Yes, it’s another garment inspired by the vampire show! Get used to it though, because I have a lot more of these planned over the next few months – I can’t help it that Lestat’s modern wardrobe was incredible this season as well as being SO wearable!
There’s a particular pair of striped trousers that Lestat wears in episode 3 while he’s being interviewed for Daniel’s documentary that I absolutely loved. It’s paired with a burnt orange velvet shirt (and the necklace I made last year!) which I’ve also got plans to sew later this year. A post by the lead costumemaker showed that the trousers were actually part of a full striped suit, but the jacket wasn’t actually seen in the show so I’m glad I don’t feel compelled to make that too.
I tried so hard to find an exact match of fabric for the trousers in the episode, but even widening my search to tablecloths and bedsheets, I still couldn’t find an exact match for a white cotton/linen fabric with a narrow double grey/blue stripe.
I saw this variegated grey stripe 30% linen / 70% viscose blend fabric at Fabrics Galore for £15/m and felt it was a spiritual match, even if the stripes were thicker and not exactly as in the episode. The fabric initially felt super lightweight and I was concerned it might be a bit too flimsy even for summer trousers, but it changed hand considerably after a prewash, feeling a lot more like linen than viscose, which is exactly the vibe I wanted!
On top of having difficulty finding an exact fabric, I then had the similarly difficult task of finding a pleated trouser pattern with a faced waist (rather than an attached waistband)! After searching my extensive Burda archive and finding nothing(!!), I then looked in FibreMood and realised that I already owned their Kenza trouser pattern! It’s in the Essentials issue that I’ve made so much from in the past.
The pattern has extremely wide trouser legs though, so I used my Burda cargo trousers pattern from a few months ago to trace both the crotch curve and the leg width and length onto this one, because I like how those fit. This got me so much closer to the vibe of the trousers in the show, which I’m pleased with. And I didn’t have to buy a new pattern!
This is actually the first time I’ve sewn any trousers from FibreMood, but the rest of their patterns are pretty true to size so I trusted the size chart and traced Size 44 based on my measurements, and the fit at the waist is exactly as I’d expect.
I wanted to reverse the fly opening because I prefer my trousers to open with my right hand (not because that’s the direction Lestat’s open, I swear!). Unfortunately this complicated the already-complicated asymmetric construction a bit. I used painter’s tape labels to mark the “pink” and “green” sides as referred to in the instructions and it actually wasn’t as bad as I was expecting. This might also be down to my sewing three(!!) pairs of faced fly-front trousers this year, astonishingly enough.
This pattern constructed the trousers in a sorta halfway method between two common methods, which I found interesting. Usually, you either sew the CF & CB crotch seams, then the side seams, then inseams. OR, you sew the side seams and inseams, stick one leg inside the other and sew the CF & CB crotch seams as one. But this pattern has you do the first method but stop a few cm short of the inseam, and after sewing the side seams and inseams, you then put one leg inside the other to just finish off the last few cm of the crotch. I was a bit skeptical but it actually worked pretty well!
The original pattern only had back welt pockets and no others, but I really don’t like back welt pockets so I omitted those and instead added side seam pockets. I could’ve done a more traditional slanted opening and yoke combo, but this was easier and I didn’t want any unmatched yoke stripes interrupting the front. Since the trousers are pretty high waisted, I inserted the pockets a few inches down rather than at the very top. This meant I could still anchor the top of the side seam pockets to the facing and pleats and the pockets wouldn’t be super high in my waist.
It wasn’t stated in the instructions, but I also took the opportunity to anchor the waist facings by stitching in the ditch at the side seams and back darts. No need to risk the facings showing or bunching up if I don’t have to! The original pattern also has some deep cuffs, which I removed, so I had my choice of hem finishing. I could’ve topstitched them by machine but I’m glad I instead hand sewed an invisible deep (8cm!) hem. Hand sewing a hem never takes as long as I think it’s going to take!
You may have noticed that I’m wearing a necklace inspired by the one Lestat wears in the show – I posted a tutorial over a year ago here, but these are also available to buy on Etsy too now. I’m wearing one of the Etsy versions which is slightly different from my original prototype from last summer (the chains are of slightly shorter lengths which makes the central ring sit a tad higher)
Also a bit of a personal note – after 14 months of calorie counting, I’ve finally achieved my weight loss goal to be back at the weight I was when I was infected with Covid back in September 2023! So this is the first photoshoot at my pre-Covid starting weight again! It feels great to finally feel like myself again, and be able to fit back into all the clothes I loved (plus I found a friend for whom my larger, Long Covid clothes fit perfectly, so it’s a win-win!)
And another reminder that our FehrTrade Shopify shop is closing within the next week (our Etsy shop and third party sellers will continue)! So if you have ever purchased a pattern from us, please please please go drop everything and download all your purchases right now. More info about the closure in this post.