Refining my knicker sewing ability.

Ok...off we go.  

Years ago stretch sewing was all the rage.  Before I was married I even did a stretch sewing course and became a certified Knit Wit.  It had nothing to do with my marriage...honestly.

The last time I made knickers would have been about 20 years ago when my daughters were small.  I think that's about how old this pattern is too, with those miniscule little sides and high cut leg openings that go almost up to the armpit. So I've attempted to draft a pattern using a cross between a (cut apart) cheap shop bought pair of knickers and my 20-something-year-old pattern.  I refused to cut up a pair of my good, soft on the skin, kind to the environment, 100% organic cotton boylegs!

It took me ages to get my brain around how to attach both the front and back to the crotch with the seams encased inside and no raw edges showing.  What a spin out.  Anyone for roll-ups?

Voila!

The choice of white fabric is to enable me to see what I'm doing while I make the first few pairs, and the safety pin is to help me identify the right and wrong sides of the fabric...not to pin my knickers to my navel.

By the time I got the elastic worked out to the correct 'stretchability' for my butt, the sun had gone down.  Using the camera flash inside just made my exquisitely hand crafted knickers look like a big bright flashy blast from the past, (a bit like one of Kamahl's caftans).  I decided therefore to take this photo out on the back step in what remained of the daylight.  Nature knickers.  Sounds like a brand name.

They look enormous but they actually fit!

And no....I'm not going to model them.  (Why did I anticipate that question?)

PS.  Ok it's a few days later.  

I wore my new knickers allll day today.  I love them.  Beautiful, snuggly, comfy, gluten free, yoga friendly, sweat-shop and child labour free, luscious cotton knickers...with no butt creep.  I'm in heaven.