Linen Burda Tie Up Pants

It might seem boring to some, but I really enjoy reading about people’s basic creations. I find it interesting to see what people wear everyday, as opposed to special garments which might only be worn once (which are of course, interesting in a different way!). With that said, today I’m sharing my second pair of black pants this year.

The pattern is Burda Tie Up Pants 05/2013 #117A, made in a cotton/linen from Spotlight. I wanted some black linen pants this summer, and had the fabric stashed away from some time last year, waiting for the right pattern. I had actually printed out this pattern years ago, waiting for the right fabric, and when I saw someone on Instagram make it up in a nice linen I knew it was the perfect match.

 

I trusted the drafting of Burda enough to not muslin it, and my faith largely paid off. The pants had a much nicer fit than anticipated – I almost expected a PJ-pants fit, but they are slim enough through the hip with a slightly tapered leg that makes them perfect for casual day wear.

The pattern is mostly made up as drafted, though I omitted the tie as the fabric was a bit too stiff for it to work effectively, and substituted a practical elastic waist. This was probably a good thing, as I seriously struggled cutting this out due to lack of fabric. Squeezing the pieces out was a challenge, and I only managed it (after an hour or so of puzzling) due to trimming all seam allowances down to 1cm!

I even managed to keep the full height of the waist, which is folded under to form a casing. Of course, when sewing, I undid all my good work by trimming that waist down far too much. I had tried them on briefly and assumed the waist was too high, which it was, by about 1cm and not the near-4cm I lopped off. I gained back height by inserting smaller elastic, but they’re still a bit low-rise for my taste.

 

As for the fabric….well, it’s about as good as you’d expect from Spotlight. When I went to choose, they had this fabric, a cotton/linen, and another, very similar, linen/cotton (I was confused too). They both seemed to have approximately the same percentage of each fibre, and differed perhaps slightly in thickness and hand. I chose the lighter-weight fabric, but perhaps I erred – it’s not totally opaque, and is a bit scratchy to wear. It softened up some in the wash, and it’s not a terrible fabric, but it’s not great either.

I forgot to get evidence of pocketses once I moved under the trees…so here they are.

The pattern calls for you to edgestitch the entire pocket opening, so the stitching attaching the pocket to the pants in the waistband area isn’t obvious. Like a dingus, I ignored this instruction and only have stitching in the waistband area.

 

All in all, these are a solid pair of pants that have already had a lot of wear over summer. They are comfy and cool for summer, with a neat fit. The thin fabric makes me suspicious of how long they will last, but I’ll be wearing them until they split! I’d recommend this pattern for anyone wanting an easy to sew and wear pant (but maybe skip the Spotlight fabric).

 

The details:
Pattern: Burda Tie Up Pants 05/2013 #117
Pattern details: “These loose pants are comfy and easy to slip on when running out into the nice weather. They can be shaped at the waist by an encased tie band.” Available in Burda magazine, or as a digital PDF download, sizes 34-44.
Fabric: 2m x 112cm wide cotton/linen, black, from Spotlight. 55% cotton, 45% linen.
Other materials: 38mm Birch knitted elastic.
Mods: Size 42
– Omitted waist ties, added elastic waistband (25mm wide with 3cm casing)
– Removed 2.5cm height total in the waist by cutting off/using a narrower elastic casing (this was a bad idea!)
– Forgot to edgestitch entire pocket opening as directed, just stitched pocket to pants in waistband section