Hey guys! Today I have this super easy DIY for you (can you tell I’ve been watching too many Youtube videos? haha). The 70s are back in this season, and the trending silhouette is flared pants. Although I’m not a huge fan of that era, I thought I’d give the trend a try, which lead me to make these cute, wide-leg pants. I think they’re really polished and are a more modern interpretation of flared pants. They almost give off a Parisian-vibe, with the vertical stripes in black and white (self high-five for the rhyme) But guess what? These are actually super loose pajama pants with an elastic waistband, making them so comfy and easy to make. An hour tops! I absolutely love clothes that are comfy yet look really polished/high-end and these DIY pants fit the bill. Anyhow, let’s get on with this tutorial! :)
Supplies:
– 1-2 yards of light to medium weight fabric
– (optional) 1 yard of lining fabric (only need if your main fabric is see-through)
– 1 yard of 1″ wide elastic
– scissors
– needle + thread
– pins
– a ruler
– a pen
You’ll also need a pair of pajama pants that fit you well to act as a guide when cutting out your fabric.
First fold your fabric in half. Fold your pajama pants in half as well, and line the side of the pants up with the fold of the fabric. Cut around the shape of the pants, making sure to leave a little extra fabric around the edges. Don’t cut on the fold though.
When you unfold the fabric, you should have this weirdly shape piece like the one below. Repeat to cut out another piece in the same way. Place the two pieces together and line up the two curved edges. These make up the crouch seam. Pin along the edges and sew.
When you’re done, “flip” (more like shift) the fabric so that the seams you just sewed are running down the center. This is kinda tricky, but one seam should be facing you on top, in the middle of the pants and the other seam will be at the back facing the table, in the middle as well. They’re starting to look like pants!
To sew up the inseam (the seam that runs down your inner leg), go to bottom of where the crouch seams end and pin all the way down the two legs of the pants. Then starting from the leg opening of one leg (where the hem usually is), start sewing up the inseam, making your way towards the crouch. Continue until you see the crouch seam and keep on going so you’re on the other leg and sew all the way down Essentially sewing in a U-shape. See below for reference, or turn your pajama pants inside out to see how they’re sewn.
If you’re using a sheer fabric like me, you’ll need to repeat the steps above with your lining fabric, but cutting the pant legs shorter. You should end up with the same pants in shorts form. You can skip this step if your fabric is not see-through.
To attach the lining shorts to the outer pants, place the shorts into the pants through the waist. Pin the waistline together and sew.
Now for the elastic waistband (both lined and non-lined version), follow steps 2-4 of THIS tutorial. Basically you’ll be folding the waistline down to create a casing, sewing it in place, and inserting a piece of elastic as along as the measurement of your waist. Make sure the casing is wide enough to fit your elastic (for me it’s 1 1/4″ to fit my 1″ wide elastic).
All that’s left to do is to hem the leg openings! I did a super narrow hem by folding 1/4″ to the wrong side and 1/4″ again. Stitch that down and that’s it! Wasn’t it easy? :) If you’re working with a lining, hem the legs of those as well.
Style Tip:
When wearing these pants, I suggest wearing a fitted top untucked to balance out the wide legs and hide the elastic waistband, which can look kinda shabby. PS one of the lenses on my sunglasses is totally broken and has been scratched and I didn’t even notice until now. Lol I look like a pirate.
That’s about it for today! If you try this, please send me pictures via Twitter, Instagram, or even blog post by leaving a link below. I would love to see your creations! Hope you enjoyed!
XX,
