Ready to workout!

Hello everyone, and welcome to March!

It seems like I keep falling a couple of days behind in my project reveals! However, I am happy to have finished at least two sewing projects this year--one for January, and one I will show you today. Come what may, it is nice to push through and end up with a finished product you are excited about.

My February project was inspired by the opportunity to create something that brings about an element of fear, or a project we usually avoid. I can honestly say I avoid pants, so workout pants seemed to fit the bill. Well, now that I tackled this project, I truly wonder...what was I so worried about?!?!?!!  Here is the finished result:

 For fabric, I used poly/lycra from Denver Fabrics.  Both of them were found in the activewear section on their website.  They were super easy to sew with, and have more than enough stretch to be comfy for my workouts.

And to top it off, I completed these pants by mostly using ONLY my serger!!!!!  Let's just say that 95% came from my serger, and 5% was my sewing machine. For sizing, I sewed a size 14. This was only because I didn't pay attention to the pattern envelope. I needed a size 16 according to my hip measurement, but figured the stretch would work in my favor.

The construction of this garment was actually quite fun! It reminded me of quilting, with the orientation of the contrast wedge pieces.  If you attempt this pattern, make sure to line up your notches well, and the rest will start to make sense.  Here is what the inside looks like:

I must admit that the inside is as clean as the outside, which I LOVE! However, as a small note (and you will see below)  I realized afterward that it is a good idea to change out the serger thread. Even though I tested out smaller scraps of fabric to make sure there was no show-through, there still was! Here is a photo:

I ended up fixing the small areas by running them through my sewing machine, using a stretch stitch, and black thread.  Voila! All better!

I did make a fitting adjustment in order to get these to feel as comfortable as they do.  You see, when I finished the pants, they fit me perfectly everywhere--except my butt! In fact, they hung halfway down my bottom. So, I created a wedge piece, added it to the pants, and it was exactly what was needed to balance things out.

In conclusion, I LOVE this, and will definitely sew another pair again!  The design on the legs is adorable, and adds just enough style for something different. 

Besides, you definitely need comfortable workout clothes when you are five months pregnant!!!!

Stay sew-filled!!