dawn jeans | LLADYBIRD

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Completed: Tongue-Tied Sweater

It’s been a minute since I shared a knitting project! I actually *have* been knitting – I always have at least 1 project on my needles at any given time (usually two – one for the couch, and a smaller/simpler one for the road!), and I always keep my Ravelry account updated! But for whatever reason, I never feel super compelled to share them on my blog. Anyway, here’s one today!

This is the Tongue Tied sweater by Poison Grrls. I actually chose the yarn before the sweater pattern – a very uncharacteristic knitting move for me (usually I have my pattern selected before I start shopping for yarn). To be completely honest – I wasn’t in the mindset for planning a new sweater when all this happened, as I was still steadily working my way through my last sweater (see! There’s one I knit and never shared here lmao). But this yarn caught my eye at Pintuck & Purl and once I got my hands on it, it was all I could think about.

The yarn is CashLuxe Spark by Sweet Georgia Yarns, a gloriously soft and cushiony fingering-weight yarn with this incredibly rich color and the cutest subtle sparkle! I’m not a super duper yarn snob (I love natural fibers, blah blah, but I don’t typically buy *really* expensive yarn. Although. That may now change haha) but I really, really, really wanted this yarn on my body. I initially considered socks – I mean, who doesn’t want to wrap their toes in cashmere? – but at $38/skein, that was a little rich even for my blood. So obviously it made sense to buy two skeins and turn it into a sweater, because that’s totally fiscally responsible.

I started this sweater right after I finished my last one, toward the end of December last year. It knitted up really fast – partially because, well, it’s a tiny fucking sweater, but also I just really enjoyed every part of the process. I LOVED touching that yarn, so so much. I actually would have finished this quite a bit sooner, except once I got to the point of picking up the sleeves I let it sit dormant for a couple of weeks while I worked on other stuff.

Not a lot to say about this pattern, but here are some notes:
– I knit the size Small, based on my bust measurement. My gauge called for size 2 needles (body) and 1 needles (ribbing).
– This is a really fitted sweater! I mean, I knew that going in – but trying it on, yeah, it’s basically painted on. Aggressively blocking the entire thing really well helped a lot, and now it skims my body perfectly.
– Because it was so tight, I did have some issues with getting a stretchy enough bind off (I actually had to re-do my bind off at the bottom AND the neckline twice!). I ended up using size 3 needles and a super stretchy bind off. With the neckline, that was mainly my fault for being an idiot. I thought I’d be super clever and do a fold-over neckband, but quickly discovered (while unsuccessfully trying to pull it over my head) that those don’t stretch at all. LMAO.
– Mod-wise, I added 1″ of length to the body, since I wanted to be able to wear this with high-waisted jeans (it’s pretty short!).
– If you think you see a yarn tail in the back, you’re right. I haven’t woven it in yet. I don’t know why.

I loved knitting this pattern! It was easy to follow, simple to knit (but not boring), and the proportions are just lovely. I’ve already got a few more Poison Grrls patterns in my radar for my next sweater. I love Amy’s aesthetic and I love that she uses fingering weight yarn – perfect for our mild winters!

Oh, I also made my pants, too! These are more Dawn Jeans, made in Robert Kaufman non-stretch corduroy from Pintuck & Purl! (I picked it out the same time I was fantasizing about that yarn haha). Not much to say about these that I haven’t already said – I made my normal size, this time with the wide legs and the cropped length. The cropped length isn’t actually that cropped – I ended up having to take off another 3″ or so (but I also have a 28″ inseam sooo take that as you will). I’m also not super thrilled about how the back fits, but I believe that’s just what you get with wide leg pants. The wrinkles are there because there is too much fabric at the inner thigh (the issue I had with my Calvin Klein jeans), but for true wide-leg pants you really don’t want to remove width there. Whatever, I’m not the one looking at my own butt so I don’t care.

So anyway, that’s my new sweater! Fun to knit, fun to wear, and the sparkles make me happy 🙂 Oh! And I still have some of this yarn leftover – so you better believe I’ll be making a tiny pair of socks 🙂 If anyone has suggestions for short-cuff sock patterns – preferably one with bobbles (I don’t know why but I’m feeling like I want bobbles on these), let me know!

Tags: cashluxe, completed, corduroy, dawn jeans, fingering weight, knitting, megan nielsen, pants, pintuck and purl, poison grrls, robert kaufman, sweater, yarn

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Categories completed projects - new

Completed: Black Dawn Jeans

11 Dec

Hello everyone and welcome to my third installment of Operation-Jeans-Drawer!

This time, I’m sharing the Dawn jeans by Megan Nielsen. This is another great jeans pattern that, again, has some major differences from the other 2 that I previously shared. I don’t like to say that I have a “favorite” jeans pattern – since they are all so good and serve different purposes! – but right now, I gotta say, this is the one that is getting sewn the most in my studio these days. I shared the first pair I made at last year, and they still get lots of wear (they’ve truly broken in beautifully). I’ve actually made the shorts several times this summer, but this is only the second time I’m sharing the pattern here on this blog.

