And boy shorts for her

 The white pairs were made first, mainly as prototypes for a swim short pattern I am developing. They are made from a two-piece pattern with centre seams front and back. For the blue pair, I added a panel in the crotch (am I right in thinking it's not really a gusset?) to avoid a centre seam running through the crotch.

The blue pair were eked out of scraps left over from my husband's boxer shorts. I wouldn't normally have chosen such a wide elastic, but I wanted these pants to match the boxer shorts. So much fun to have matching undies!

I attached the elastic with a wide zig-zag with the idea of adjusting it after I wear them a bit to check how tight I prefer it. I may also upgrade to the better elastic if I see it holds up well in my husband's boxer shorts (I expect so) and I restock.

Catch-up post

I didn't sew much in 2015! I did only one real creative project, and it's not shown here because it has returned to "unfinished" status as I decided it needed some changes. For the sake of completeness, here is what I did make! Photos my be poor quality because they were not taken for sharing purposes and/or I dislike the garment...

Silver long pants: 100% nylon knit

Grey shorts: 92% cotton, 8% lycra

The pants and shorts above were made in April 2015. I must have decided I'd prefer the elastic waists to sit lower.

But seemingly got distracted while making the adjustment as the waist on the next pair (May) ended up way too low (particularly at the back). Did some piecing to get it a little higher. I don't actually mind the result. However, the fabric pilled immediately upon wearing. Unfortunately, I have some more of it in another colour as well.

Grey long pants: rayon/poly/lycra ponte

Ponte pants piecing

Halterneck-ish top WIP

I love this top.

I'm still working on the pattern. I'm trying to develop a collar rather than strap over the shoulders, but that requires some work on getting the shaping right. I like this version too.

I'm not sure that tucks of the style I used on the back are the best for this type of fabric. They would probably look much better if I managed to stitch them straight, but I'm still not sure.

 I'm really happy with the top, even if has a few faults.

Tank top with gathered front panel

 
Tank top with princess seams, gathered center front panel.

Princess seams for design interest and shaping. I included a gathered front panel for design interest and to reduce the transparency of the quite sheer jersey. I don't think it turned all that well.

The fabric is a very lightweight rayon jersey.

Next time I will try it with a plain front and a firmer fabric.

Then neckline is not as drafted. I don't like the shape very much, but it was a successful save of the original neckline, which stretched and flopped. I tried a turned over edge for the first version and it seems to have been a poor choice. The finished version is a band.

I'm quite comfortable sewing jersey, but this very lightweight one was not very easy to sew. My sewing was less than accurate, but I found the top quite forgiving of my errors (trained eyes may beg to differ!).

In a future gathered version, I would like to modify so the drape starts from the shoulder seam and includes a bit of a cowl at the neckline. I wasn't willing to spend the time to develop that this time around.
 
I'm not excited about the top, but will probably end up wearing it until I fill out my wardrobe with tops I like better. It feels nice to wear and should work well enough as a casual top.

Cover up

I wanted a cover up to wear to and from the pool. I wanted it to be a wrap and cover the shoulders.

 I sketched my idea. (My sister is the artist in the family, but this made me smile every time I saw it while working on the project.)










The final product.

 I thought this pattern would be well suited to cutting on the bias, but the fabric didn't drape as nicely as I expected. I made some mid-stream alterations and got a bit happy with the roller cutter. It ended up too short. I was ready to call it a wadder, but reversed the wrap over the front and it looked much better.

Below is the prototype (polyester). I wasn't intending to finish it at all, but liked it as I was working on it. I feel it's much more successful than the final product. I'll likely wear it at home.

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Pajama-my first garment!

So excited to make my first garment, flaws and all! I used an unfavoured rayon print that wasn't what I expected (just in case it was a disaster), but I really like the result. It's very cosy and comfortable. The sleeves are actually the same length, one seems to have been folded up when I took the pics.