Pants with a Yoke and Decorative Zips
Women's full-length trousers with wide straight legs and a shaped waist yoke instead of a waistband. Two zippered pockets are set into the front yoke seam, and an invisible zipper closes the left side seam.
When To Wear
- In summer in linen or cotton, with a short top or a shirt tucked in so the yoke and pocket zips show.
- For the office in viscose or a blended trouser fabric, with a blouse and a jacket.
Key Design Features
Silhouette: Wide straight legs falling from the hips to the hem.
Length: Full length.
Waist: No waistband. Front and back yokes, each cut on the fold in an outer and an inner layer; the outer yokes are interfaced. The inner yoke is understitched at the upper edge and secured by stitching in the ditch of the yoke seam.
Closure: Invisible zipper in the left side seam.
Pockets: Two pockets with zippers set into the seam joining the front yoke to the trousers; the zippers open from the centre towards the side seams. Small pocket bags (13 x 9 cm) are cut by measurement.
Legs: Centre front and centre back seams, side seams and inseams, with no darts or pleats below the yoke.
Finishing: Hems pressed up and sewn by hand.
Level Of Difficulty
Intermediate. Three invisible zippers, two of them set into a yoke seam with pocket bags, and a double-layer yoke finished by stitching in the ditch.
Fabric Recommendations
Trouser fabrics of cotton, linen, silk, viscose or blended fibres; the sample is made in linen.
Additional Supplies
- Fusible interfacing (outer yokes; also the inner yokes if the fabric is very thin)
- 3 invisible zippers, 22 cm each, or 3 regular zippers: one 20 cm for the side closure and two 12 cm for the pockets
Cutter's Must
- From main fabric:
- Front Half – 2 pieces
- Back Half – 2 pieces
- Front Facing (front yoke) – 2 pieces, cut on fold (outer and inner yoke)
- Back Facing (back yoke) – 2 pieces, cut on fold (outer and inner yoke)
- Additionally: 4 pocket bags, 13 cm wide and 9 cm long each, including seam allowances (cut by measurement).
- From fusible interfacing: fuse interfacing to the outer Front Facing and Back Facing (outer yokes). If the fabric is very thin, the interfacing should also be ironed to the inner yoke pieces.
Sewing Instructions
- If you are using regular zippers, they are sewn only after the seams below the side zipper opening and at the ends of the pocket openings are completed.
- Fuse interfacing to the outer yoke pieces (fusible interfacings are ironed to the wrong side of the piece with a strongly heated iron).
- Sew the center front seam (Front Halves) and the center back seam (Back Halves), starting each seam at the upper edge of the trousers and finishing it at the beginning of the crotch curve. Press the seam allowances open.
- Create zippered pockets in the seam where the outer front yoke is attached: Mark the pocket openings on the outer Front Facing (yoke) and on the Front Halves.
- Open the invisible zipper and press the coil with your thumb nail so that the "seam line" between the zipper tape and the coil becomes visible. Lay the open zipper face down on the right side of the trousers. The zippers should open from the center seam towards the side seam.
- For the zipper to be sewn exactly along the marked "seam line", calculate the distance from the edge of the tape to the edge of the garment: seam allowance width minus 1 cm of tape = distance to the fabric edge. Pin the upper end of the zipper tape with one pin at the calculated distance from the garment edge. The lower end of the zipper extends beyond the opening mark.
- Position the sewing machine foot over the zipper so that the coil is under the notch of the foot to the right of the needle. Stitch the zipper from the upper end to the opening mark.
- Close the zipper. Lay the second zipper tape face down on the right side of the garment along the second edge of the opening and pin the upper end of the tape with one pin. Open the zipper again.
- Position the sewing machine foot over the zipper so that the coil is under the notch of the foot to the left of the needle. Stitch the tape from the upper end to the opening mark. Close the zipper.
- Attach the pocket bags of each pocket to the zipper tapes and the seam allowances along the pocket opening (right side to right side). Beyond the ends of the pocket openings, stitch the outer Front Facing (yoke) to the Front Halves. Turn the pocket bags down, trim them even and stitch them together.
- Stitch the outer Back Facing (yoke) to the Back Halves. Press the seam allowances open.
- Sew the right side seam. Insert the invisible zipper into the left side seam using the same method as above.
- Pin the left side seam of the trousers below the zipper (right side to right side), turning the free lower end of the zipper towards the seam allowances. Sew the left side seam, starting the stitch as close as possible to the lower stitch of the zipper attachment seam. Press the seam allowances open.
- Stitch the inseams. Complete the remaining sections of the center front and center back seams.
- Sew the right side seam of the inner Front Facing and Back Facing (inner yokes).
- Lay the inner yoke right sides together with the attached outer yoke and stitch along the upper edges of both yokes.
- Turn the inner yoke up and understitch it to the seam allowances close to the seam.
- Turn the inner yoke to the wrong side, turn under its side edges and slipstitch them to the zipper tapes. Lay the lower edge of the inner yoke over the outer yoke attachment seam and, from the right side of the trousers, stitch in the ditch of that seam to secure it.
- Press the hem allowances of the trousers to the wrong side and hem by hand.
