Made by Me: Jamie Jeans

 
6 months ago, or even 3 months ago I'd have told you I had absolutely no interest in making a number of different items of clothing.  Underwear and jeans mainly.  However I'm now having to eat my words to a certain extent, as I proudly present my first ever pair of Me-Made jeans.
 
 
 
 
They are of course Named Patterns Jamie Jeans, seen many, many times over on various sewing blogs.   There's not much to say about the pattern that hasn't already been said, but I will share some of my fitting alterations - if only so I can remember them for my next pair.
 
 
 
When I measured myself to decide what size to make I was dismayed to discover that my thigh measurement was larger than that given for the largest size available.  I know I'm pear shaped, but I didn't think I was that pear shaped, so I decided to measure a pair of jeans I wear regularly, which turned out to be several inches smaller around the thigh than I measured myself as being.  
 
I decided to make the size 42, which equates to a UK size 14.  To be on the safe side I added an additional inch down the outer seam of both front and back.  I wasn't sure whether I'd need this all, but I had an inkling that even if the hips and thighs fitted, the calves would be too tight.  Due to many years of ballet dancing and roller skating when I was younger I have rather muscular calves.  
 
I also added 1 inch to the back crotch length, and half an inch to the front crotch length.  As I wasn't sure where the waist would sit on me, I added about an inch and a half to the crotch depth, raising the waist.   I ended up taking about half an inch off this when I attached the waistband.  
 
 
 
To my surprise the jeans went together really easily.  For some reason I'd always thought jeans would be really hard to make, but not so with these.  
 
I did have one little mishap when I attached the fly shield to the wrong side of the front opening, but once I realised my mistake it was easy to fix.  
 
 
 
The hardest thing for me was getting the fit right on the calves.  I still think I've got them a little tight, but I'd sewn and resewn the outer leg seams so many times I decided to call these good enough.  You might notice from the photo above that the front leg seam drifts towards the inner leg.  Of course, this is because when I added width to the calf, I only added it to the outer seam, instead of adding half to the inner and half to the outer seam.  I'll correct this next time, but it actually looks worse in the photo than it does in real life.
 
I actually needed only about half the inch I'd added to the outer seams in the calf area, and none of it at all at the hip/thigh area.  Adding the extra to the crotch depth really helped with the fit in this area.  
 
 
 
As you can see I omitted the back pockets.  I hadn't sewn them on when I got to that step in the pattern as I wasn't sure if I needed to use the additional width in the hip area, and I thought that might mess up the pocket placement.  In the end I just decided to leave them off. 
 
For my first attempt at jeans I'm really pleased with how they turned out.  They're definitely wearable, although I think the fit around the calves needs some slight adjustment in my next (!) pair.  

 
 photo Samsignature.png

18 comments

  1. Yay! Jamie Jeans! These look fabulous, Sam! I'm a bit in awe of your topstitching - as you know, I wasn't brave enough to use contrasting thread! I want to make many more pairs of these jeans too, and I had the same reaction - they weren't hard to make at all! I don't know what I was scared of!

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    1. Thanks Gail! I'm quite proud of my top stitching :-)

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  2. Wow Sam congrats! Very jealous you've made these and so well! Next time round you will nail the fit. Did your denim have any stretch?

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    1. Thanks Manju. Yes, the denim does have some stretch. It's indigo stretch denim from Minerva Crafts.

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  3. This looks a very nice pattern Sam - able to be fitted where it needs to be fitted. They look lovely - and I agree about back pockets.

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  4. They look great! Jeans are one of my 'never going to makes' so good to hear they're not so scarey.

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    1. Thanks! Jeans were always one of my "never going to makes" as well, but they are nowhere near as difficult as I thought they would be.

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  5. These look super on you ~ and I just love the topstitching detail ... J

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  6. They look really great, I think making jeans is a real achievement :)

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    1. They were nowhere near as difficult as I thought they would be Jacq!

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  7. Great job! I hear you on thinking you'll never make something, then getting really into it. I'm on my third pair of jeans having thought I'd never make them when I started sewing. These turned out great. I also have hip width issues (having not thought I was particularly pear-shaped) but I enjoy the challenge of getting the fit just right.

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    1. Thanks Katie. This definitely won't be my only pair of Me Made jeans - the good fit around the waist and hips is wonderful after years and years of ill fitting jeans!

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  8. Awesome! I'm so impressed. They look really fantastic.

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