Here is the next installment of the “My Favorite Oliver + S Pattern” series. Today we have Elizabeth who is stopping by to share a bit about her favorite Oliver + S pattern. Thank you so much for being here Elizabeth!
Hi- I’m Elizabeth and I blogged at lizzieville until last year, when work demands and photo-resistant children got in the way. I’m excited to be here sharing my love of Oliver + S patterns. I learned to sew from my mother and grandmother when I was young and was so excited to stumble upon Oliver + S patterns back in 2011. I ordered the Bubble Dress pattern and made my one year-old daughter a little dress. I recall that the back pieces didn’t quite match at the buttons but that I was proud to have made something for my child.
Since then I’ve sewn about 20 Oliver + S patterns –with a handful more awaiting their first sew –and many patterns from the Little Things to Sew book. When thinking about my favorite pattern I almost picked the Sunday Brunch Jacket with the beautiful bias bound finishes.
I also thought about the many Library Dresses I’ve made with knit fabric, all well loved by my daughter.
But eventually I landed on the pattern I’ve been sewing most recently for my son, the Art Museum Trousers. I just love these pants and I’ve made him four pairs in the last year. The fit of these pants is perfect for him, leaving plenty of space for fun fabric choice and customization.
I made my first pair for Christmas in 2015. The welt pockets turned out to be surprisingly easy and I love how clean of a finish they create.
Next I made a pair in corduroy. Since the base pattern fit so well my only change was to add lots of topstitching, including stitching down all the serged seams for extra strength. The waistband lining is the perfect place to highlight a fun fabric, as I did here.
My son calls these his hedgehog pants and they have seen so much wear. Even though they are getting snug and the corduroy has almost worn through in a couple places, we love these pants and I will be sad when we have to retire them.
This winter I made two new pairs in the next size up. For one pair I again used corduroy but switched out the welt pockets for those in the Sandbox Pants pattern. I also used a ribbed knit waistband to match many of my son’s favorite store-bought pants. These two changes made for a significantly faster sew than the pattern as written.
The latest pants were ones I’d planned to make from the very beginning: a copy of the perfect pair made by Gail from Probably Actually. I bought some Kaufman railroad stripe fabric as soon as I saw her post and three years later I finally sewed them up. The main change for this pair was to try out the tutorial for using a zip fly.
While thinking back about this pattern, I realized it combines the two things I most enjoy about sewing: learning new techniques and changing patterns to recreate my children’s favorite styles. The Art Museum Trousers are not only perfect pants as written, they are a great base for modification. And, the pattern comes with a vest that is pretty adorable as well. I’ve only made it once, but my son wore it for Christmas and then in reverse during the spring.
Thanks for having me! I look forward to many more Oliver + S patterns and many more Art Museum Trousers!