upcycled trousers

I try to have a one in one out wardrobe policy. When I found a nice new grey cardie it wasn't hard to choose which one went out. Most old clothes got to charity but this particular cardie was a bit gutless and even better than recycling is upcycling.

I snatched a few minuets during naps and once again I am amazed at how easy trousers are to make. I used a pair I knew fitted as a pattern and drew round them, making them a bit wider at the bottom. As it was a slim fitting cardie there was only just enough material, I had to fudge it a bit at the crotch and I wasn't sure there was going to be enough rise.

The great thing about this ribbed cardie was that I didn't need to hem which means they hang nicely. It is also super stretchy so plenty of room for big bum nappies.

Once I had made them up and trimmed the top I thought the rise might not be enough. I wanted to add some height with a thick waist band but I didn't have any thick elastic. Instead I cut the waist band from a sleeve, so the ribbing was going in the slightly less stretchy direction. I made the band smaller than the trousers and stretched it to fit as I sewed. As it happens I could have made it a bit smaller as there is a lot of stretch in the material.

For once I over estimated in most of the dimensions so they are slightly too long, plenty wide enough and come up under armpits! But they are supper cozy and she might be wearing them for a few months to come instead of growing out of them in a few weeks!

She had lots of fun playing with them but was a somewhat unwilling model!