Pattern Runway / Sweet Scalloped Shorts

 

 

 

 

Hey peeps, ready for August? July has been pretty warm round these parts and I found myself happily wearing all the summer clothes I’ve been sewing in the last two years or so. Where I work is pretty darn hot and therefore every day I reach for comfy dresses – Alders are on a very high rotation! – and shorty shorts. I’ve been wearing heaps these Sweet Scalloped Shorts I made a while back so I thought of sewing another pair.

The pattern is from the Australian company Pattern Runway and when I read what I wrote back in 2014 about it, I couldn’t do anything but smile – who knew 1cm SA are perfectly standard in RTW sewing?! Back then I found them unusual, being used to the Big4 and other indie pattern companies, which mostly use 1.5cm SA,  but today I prefer working with a smaller SA, mainly because there is less fabric wastage and also because with a smaller SA I don’t even bother to trim it to reduce bulk.

For my first pair of Scallopped shorts I cut a S for the waist grading down to a XS at the hips, but I had to take in a fair bit at the waist because it came out pretty loose. Accordingly to my blog post, I had to remove about 2,5cm from both front and back. This time I’ve cut a XS for all the pieces and also increased some of the SA slightly, maybe not even a 1/4″, at the center front and back. This way the shorts fit very well around my waist. It was extremely useful to have the first pair handy to check measurements, that’s why I should make muslins before engaging in a new project! Do you, like me, hate it tho?!

 

The fabric for these shorts is leftover from another make, these pair of culottes I blogged not long ago. It’s a quite heavy cotton drill, perfect for bottoms, but to reduce bulk at the hips, I’ve used lightweight poplin for the pocket bags and also left out the pocket facing.

For a nice pop of color, I’ve finished the inside of the waistband with contrasting bias binding, choosing a light shade of happy yellow. Next time I need to remember to trim away a little of the waistband as if you use bias you don’t need to fold the edge under, that’s why I ended up with that much “flap”. Also, I didn’t find necessary using interfacing on both waistband pieces and fused only the outer one, but with a lighter fabric I probably would follow the instructions.

I’m very happy with these shorts, I really love the design and the front leg sweetheart hem. As usual, I’ve already another pair lined up, but who knows when I’ll get to sew them with all the other projects I’ve in mind! Speaking of hem, I’ve serged the hem facing, turned it under, understitched it and then run a line of stitching on top of it to hem the shorts. Last time I did a very messy job and I’m super happy with the look of these pair, it’s nice to see this sorts of improvements on the same project!

The T-shirt is me-made too, it’s a modified version of the Hemlock Tee by Grainline Studio. I’ve cut off about 8cm from the body hem, shortened the sleeves and that’s it.

The fabric is a cotton holed knit from my cousin stash – I’m not 100% sure about those holes, but I do love the bigger stripes paired with the shorts pinstripes, so I know I’m gonna wear it a lot. Plus, the Hemlock, with its loose fit, is extremely comfortable and therefore perfect for summer.

From stripes-land that’s all, have a good week everyone!