Now that I’ve got the trouser drafts from last time, it’s time to start actually putting together a wearable pair. It’s like 30°C out there, though, so let’s go with shorts instead of trousers. The important parts are the same between shorts and trouser construction and this way the end result is actually something useful. I’m also making this out of scraps and don’t have enough material for a full pair of trousers anyway.
When we left off with the pattern drafts, we had just completed the front and back trouser pieces. Now it’s time to figure out all the facings, pockets, and fasteners that will take this from a paper draft to a wearable garment.
Regal seems to have assumed that techniques for drafting all these pieces were common knowledge, not worth taking time to explain and only the basic outer shapes needed to be given. In fact, the only instructions on facings and only mention of pockets come in a later section, where he describes how to draft fall front facings. Which is very odd, since fall fronts were well on their way out by 1914 and had been nearly fully supplanted by fly front closures.
Since he’s not helping here, I’ll be pulling from other sources for the rest of this.
My main source here is Jason Maclochlainn’s The Victorian Tailor: An Introduction to Period Tailoring. It’s a wonderful book with period patterns and construction techniques, and explanations about the actual operation of Victorian tailor’s shops. Unfortunately the book is out of print and copies are absurdly expensive. Fortunately for me, my local public library has a copy.
The public library is a wonderful place.
I’m also relying on David Page Coffin’s Making Trousers for Men & Women, which has the benefit of still being in print and reasonably cheap. I actually got it from a Humble Bundle.
Stays
Period practice seems to be to reinforce the fork and pocket seams with stays, an extra piece of sturdy fabric that overlaps the seam and comes in slightly, catch-stitched in place.
I can’t find much reference in more recent literature about adding stays. My modern pattern drafting books don’t include them and the most recent text on Google Books that has the term “crotch stay” is from 1941. Coffin briefly mentions fork stays and provides a method for making them, though the only example he has is a vintage pair of trousers from 1931. Fork stays have either gone out of fashion or are restricted to high quality, couture trousers.
Coffin’s method is different from what Maclochlainn describes, but it also seems much simpler and his text has more pictures, which makes it easier to follow along with. Simply cut out a square of the desired fabric, fold it along the diagonal, and press. Use the iron to press out the folded edge into a curve, stretching the fabric along that side. Line it up at the fork so that the edges run along the crotch and inseam and stay-stitch the inside. Trim and overlock the outside edge to the piece.
In addition to the fork stay, Maclochlainn also describes adding stay tape to the fly and pocket edges. This serves the same function as modern stay tape, which is usually used as reinforcement for necklines and shoulders, but historical stay tape would use heavier material like cotton silesia or twill similar to the fork stays.
Pockets
What good are pants with no pockets, I ask you? Absolutely none, and so we need to add some.
Adding side pockets to our trousers involves having another look at the front piece.
We’ll need the size and shape of the pocket first, the bag is about 6″ x 10″ and mark that on the front trouser piece starting from the top side seam. Draw a slightly rounded curve connecting the two points. For the facing we come out about 3″ and 6″ from the same corner and mark and a straight line between them. These will give the pocket bag and facing lines. Cut the front trouser piece at the diagonal line.
This sort of seam pocket is one of the easiest to cut and attach. Baste the facing pieces onto either side of the pocket bag, fold over the edge and attach it. Then sew the bottom and inside edges of the bags closed, I use a french seam for this. Finally, we attach the facing to the front trouser piece, flip, and top-stitch.
For the back pocket we’ll go with a similar size. This is going to be a welt pocket, so there will be a bit more involved in both drafting and cutting it. Start at the center of the rear dart and come out 3″ in either direction and 6″ from the end of the dart.
Come in about 1/2″ from either side on the top and mark the bag shape. Come in the same distance from either side at the end of the dart and mark a 1/2″ tall rectangle, to serve as the stitching line.
With that done, the facing is just a rectangle, about 1/2″ wider than the bag and 1-1/2″ tall. Assembling a welt pocket is something that’s been covered by plenty of writers in plenty of places, better than I could ever do. Mine still need some work, it’s serviceable but a little sloppy.
The Fly
Although zippers technically did exist when Regal was writing, they wouldn’t see use in clothing for at least another decade. So at least there’s no ambiguity about how the fly is being held shut, it’s buttoned. For the fly we’ll come in from the center front by about 1-1/2″ and draw a curving line down
Modern practice is for the fly to end at or around the hip line. Historical practice appears to be for the fly to come all the way down to the fork. Who am I to buck tradition? For a button fly, the fly “facing” is actually outside and we’re going to add lining that’s wider than the fly, so that it comes in and covers the fly seam.
Fortunately, Coffin and Maclochlainn seem to agree on how to cut and attach the button catch, so I won’t be stuck navigating any contradictions. The button catch uses the same shape as the fly facing and is interfaced in exactly the same way.
Waistband
Quick question: Should these pants have a seamed or grown-on waistband?
Both are appropriate to the era, but I find seamed waistbands to be easier. The waistband is another, fairly simple piece. It’s a rectangle, we just need to get a few measurements. We need the width of the front and back pattern pieces at the top and the position of the back dart.
The waistband is a rectangle as wide as the front and back together, and about 1-1/2″ tall, though we could also double that to be folded over during construction. Draw the box and mark notches at the back dart and side seam locations.
I used this technique from Closet Core, which is definitely my new favorite method for doing waistbands. I ran out of grey wool, so the waistband is black canvas with grey cotton lining. Let’s pretend it was a deliberate aesthetic choice.
I also decided to add an after dinner split. Nothing much to that, thankfully, just an option that I wanted to go with. I’m not sure how much the split really adds to trousers, and I’ve never seen shorts with one before, but that’s just part of the appeal of making your own clothes, getting to do something unique.
Conclusion
Well, they shorts are done and I think they look pretty good. Plenty of sloppiness and mistakes along the way, but this was my first time trying most of this. I’ve only followed commercial pants patterns before trying this one, this is my first try at drafting new trousers. I’ve never tried making a button fly before, either.
Of course, I did line the stripes up the wrong way. I didn’t have enough material in the right shape to do it correctly. Let’s pretend that was a deliberate choice.
There are a few other issues. The “front” seam pockets are actually too far back and a little uncomfortable to reach. They’re also a little too small.
On the whole, though, I think this went pretty well. Especially for a first try. I can definitely wear these shorts around comfortably. More importantly, I understand a lot more about how build off Regal’s process for drafting trousers and how things should fit together. Future attempts should go a lot more smoothly with what I know now.