Work Pant or Pajamas: True Bias Ayla
Overview:
At my age and stage in life I love a pull on pant.! Nothing beats a knit pant that is presentable enough to wear to work, but feels like pajamas. These are officially my new work pant staple.
Pattern:
The Ayla pattern is a pull-on, high rise, knit pant with wide legs. They are fitted through the waist and hips and include a fold down, wide elastic waistband. View B adds paneling along the front and back legs with topstitching to accentuate the details.
View A of this pattern would sew up in less than an hour - two max. I sewed view B because I love the paneling detail. That detail added around another hour and that is mainly because I chose to do my topstitching with a stretch (or triple) stitch. Usually I avoid the stretch stitch because I’m a speed racer on my machine and it takes at least twice as long to sew, but my fabric has vertical stretch and I did not want my topstitching to pop. Also it just makes for a prettier, more visible stitch.
As a tester by only feedback was to raise the rise an inch and it was raised 1/2”. The larger size range also received a more scooped out front rise, which I think will alleviate the bunch I have in the front at times. I’m 5’5” and I believe I trimmed about and inch or so off the hem and I still had enough for a 1.5” hem.
The foldover elastic waist gives a clean, flat look that I prefer to elastic casings. Keeping with the clean finish I chose to hand sew the hem. I need more practice as not every stitch was invisible. Still it’s less distracting than a machine stitch.
Fabric:
Surprisingly, I did not have a drapey double knit on hand, at least not a solid one. I had to grab new fabric and I decided to hit up the newly opened Alpha Plus Fabrics where I found this smooth, peanut butter rayon ponte. If you’re in the Atlanta area and you haven’t been to or heard of Alpha Plus, check out my tour of the store on my YouTube channel.
The pattern calls for 20% stretch and this ponte exceeds that and still works. It’s drapey enough to not be stiff, but structured enough to not collapse.
Modifications:
None
Lessons Learned:
add 1/2” to the rise (personal preference)
removed 1” from hem (I’m 5’5”)
Summary:
Pattern: True Bias Ayla Pant
Pattern Description: The Ayla pattern is a pull on knit pant with wide legs and two views. Both views are fitted through the waist and hips and include a fold down, wide elastic waistband. View B includes paneling along the front and back legs and topstitching to accentuate the details. All views have a high-waisted fit and an approximate 30 inch inseam.
Sizing: 0-18, 14-32
Does it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope? Yes
Were the instructions easy to follow: Very, its such a simple pattern
Would I recommend it to others? Definitely