Jeans in July – Fitting resources

So, we are sewing Jeans this month ! Are you scared ? Don’t be !

For a recap about which jeans patterns we are sewing this month, check out my last blog post.

First, go get yourself a confidence boost by reading Heather Lou’s amazing pep talk for overcoming sewing fear! And as it comes from the Queen of Jeans making herself, I think it is particularly appropriate for this month’s challenge!

Okay, now that we have established that this jeans making fear is totally irrational, we wanted to give you the maximum of resources to help you tackle the most intimidating  part of sewing jeans : the fit !

Personally, my experience in jeans making is pretty thin! I bought the Ginger jeans pattern a few years back and made a muslin in some ugly fabric but never got around to making the proper pair ! Which is really stupid because I actually managed to get a pretty good fit ! Anyway, here are the resources that helped me and that I hope can help you too to achieve the best fit possible.

First, from Closet Case Patterns,

• the jeans fitting ebook, available as a free download or directly as a blog post through this link.
• You could also use the pants fitting ebook, because jeans are pants! Available as a free download or directly as a blog post through this link.

If you are looking for more specific resources directly applicable to the Ash and Dawn jeans pattern by Megan Nielsen, you can check out these posts :

• First, read about how to choose the correct size and how to grade between sizes on this post.
• Then, you can learn to lengthen or shorten the inseam (and discover in which case this is a necessary step) here
• And finally, how to adjust the rise and when to do so just here.

If you decide to go with the Ames Jeans by Cashmerette, you should definitely check out :

• this article on how to choose the fit on your Ames Jeans according to your body shape;
• this blog post on how to grade the Ames jeans pattern between sizes.

Other resources include:

• Seamwork Pants fitting Basics
• Thread Magazine Everyone can have jeans that fit
• Deer and Doe articles on fitting their Safran skinny jeans:
  • how to grade between sizes
  • how to adjust the length of the legs and rise
  • how to adjust the front
  • how to adjust the back 
  • how to adjust the legs and knees

Finally, for my fellow French speakers, I found those two articles which I thought were pretty clear:

• Modifier la jambe d’un pantalon, sur le journal d’Artesane
• Modifier la fourche d’un pantalon, sur le journal d’Artesane.

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I hope these ressources will help you achieve the best fit possible ! If you know of any others, please add them in the comment and I will edit this post accordingly, to help the largest number of people possible!

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One last word on fitting : there is such a thing as too much fitting ! Some of the lines and creases are normal and allow you to move around in your jeans ! If you fit them too much, you won’t be able to sit down ! So give yourself a break and don’t stress too much about the little creases you may get.