Elasticated Waist Pants
Full-length women's trousers with straight legs, a zip fly and a waistband that is flat at the front and back and elasticated at the sides. Vertical framed welt pockets at the front, patch pockets at the back.
When To Wear
- For office and everyday wear, with blouses, knitwear or a jacket.
- For long days and travel: the elastic side sections of the waistband give some ease.
Key Design Features
Silhouette: Straight legs, shaped at the waist by darts.
Length: Full length.
Waist: Interfaced waistband with casings at the sides between the darts; two pieces of 2.5 cm elastic are inserted and stitched through the middle of each casing. The waistband fastens with one button and buttonhole, its left end extending 3 cm beyond the fly.
Closure: Front zip fly with cut-on fly facings, topstitched on the right front.
Pockets: Vertical framed (double-welt) pockets on the fronts, openings reinforced with interfacing strips about 4 cm wide; pocket bags in main fabric and lining. Patch pockets on the back, with a cut-on top facing topstitched 1.5 cm from the edge and the pocket edge-stitched in place.
Finishing: Hems overlocked, turned up and stitched by hand.
Level Of Difficulty
Intermediate. Framed welt pockets, a zip fly with cut-on facings, a waistband with elastic casings.
Fabric Recommendations
Suiting fabrics.
Additional Supplies
- Lining fabric for the front pocket bags
- Elastic, 2.5 cm wide, 0.5 m long
- 1 zipper, 20 cm long
- 1 button
- Fusible interfacing (waistband, strips for the pocket openings)
Cutter's Must
- From main fabric:
- Front Half – 2 pieces
- Back Half – 2 pieces
- Waistband – 1 piece
- Back Pocket – 2 pieces
- Pocket welt facings – 4 pieces
- Upper Pocket Bag Of Front Pocket – 2 pieces
- From lining fabric:
- Lower Pocket Bag Of Front Pocket – 2 pieces
- From fusible interfacing: Waistband – 1 piece; strips approx. 4 cm wide for the front pocket openings.
Sewing Instructions
- Reinforce the waistband with fusible interfacing (Heat-adhesive interfacings are ironed onto the wrong side of the piece with a hot iron).
- Stitch darts, press dart depths towards the center seam line.
- On the wrong side of the front, over the pocket marking, reinforce the pocket openings with strips of interfacing approx. 4 cm wide.
- On the Front Halves, make framed welt pockets: press the facings in half lengthwise and stitch them along the attachment lines at a distance of 0.75 cm from the slit line. Cut the pieces between the stitching lines, not reaching the ends; at the ends of the stitching, slash diagonally, without damaging the facings. Turn the facings to the wrong side and, enclosing the raw edges, straighten them into a uniform frame. Turn the small triangles at the ends of the slit to the wrong side and stitch them onto the facings from the end of one stitching line to the end of the other.
- Attach the Lower Pocket Bag (lining) to the seam allowances of the facing nearer the center front, and the Upper Pocket Bag (main fabric) to the seam allowances of the facing nearer the side seam. Stitch the pocket bags together.
- Stitch the front crotch seam from the zipper-opening mark downwards and, without interrupting the stitching, sew the back crotch seam.
- Press the cut-in-one fly facings to the wrong side: on the right half - along the center front line, on the left – 1 cm from the marked fold line (= fly allowance).
- Attach the zipper under the edge of the fly allowance (left side) to the edge, positioning the teeth close to the fold. Pin the slit, aligning the center front lines. Attach the free zipper tape to the cut-in-one facing of the right side of the fly, without catching the fabric of the trouser front. Topstitch the right trouser front along the fly, catching the facing.
- Make the side and inseam seams.
- Waistband with side casings: from the right side, attach one longitudinal side of the waistband to the upper edge of the trousers, leaving the end extending 3 cm beyond the fly edge on the left side. Fold the waistband in half lengthwise and neatly stitch along the short sides. Press the waistband in half to the wrong side, turn under the lower edge and pin to the attachment seam. For the casing, topstitch the waistband on both sides along the attachment seam between the darts. Cut the elastic tape into 2 parts, insert into the casing, adjust the waistband to the desired circumference, and attach to the waistband, continuing the line of each dart. Turn under the remaining open lower edge of the waistband and stitch along the attachment seam. Topstitch the waistband in the middle of each casing between the transverse stitching lines, stretching the elastic tape. Make 1 buttonhole in the waistband and sew on the button.
- Press the cut-in-one top facings of the Back Pockets to the wrong side, turn under and topstitch at a distance of 1.5 cm. Pin the pockets to the Back Halves according to the marking and topstitch close to the edge.
- Overlock the lower edges, press the hem seam allowances to the wrong side and hand stitch.
