Hello, friends!
I’m happy to say that I’ve followed through with a goal!
At the beginning of the year, I set five goals out for myself to complete before the year’s end. I’ve finished one and 7/8 of that goal! (There’s one goal on that list which is nearing it’s completion)
Sometimes I have a bit of sewing ADD and get distracted by all of the pretty fabrics and new patterns and don’t follow through with my sewing list…. I suppose I’m more of a “planner” type of sewist as I enjoy the process of choosing fabrics and pairing them with patterns. I pretty much always look past garment photos on a pattern’s cover and straight to the line drawings and imagine those drawings in different fabrics and colors. I would say that this is why I have a large pile of fabrics with their accompanying patterns (+notions) sitting on my cutting table. Some have been there for over a year….
Anyway…. I MADE LEGGINGS.
I know it’s not a tremendous feat. It was rather quick and easy, btw. And quite simple. Why did I not sew these before?
[source: McCall’s Pattern Company]
The fabric I used was a Bebe knit with a diagonal design purchased last summer from Fabric Mart. I don’t remember the content (the FM sticker did not remain with the yardage), but it appears to be a poly/spandex mix. I bought it simply as the description stated that it would be great for leggings and the fact that it was uber cheap.
This pattern was super fast to put together. It’s only two pattern pieces with an inner leg seam. I cut out a XXL, but that version did not look like leggings, and instead resembled baggy skinny pants. I’m not sure if that result was due to my fabric perhaps being stretchier than the suggested fabric or that my body shape does not adhere to the pattern’s sizing. Anyhow, I ended up grading these down to about a XL in waist/hips and a L for my legs. When I make these again, I will probably just cut out the XL and add some length to the rise. I used a wide knit elastic I had on hand for the waistband and it may have taken the rise down too low. It’s still comfortable, but my preference is a little higher and nearer my natural waist.
Yes, Snowball likes to photo bomb….
Yes, I know…. black leggings, not so interesting nor imaginative. I do wear leggings quite a bit in cold weather and either like this for exercising and around the house or with dresses/skirts. This pair seems to be more so for the former as the fabric is a bit thicker than what I like to wear under dresses. It’s been pretty warm here as of late, so I haven’t been wearing leggings very much, but as they’re the first thing I reach for when the temperature drops, it seemed appropriate to actually sew some!
Snowball would not leave me alone when I was taking these photos. I cut her out of most of them. She acts a like a dog quite a bit of the time and likes to be by my side. If she didn’t spend most of her time hunting birds and rodents, I might think she was a dog…. 🙂
Happy Sewing!
Love em! I need to make me some too. So many things to sew, so little time….. 🙂
I want to make leggings too! I really need to upgrade my weekend wear a little so my husband doesn’t keep asking me if I’m heading off to work out… when actually I’m just going to be glued to the sewing machine all day in comfy, stretchy yoga clothes. Anyway, your sweet Snowball has the most magnificent tail. Very good!
I sent your post to my friend who wants to make some flashy leggings. Your cat is beautiful! We had a stray who adopted us and looked just like snowball, even crossed eyes. We named her Cinderella, but the vet told us she was a he, so he became Cinderfella! He was a lover too.
Nice work! I love leggings! I really want to make some and seeing everybody pump out cute ones makes me want to even more. It doesn’t hurt that you said they are fast to make. That kitty cat…gorgeous! When I sew my Bostons all want to be on my lap. All 3 of them! I either rotate or put them all up on the table in their beds. They usually like that. 🙂
Thanks! Yes, they are super fast easy. It probably takes longer to cut them out and put the elastic in than anything else! One of my Bostons prefers his bed, the other does want to sit in my lap or snuggle next to me all the time. When I’m sewing, he nestles up next to a border collie. 🙂
Great job on the leggings! I’m hoping to make some athletic wear leggings this spring. I fell in love with Erin’s (Miss Crayola Creepy’s) ice cream cone print leggings and decided I need a pair. Snowball is ADORABLE!
Thanks! YES! Erin is truly inspirational!! You know you need a few pairs!
I love the whole sporty look you have going there! I also want to make leggings at some point in time. Your kitty is adorable:)
Thank you! 🙂 I don’t know why I took so long to sew these!
first of all…that cat. is so. fluffy! i just want to snuggle her! 2nd-i had the same problem with those leggings. i ended up having to take a lot of of the seams to fit and the rise is a bit short too. these leggings look fantastic! well done! super cute. i really need to give the pattern another go. -dani e
She does like to snuggle…sometimes… lol 🙂 Yes, a wee bit of tweaking here and there and they’re perfect. At least there are only two pattern pieces!
These look awesome! I’m glad to hear you say how easy they are. I don’t know why but I have been nervous to try leggings but I’m definitely going to now!
Thanks, Jessica! Yeah, I don’t know why I was nervous either! They sewed up super fast on my serger!
Nice! It took me a while to jump on the leggings bandwagon, too.
I’ve got the same issue with my legs being a smaller size than my hips/waist, and I found that the Cake Espresso leggings (really a grid and instructions to draft the pattern piece) worked really well for me. I’ve made them a handful of times and don’t really have any desire to try another pattern.
Thanks, Michelle! 🙂 That’s awesome that you found a great pattern for you! I don’t think I’ll be trying another either.
I love love love leggings. I actually felt bad the other day. I purchased a pair of Fila leggings to run in. I thought how stupid is it of me to buy these leggings when I have a pattern at home (mccall’s 6173) and can sew them up in literally no time. But I didn’t have the fun print available in my stash so that’s how I justified it. :)>
I’ve really been inspired by yours Erins’ leggings. I have to admit that I’ve bought a few pairs fairly recently…. haha 🙂
I usually don’t think about leggings much, but they are quite versatile. Yours look really good! Maybe I could whip up some capri length ones for working out in hot weather or even some bike short length ones to combat the dreaded “chub rub” in summer skirts!
Sounds like a plan, Jan! 🙂 There’s another McCall’s pattern that Erin (Miss Crayola Creepy) uses that has all of those lengths if you don’t want to cut them to size.
I have this pattern on my wish list but I keep getting distracted by pretty dresses that I hardly ever wear. I should probably set some goals but… pretty dresses.
Haha! That’s pretty much why it took me a while to get to these. ALL THE PRETTY DRESSES!!! 🙂
Leggings are a real workhorse and these look great on. I made some for Sprogzilla using a Burda style pattern when she was wee and had the same problem. Think it was my fabric though. Snowball is so cute and so fluffy. It’s freezing here so looking at your pics in awe. Xxxx
Thanks! My fabric may be very stretchy, so I probably shouldn’t size down too much with the next pair. At least it’s an easy fix with only two pattern pieces and a serger!
This looks great on you and comfy! :))
Thanks, Nickia!