Endless Combinations Pieces Five, Six and Seven

I've been working away on my Endless Combinations entry, and the past week I finished pieces five, six, and seven.

Piece five is a pair of corduroy pants made to match the blue turtleneck and blue boucle jacket:


I used a Burda envelope pattern, 7447. It is a narrow-leg pant pattern with back welt pockets and slanted front pockets. I started with a size 20, and made some alterations...but not as many as you might imagine. I didn't go crazy trying to get things to fit, because the more you reduce the ease, the more those wrinkles and pulls appear. Even the model on the envelope has some under-butt wrinkles:

I compared the pattern to my TNT burda magazine pant, and ended up adding some extra width to the back, but then enlarging the darts (to make it curve over the top of the bum better....no back waist gaping that way). I also curved the center back seam and added a wedge to raise the center back slightly. Other than that, no alterations were made.

These were my first welt pockets, an I used Ann Rowley's tutorial rather than the Burda instructions (I NEED pictures!). My pockets ended up a bit wobbly, probably corduroy wasn't the best choice in fabrics for the first welt pockets I ever made. The difficulties in ironing without leaving marks, combined with the precision necessary for welt pockets made for not a great result. But, here they are:


I used some left over oxford shirting in my stash for the pocket bags:


The front pockets were a concern....I am always worried about slant pockets gaping. However, the pockets have stays that extend to the front fly:


So, in the end, no gaping.

My sixth piece was a top to go with the corduroy pants. I used a rayon blend knit that I got from fabric.com, and made another version of the Hot Patterns Mighty Aphrodite tee:


I had made this tee once before, and because of that I decided that I wanted the gathers to extend further up the side, so I lengthened the casing by about 4 inches:


Other than that, I made no changes...unless you count sewing the shoulder pleats correctly this time!

Finally, the seventh piece was a skirt to go with the draped tee:


I used a stretch twill that I had initially purchased to make pants, only to discover later that I didn't have enough because it was only about 50 inches wide...not 60. So, I didn't have enough for pants. But, I had plenty for a pencil skirt. I used Butterick 5249, a high waisted skirt with princess seams:


There are a couple of different versions...with hip pleats, ruffles, etc., but I did the simplest version. I left off the belt loops, but also added topstitching:


Topstitching made it a quick and easy project because it meant that I could machine sew the hem, and also stitch down the facing without having to worry about whether or not it would be visible.

This is the last weekend that i will have an opportunity to sew for the contest, and may be able to work another piece in. We shall see.....