Mini and Mens Hudson pants for the fellas...

 

I was thrilled when True Bias released the Mini and Men's Hudson Pants, just in time for holiday sewing. It's such fun to make matching items for family members. Last year I made camouflage-print board shorts for DS and DGS - this year it's Hudsons!

I felt pretty secure about the basic design, because I made  Hudsons for myself last year. Making them for the guys...well, the iffy part was sizing. I just didn't know how close the Mini sizing would be to RTW sizes. Or the Men's to body measurements. And for both, the length was puzzling. What was the implication of a slightly dropped crotch, and where would the pants end. At the ankle? Below the ankle?

There are only a few pics of these on the web, mostly of the Mini's. The Men's versions seemed to be made primarily by the pattern testers - and they all mentioned the pattern had been modified since the testing stage. aargh.

In the end, I decided to work with body measurements - waist and inseam - and just make them the way I wanted them to look!

 

The Mini version (above): I made DGS's pants in size 6, which pretty much corresponds to his measurements - 48" height and 22" waist. The Mini pattern doesn't provide an inseam measurement, so I did some research on the web, and decided to go with a 20" inseam.

I think he'll have fun with these. He was an awesome ninja at Halloween.

Even better, he gets 2 pairs. The ones below match his Dad's, no cuff.

The Men's version: I made David's without the cuff because I know he would prefer a plain hem. I started with the size 38, based on his waist, and added 6" to the length of the leg to finish with a 34" inseam. He's tall, almost 6'4", and the pattern was way too short for him.

Sewing notes for both:

• I used black jersey knit from Girl Charlee - it's perfect! Specs: 95% Cotton/5% Spandex. Weight: 10 oz, Medium Weight. Stretch: 60%, 30%.

• From my own Hudson's, as well as the description on the pattern, I know the leg tapers drastically from thigh to ankle, it has a very skinny lower leg. And as with mine, I widened the leg for the Mini and the Men's pattern, thigh to hem. This is just my personal preference for pants on men and boys...but I'm the maker, so I decide :-)

• I simply don't like to insert elastic in a waistband through its bottom seam, first pic below. This particular waistband is attached to the pants with a 3/8" seam. Not much room for error. IMHO it's fiddly and hard to fit garments with an opening in the waistband, and it's frustrating to rip out and modify the elastic after the opening is closed.
  
  My approach is much easier. I insert the elastic through the center back seam in the waistband, second and third pics below. This way, if I need to modify the elastic, I simply open that little seam to get at it. Easy peasy.

Instructions

The open seam on the inside of the waistband.
The pin prevents the seam from opening up further than intended.

 

Inserting the elastic.
After finishing the elastic insertion, just slip-stitch the seam to close.

Something is missing on all three - a drawstring. I want to use 5/8" wide, 100% cotton twill tape for the drawstrings. Not 1/2" or 1", not parachute cord, shoelaces, or corded elastic. Picky. I found some on Ebay a couple days ago and quickly ordered 10 yards. Now the funny part - I got a confirmation email and realized it's shipping from Italy, with a couple weeks shipping time once it's mailed. In my rush, I never noticed. Oh well, I have a cotton cord fallback if it doesn't arrive in time.

Nutsy. And for a parting shot, real nuts are falling from the mahogany trees in the back garden. Huge things and hard as wood - I think they're beautiful...

Ciao! Coco