Hello Sewists! Yes, I’ve done it… albeit in a reduced capacity! I’ve drafted a pattern for myself! Admittedly, I only took four measurements, but I did it!
The drawing says it all, but here’s how it happened…
- Draw a line on the left of your paper the same length as from your waist to the top of your thigh (or whatever length you want your shorts… I wanted mine short!)
- Along the bottom draw a horizontal line; Thigh circumference + 10cm divided by 2. Make this into a square.
- Down the right hand side mark the crotch depth measurement, draw a horizontal line in.
- From the top left corner measure and mark; Waist + 10cm divided by 4. Draw vertically down from here to join the crotch mark.
(Not pictured – draw a waistband; height = 2x elastic width + 2 x seam allowance. Length = 1/2 waist measurement + ease + seam allowance: cut on fold.)
Use a curve to shape the bottom corner of the side seam and the crotch curve. Add seam allowance; I added 1.5cm to the waist, crotch and inseam. Then just 1cm to the side and hem (to match the fold on my bias tape). I drafted a patch pocket for the back and an inside pocket for the front…
I made a trial pair out of some light gingham I had in my stash and used a pack of pre made bias tape. They came out pretty well…
They’re a bit see through, so only for wearing around the house.
Next up, I made a LOAD of bias binding… way more than I’d need … my current addiction to making and using bias binding seems to have escalated now to also include hoarding it!
And I made myself a black pair to wear to tap class in this hot London summer…
With a floral inside pocket…
I don’t think I’ve left the house so underdressed before in my life! But the heat will do crazy things to a person. I’m also wearing my last black polo shirt – I used to have a ton of these before I started sewing, they were perfect for work in the summer. They’ve gradually all fallen apart or been mutilated by hair dye (I’m a hairdresser) over the years and this is the last man standing. I’m seriously going to have to start making polo shirts soon.
This is the order I sewed them up in…
- Make and attach patch pockets to the back pieces.
- Sew crotch seam and seat seam. Finish raw edges and stitch down.
- Sew inside leg seam, finish edges & stitch down.
- Apply binding to the leg seams: all the way down the front side, round the curve, under the leg and up the back. I stopped about 3cm past the curve at the back. (Stretch the binding around the curves so that it lays flat once it’s turned over)
- Sew the binding to the wrong side, press over to the front.
- Align the sides and sew the binding in place, catching the folded seam allowance at the back also. Sew down to just above the curve, turn 90° and sew across the binding then up the other side back to the waist.
- Stitch the rest of the binding in place (folding the front/ back leg out of the way)
- Make the inside pocket, baste it to the inside front.
- Fold the waistband in half then turn up the allowance on one long edge. Sew the short ends together.
- Feed the elastic through and secure the ends together.
As they’re so short, they barely use up half a metre of fabric, a real stashbuster! Being a grown adult male (… of a certain age…) I can’t quite shake the feeling that I’m going out in gym-knickers, but as I said, the heat will do strange things to a person! I know I’ll be making more and more of these before the summer is out. And if you make a pair please do tag me in if you post them on Instagram – this formula worked for me, hopefully it’ll work for you too!
Happy Sewing!
Notes to self:
- Get the scraps out and make more more more!
- Keep building up that bias binding stash.
- Get some fabric and make some polo shirts!
It might not be many pieces but they definitely got the job done! The first time I tried self-drafting sleep shorts I could barely get them over my bum and the rise was about 2 inches high. These are way more professional looking right off the bat!
Thank you 🙏
They look great! I think I might steal your idea and draft my own, too! Except that my bum is kinda uhhh large compared to my waist… Do you think I’d be able to fix that with darts or should I draw my pattern differently?
It shouldn’t matter too much with an elasticated waist, but I guess you could dart out some excess so the waist isn’t too bunchy. Or use waist + ease at the top, hip for the middle then thigh at the bottom…? Good luck 👍
Love your shorts. May make a pair for myself.
Thank you! Go for it! 👍🙏
These are wonderful! I’m needing to make Mr SOTSM some more shorts so thank you so much for the pattern 🙌🙏😁
Great 👍 I hope it works 🤞 mine are comfy & cool! 👍🙏🤕😊
“Gym knickers” lol! I think you look smart in the all black outfit. Great job on the drafting, they turned out really well.
You should definitely do some polo shirts, bet they’d turn out fab too.
Aww thanks 🙏 My upper thighs are welcoming the breeze! 😅👍🙏
Very nice! And an old Dutch proverb says:’Don’t be shy when the weather isn’t shy.’
Haha! I love that! 😂👍👯♂️👏😘
Thank you 🙏 they’ve been great for tap class as it’s SO HOT in the studio! 😅👍
These are really nice! Well done!