Lovely Lander

I made up True Bias’ new Lander pants pattern last weekend. I was sort of disappointed when I first finished sewing them, but a few little tweaks and I’m really digging them now.

I originally made these up in the full length, which is what threw me off knowing if I liked them or not. I was really hoping to like them in full length as I’m not sure how to translate my many pairs of cropped pants into the winter, and I find my previously-trusty skinnies really uncomfortable after a summer of breezy culottes! But alas, in the full length I couldn’t shake terrible 90s connotations of bootcut pants, especially in black as they reminded me of trousers I had to wear when I waitressed… they didn’t actually look awful, but I tried on a few pairs of shoes to test the styling and just couldn’t imagine wearing them much. So I took a few inches off and they were transformed into something I’m much more comfortable with.

The Lander’s key features are delightfully practical roomy patch pockets plus the exposed button fly, which as well as looking super cool was pretty fun to construct. Much easier than I was expecting and much more straightforward than a zip fly, although if you noticed I did manage to sew it backwards (a mirror image to what it should be), doh. You do end up with a lot of layers and seam allowances sandwiched in there, so it was a bit tricky to make the buttonholes and finish the waistband edges neatly. Next time I may cut-on the fly underlap to the front pant piece to reduce one of the seams.

I used some sweet rose-stamped jeans buttons that I’ve had kicking around for a while. They were cheap and don’t feel 100% secure, so I’m a little worried one might pop off at an inopportune moment. I did give them a good tug and they held out on my first day’s wear though so fingers crossed.

I cut a size 8 and did some pre-adjustments to the pattern before cutting my fabric to suit my shape: a full butt/thigh adjustment and switching the straight waistband for a contoured one (I think Kelli is going to cover this adjustment in the sewalong). The pattern features a generous 1″ seam allowance for the outer leg seams so there is opportunity to further fine-tune the fit through the hips at the sewing stage, which is a very nice touch. (Being me, I barely glanced at the instructions so missed this salient point, then got really confused when the waistband didn’t fit on, ha ha.)

Fabric-wise I used a very lovely selvedge denim from Ditto Fabrics that I grabbed from the shop on a daytrip to Brighton a few weeks ago. This denim feels beautiful quality – excellent for the price – and has slight stretch with good recovery. Because the inseam is straight I could use the raw selvedge edge, and I overlocked the other seams in matching white and pink thread.

In short: digging this pattern! I really like the fit I ended up with so I may do some little hacks on these in the future, and probably make the shorts version if I get somewhere warm on holiday soon.

More Landers out there: Marilla Walker, Meg, Handmade Frenzy, Dandelion Drift

28 thoughts on “Lovely Lander

  1. Carly Foster

    Totally diggin’ these on you Katie! I’ve got this pattern sat, printed and waiting – but the thought of having to fit the bum/thigh and make adjustments fills me with dread! Haha
    Love your fabric choice and the colour of that tee on you is lush!

    1. Katie Post author

      Thanks, I am a closet pink lover and luckily it works well on my colouring if it’s a nice cool pastel shade.
      Ah, because of the generous seam allowance they are pretty easy to fit! I wrote to another commenter below about how I added a little more thigh space too.

  2. Juliana

    Katie, this looks really good on you. You said you did a full butt/thigh adjustment, would you mind sharing more or less how did you do that? Pattern here is also printed already, I am just breathing and talking myself into it.
    Lovely lenght, I suppose if you put on thights you can carry them through winter, no?

  3. Heather

    I LOVE these on you Katie!! The look perfect!! I hear you on the skinny jeans too. After only wearing breezy things over the summer, I put my skinnies on and the feel so weird! Ha ha!

  4. Heidi

    These are so great!! And absolutely adorable buttons. 😍 I’ll have to check about the contoured waistband, I’d like to add that to my next pair. As well as doing a regular zip fly on a future pair, like Caroline did.

    1. Katie Post author

      It’s very simple and really does help keep them in place and avoid any gaping. I just make deep snips along the length of the upper edge, leaving a little hinge, and tape back together with a tiny overlap. I can write a tutorial if you’d be interested.

      1. Samantha

        I am intrigued by this adaptation of a straight waistband into a curved one. Is there any sort of a formula for how much you take out of the upper edge….? I’ve been using the waistband pattern piece from my Grainline Moss skirt on my Flint pants, but wonder if I could just alter original pattern pieces. Any chance you’d be willing to share an image, or write that tutorial….?

        1. Katie Post author

          I don’t use a formula, although I suppose you could measure where the top of the band would fit your waist and make sure you deduct that much. I will write up a little post showing how it works!

          1. Samantha

            Now that I have cut out my pattern pieces and see that the waistband is one piece, I am wondering where you make those slashes/overlaps on a single piece…. Can you make a curved waistband from a one piece, or do you need to make two pieces for this to work….? Sorry for all the Q’s, I’m just stupidly excited to make these pants….

  5. Sarah

    These are terrific! You look great in them.

    I’m an ankle pant lover, too, and when the freezing Canadian temperatures swoop in, I wear then with woolly socks and ankle boots :)

    1. Katie Post author

      I need to get some fun socks, and my boots have seen me through three winters but definitely need replacing now!

  6. Alison G

    I love these, I’m curious as to the difference between these and McCalls M7445, which I’ve made a couple of times. Apart from the button fly, is there much difference?

  7. Kaci

    You seriously make me want to buy every pattern you sew. These are so cute and super flattering. I’m in love with your shoes too!

  8. Fiona

    I really like these on you Katie and it has tempted me to make myself a pair! I totally agree that I think they work cropped in a very contemporary way, the full length I don’t think would suit me and would look a little dated.

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