Welcome to the fourth part of the Jodi Knit pants sewalong. In today's video post, I’ll show you the first half of sewing the pants. Fist, I’ll share the stitches I used and why I chose them. Then, I show how to sew the angled pockets. And finally, how to sew the front and back pant legs together. Let’s get started!
Watch the video above (or on YouTube) for all the details on sewing the angled pockets and assembling the pant legs. See the time stamps below if you want to skip ahead to different sections.
TIMESTAMPS
00:06 About the Jodi Knit Pants Pattern
00:50 Part One Pattern piece overview
02:13 Overview of stitches used
04:13 Part Two Stitching the Pockets
08:16 Part Three Stitch the Pant Legs
STITCHES USED IN THE VIDEO
In the video (at timestamp 2:13), I talk about the three different stitches that I use to sew the Jodi Knit Pants. I recommend testing stitches on your fabric to find the ones that you prefer to use. See the photos above for specific stitch settings. For reference, my conventional sewing machine is a Janome Memory Craft. For additional ideas, check out this blog post about how to sew knit fabric without a serger.
Lightning Stitch
The lightning stitch is similar to a zig zag stitch but it makes one short “zig” and then one longer “zag.” I like this stitch because it is very strong and when there is strain on a seam, the stitches are less likely to show on the right side. The main drawback is that it is a very tight stitch and it’s VERY hard to unpick the stitches. I also like use a slightly longer length than the default—a 3.0 length.
Zig Zag
This is a great stitch for sewing knits because most machines have it and it stretches. For this pattern, I used the zig zag for understitching and basting the pockets. It’s also a good stitch to use when making a muslin to test the fit.
Serger
I primarily used the serger to finish seams on the Jodi pants but it can also be used to sew and finish a seam in one pass. When I was sewing with thicker loop back terry for this video, I noticed that the seams became wavy after sewing. To fix this, I increased the differential. I recommend testing different settings to find what works for your machine.
About the Sew DIY Jodi pattern:
The Jodi Wide Leg Knit pants are the perfect mix of style and comfort. These ankle length pants feature angled side seam pockets, a medium rise and a lightly gathered elastic waistband. These pants are easy to sew, comfortable to wear and have a stylish wide leg.
This pattern is rated as Advanced Beginner. It’s helpful to have experience sewing with knit fabric but this is easy enough to sew as your first knit fabric sewing project. There are blog posts in the sewalong to help you.
Theses pants are designed to have a “skim” fit with just a little bit of negative ease. You’ll have all the comfort of stretch knit fabric but none of the tightness of a garment like leggings. See the size chart for more details.
If you’d like to save this post for later, you can save the image below to Pinterest. Happy sewing!
