I'm one of those sensitive skinned people that favors shade to sun. At the beach, I'm the one covered in a gigantic hat, sunglasses, shirt and yes, even pants. I've found that a pair of loose, woven pants are great for a beach vacation because they can protect you from the sun, wind and occasional rain but are also cool enough to wear when the temps are high. The weekend prior to my Hawaii vacation I realized that I did not have an appropriate pair of casual pants to bring and from there the sewing madness ensued.
It was rather early Saturday morning that I decided I must have a pair of pants so I cut out a pair of Hudson Pants from the softest, lightest woven cotton. I have made another pair of woven Hudsons (here) so I was experienced and comfortable with the pattern. I finished the comfy, soft beauties and realized that I had envisioned making a high-waisted pant. !!!!!! I took a break, had a cup of coffee and pondered a few things. How much time I had remaining in my weekend, what other things I needed to get done, what fabric I had in my stash and how much did I really need this particular style. Of course, the procrastinator prevailed, I found a length of leftover fabric (already used on at least two projects) and I set to work. Again.
To achieve the high-waisted look I wanted, I redrafted the front and back waistband. The Hudson Pant is designed to dip in the front, with a high back to cover the bum. To determine how much I needed to add to the waist, I tried on my already finished pair and looped a measuring tape along the crotch area. I'm going from memory right now but I think I added about 6 inches to the front and 2/5 to the back, grading it towards the sides so that they would meet. I wanted the waistband to sit pretty much right now my natural waist with a straight line all around.
From there the construction was the same as usual. I decided to save time by eliminating the pockets and I do miss them. I might add in-seam pockets later because they're just so handy. I also eliminated the drawstring at the waist. I also lengthened the legs about six inches which turned out to be too much for the silhouette I wanted. So, I trimmed off a bit and even cuffed them here.
I'm really pleased with how these turned out and have been getting a lot of use out of them on my trip. I even wore them to sleep in on one particularly cold night. If you haven't tried out the Hudson Pants pattern yet, you should really give it a try. This is my fifth pair! This pattern has turned out to be really versatile. I'm already imagining making some in a soft flannel for pajama pants. Btw, I did make the top and I will be posting about that soon! Last weekend was very productive sewing-wise.