So, again, I can’t really compare these jeans to the Ginger or the Claryville since they are very different – but I’ll tell you what their key features are:
BODY TYPE: I don’t think these are necessarily designed for a specific body shape? I will say that they fit me pretty well straight out of the envelope. I did not make a muslin, just cut according to my measurements on the envelope.
FIT: These are slim-fitting, rigid jeans with a high, high waist! Like, the rise will completely cover your belly button (I love it!). If this is not your jam then this definitely is not the pattern for you lol. They aren’t a true “mom” jean – the legs and hips are a little more slim fitting than that – but they do have that suuuuper high rise. I should also add – the standard size pattern comes in sizes 0-20, and there is also a Curve range that includes sizes 14-30! Yay!
FABRIC: You want rigid denim for these! No stretch whatsoever! The good news is it means you don’t have to interface anything except maybe the fly facing (yup, I don’t interface my waistband! Not even at the button hole! Fight me!). The not as good news means that these are not gonna be the most comfy jeans you ever wear. I don’t mean to say that they are uncomfortable… I just mean, you can’t do, like, yoga in them (I can, and have, done yoga in my Ginger jeans lmao). I would not say the jeans are tight so much as they are restrictive. I hope that makes sense. Think pencil skirt vs circle skirt. I love them and I wear them all the time but I will be damned if I wear these on a 5 hour cross country flight, you know what I mean? Also, there is no law saying you can’t make these with stretch denim (def size down tho) but why? Just use a stretch pattern, save this one for those cool rigid denims, twills, and corduroys that you don’t know what to do with!

So, with that out of the way – here’s my newest pair! I wanted some black jeans because I made black shorts for the summer (also with the Dawn pattern) and I got a surprising amount of wear out of them. This fabric is a rigid denim from Darrell Thomas Textiles, which I bought when I was there this summer for a Jeans Workshop. When I say “rigid,” I mainly mean denim with no added stretch. A little bit of mechanical stretch is good. I have learned that I don’t like the suuuuper rigid denim that does not stretch at all; I find them hard to move in (granted, most of my moving involves a lot of squatting and crawling around the floor so maybe that doesn’t apply to you lol). Anyway, this is a nice denim and no I don’t know the weight! I felt it, it felt good, I bought 2 yards.

My only grief with this style of jean is the time that it takes to properly break in. Ugh! Like I said in my previous post, washing them a lot up front does help quite a bit. But you do still have to wear them around and get the wrinkles to soften up and have the denim mold to you body. One of these days I’ll woman up and sit in a bathtub full of warm water with the jeans on and let them dry that way. I’m not brave enough quite yet to try that tho lol. Please don’t be scared of my talk about the breaking in… it’s really not that bad, and it is ABSOLUTELY worth it. But if you make these jeans and they are super uncomfortable… that’s why! Give them some time (and WEAR THEM!) and they will soften up quite a bit.

Anyway, this denim wasn’t too bad as it was already pretty soft. I washed it three times before I cut it (I always do this with new denim) and that helped a lot. As you can see in these photos – it does relax out (compare these to the Dawn Jeans in my first post and you’ll see what I mean. They are the same size, those were just more fresh!). What you’re seeing is a pair of non-stretch jeans that I wore for probably a week without washing. They don’t bag out so much as they just relax. Yes, there are wrinkles under my butt but they are there to help me move. Otherwise I don’t think I’d be able to sit in these things haha.

Size-wise, I made a straight 4 but ended up letting the hips out a little. I think my hips are more in the size 6 range now, which makes sense (when I originally made these, the size 4 was fine but since then I have gained weight and also had to let my original ones out lol). I also reduced the height of the yoke by 1″ because it was too tall for me – I just ended up with a 1″ fold right in the middle when I put them on, so I cut it off the top. Finally, I also adjusted the pocket bags on this pattern. They are CRAZY deep. Like… I understand wanting deep pockets (I guess, I dunno, I don’t really use my front pockets) but with pants this tight they are absolutely fucking useless. I just cut the bottom curve off so now they are straight. Mainly it was really annoying trying to push them back into place after using the bathroom, and not being able to reach the bottom. They were THAT deep. Absolutely useless.

I kept these pretty simple, with black topstitching thread, black rivets and buttons (matte black from Blackbird Fabrics and I love them!), and a black leather back patch. One of the back pockets actually has a design topstitched in it (yes it’s the TCB lightning bolt, thanks for noticing) but it’s quite subtle. I am hoping that over time, as the jeans are washed and started to fade and crinkle, the design will be more noticable. We shall see! Oh, and you can’t really read the tag in the back pocket, but it says “You Can’t Buy This” Ha!

Forgot to say – this is the slim leg version, with the short inseam (and yes they are actually hemmed in these photos haha). This pants pattern comes with 4 different leg versions – skinny, straight, wide, and shorts – but I’ve only tried this one and the shorts. I have plans to make a pair of cropped wide-legs out of some corduroy, but we’ll see when I actually get around to it (not anytime soon now that I can’t leave the house without socks on haha).

Anyway, that’s it for this post, as well as for this series of “Lauren Talks About Her Favorite Jeans Patterns While She Also Revamps Her Pants Selection”! I have one more pair of jeans/pattern to share, but I need to sew them first (it’s been a busy month!). Hoping to get that accomplished before the end of the year, we’ll see!

Have you sewn jeans yet? What’s your favorite pattern?

Tags: completed, darrell thomas textiles, dawn jeans, denim, jeans, megan nielsen, you can't buy this

Comments 30 Comments
Categories completed projects - new

Completed: Dawn Jeans

11 Apr

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