Monday, November 21, 2016

Birkin Flares



Birkin flares made with stretch denim


The Birkin Flares, a project I have put off too long.  There are so many great jeans sewn from this pattern and I had a great denim in my stash




I read the instructions thoroughly and took my measurements one more time to double check which size to make.  I went with a 30 in the waist and 28 in the hips and legs.  It is a perfect fit!  The jeans are snug but my denim has great stretch and they feel great.  I have worn them a bit for the hemming and then again for the photos and I feel the denim relaxing and the fit changing a bit.  When the denim has the perfect stretch, you want the jeans snug for the relaxing factor. This has been a hard concept for me to grasp but after too many jeans that are stretched out and baggy, I am learning!



I am 5'8" tall and was a bit worried about the length, so I added an inch to the length but I didn't need to do that.  I took off the inch and another half inch.  

The jeans just skim the ground in the back, perfect for wide leg flares.



Birkin flares made with stretch denim




I can't remember if I purchased the denim from Mood or Joann's, sorry.

Construction time....
I am going to start with the back pockets.....
It has perfect stretch and quite a bit.  I noticed the top of the pockets stretching out a bit when I did the topstitching.  So I did some unsewing, added some interfacing and stitched it again. 

After the top was stitched, I used my chalk liner and marked the seam allowances.  This extra step helps me to keep the seam allowances I turn under uniform and both my pockets match.




 I wanted to make sure the back pockets didn't stretch out or the denim on the back.  I went to some of my embroidery stabilizers and used a tear away on the wrong side of the jeans.  It helped and I didn't find any fabric stretching out.


Time for just some detail shots of the jeans

Birkin flares made with stretch denim


Birkin flares made with stretch denim

Birkin flares made with stretch denim



Buttonhole twist thread was used for the topstitching and remember to buy at least 2 spools!  It goes quickly.  One thing I did do was to use regular thread in a similar color for all bartacks.  My machine does not like making bartacks with thick thread.


Birkin flares made with stretch denim


One thing I really like about these jeans, the higher waist.  




Birkin flares made with stretch denim

Rivets are a struggle for me, I just don't have anything to place them into and then  hammer.  I had an idea and tried it on scrap denim and it worked.  I used my KAM snap press, purchased when the first little guy was born for baby clothes.  I just put them in and held them in place while a pulled the lever down


Birkin flares made with stretch denim, topstitching and rivet details



 More detail shots during construction

Birkin flares made with stretch denim, topstitching and rivet details

Yoke and the topstitching matches!

Birkin flares made with stretch denim, topstitching


Happy smile in my new jeans, now to remember to put the camera back more for the 50 mm lens!

Birkin flares made with stretch denim




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24 comments:

  1. Wow the fit on these is great. Did they fit straight off or did you make adjustments to the pattern? These look awesome.

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    1. Thanks, Louise, they fit right out of the pattern.

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  2. rock on! these are great - wonderful fit, look so good on you.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Coco, they are just so fun!

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  3. They look great. Nice you got that good of a fit first try.

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    1. Thanks, Beth and I feel so lucky on the fit for the first try.

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  4. These are amazing !!! So many great details that you nailed 😍

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  5. These jeans are so flattering on you, and you've really nailed the fine details down. Thanks for the idea regarding bartacks, I've recently started making jeans and my bartacks made with topstitching thread came out so sloppy. I might try just using regular thread next time.

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    Replies
    1. My machine doesn't like that thick topstitching thread much, so that is a good compromise. Thanks so much.

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  6. You wear these flares so well! Thanks for the great tip with the KAM Snap press. I bought one of these recently to make some booties for my daughter, so I will give the press a go with rivets the next time I make jeans.

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    1. Thanks, I am so happy I tried the KAM press, makes it so easy.

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  7. Love these jeans. They are such a flattering cut on you.

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  8. You look great in these jeans, Lori!

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    1. Thanks, Regina, it is a feel good garment!

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  9. These jeans fit you beautifully!

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  10. They look wonderful Lori.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Faye, I really love these jeans.

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  11. They look wonderful Lori.

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  12. Really nice Lori!!

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  13. Sure, you could spend endless time tinkering with your MBA admission essay until you can’t stand the thought of it, but you can spare the time4writing review time, effort, and mental torture and get some help!

    ReplyDelete