I like good quality cotton lycra pants to wear to the gym and make most of my workout pants with this pattern already. It is my TNT pattern for nicely shaped yoga pants plus I also make both top views frequently as well.
I always buy cotton lycra from Seattle Fabrics.
The crop pants I’ve seen around are so comfortable looking so I decided to mix it up a little and make myself a pair like some Lands End sport capri pants and set off to modify KS3115.
I retraced the pattern and adjusted the inseam length to 17″ but no other changes initially. Then I basted the legs and thought they were too wide at the knee. So, I decided to thin the leg by removing 2” from the outside leg seam (1 inch from each piece) and 1.5” from the inside leg seam (3/4 inch from each piece). This was accomplished by tapering from zero at the widest point of my upper thigh, down to the full amount at the hem. Then I transferred the adjustments to the traced pattern so the next pair will be fast to cut out and sew.
I used wooly nylon in the upper looper and clear elastic in the crotch seam.
I also added an outside leg slit for comfort.
Inseam: 16″
Karlynn
Thank you for posting the amount you cut off at the lower leg knee area. I have made a couple pair of these pants and wanted them narrower thru the knee area.. I took off some but not as much as you. I love these pants too….. You said you’ve made the tops.. how do they go together??
Leah
karlynn -the top with the shelf bra is my favorite. I just made one with adjustable straps and I’ll review it. The v neck top is super easy to put together but the other one is my fav 🙂
Dee Leuthe
Kartlynn
Did you find the cotton lycra easy to work with? I tried sewing with the swimsuit lycra and had some difficulty. Do you know how they compare?
Dee
Leah
Dee Leuthe -swimsuit lycra is thinner and slippery and has a different fiber content. The cotton lycra I used here is substantial and beefy, perfect for workout attire, and not slippery at all. HTH