necessarily how it is sewn in ready to wear. The construction for this fly is where you sew the facing on (rather than it be cut with the front leg and folded back), which is the RTW method. This is also the method we use on the Claryville Jeans with Workroom Social (hopefully to be released soon!). It can be a bit confusing if you’re not used to it but it does admittedly have a nicer finish, I think! I found Megan’s directions to be pretty straight-forward and easy to decipher.

There are also instructions on how to make your own button hole (rather than use the automatic one on your machine), which I tried for this pair! Honestly, my machine doesn’t really have issues sewing button holes on any of my jeans but it was fun to try something different!

Overall, I am extremely happy with the fit and the general proportions of everything – I was initially a little concerned that the back pockets were too high, but after some wearing around + a very enthusiastic discussion on Instagram I have come to terms with my mom-butt. Since the fabric is non-stretch, it does start out quite tight (I wouldn’t say that it is necessarily uncomfortable, but it is restrictive especially in comparison to how stretch jeans feel!) but loosens up over the course of the day. These photos were taken after a couple of days wear, and you can see that they are still pretty slim-fitting.

My only beef with the pattern is the size of the front pockets. They are HUGE and super deep! I know people love having big pockets but these are unnecessarily giant – like, they go nearly halfway down my thigh. And since the pants are so tight, it’s not like you can really stash anything in them without it being super lumpy and/or uncomfortable. Because they are so deep, they are kind of useless – anything you put in them travels way over yonder and then is almost impossible to get out without doing some kind of weird pocket dance. I don’t use my front pockets much so this doesn’t super bother me for this pair, but I’ll be making them quite a bit more shallow on future pairs (except for my shorts, which obviously need some pockets hanging out of the front so I look like the hussy that I am).

Hm, what else? I guess that’s it! I’ve been holding these photos in my queue for a month or so now – as evidenced by the fact that they were taken in my old studio, and I moved about 3 weeks ago! My new yard is much more private (i.e., fenced, not on a corner lot, and I don’t have an upstairs neighbor who works from home all day!) so I am hoping I can get back to doing photos outside once I’m back in the States. In the meantime, I’m Vancouver-bound! See y’all laters!

Tags: blackbird fabrics, completed, cone mills, dawn jeans, jeans, megan nielsen, pants, workroom social