I need some advice on how to remove folds from the back of the thighs. The pants fit well at the waist and stay in place when I sit. They look good at the front too and I can't think which measurement to alter.
I heard from Bob about Kaaren's club but wasn't a member. Could someone please let me know how to contact someone who could help? Many thanks.
Jancie

Janice,
when you put on the pants pull them down and if the folds go away (which they did in my case)I had then to alter crotch lengths and side lengths. It could also mean that you have a tilted waistline. Kaaren (I miss her so much)helped me with mine and I now have a good pant fitting pattern. I now cut out with a generous waistline seam allowance and fit elastic round my waist and mark where I am putting the waistband.
There are very knowledgeable folks on this list and they will I am sure give you some help but that has been my solution.

Hi Peggym - thanks for info.

My pants are the opposite to yours. If I pull the waistband up the folds go away, but I have only just managed to get the waist to stay where it should be when I sit down! I am wary of altering measurements too much because they affect one another. With Bob's help,I just got the front and leg length right so don't want to affect that. Unfortunately, he said he couldn't help with fitting issues like mine as that had been Kaaren's department.

I know I could make a master pattern like yours, with elastic etc., but I do want to be able to select a design and have it print a well-fitting pattern from info in the programme. I wonder if anyone has ever done that? What did Kaaren recommend? Maybe she taught you tricks to perfect the fit which didn't include adjustments to the measurement chart? I'd love to know... Were you a member of her club - and was it only for users of My Pattern Designer? I do have MPD, but I find DS easier. [I heard about Kaaren's club too late to join. Such a shock to read that she had passed away - what a loss to all concerned.]

I have made more pairs of pants than I care to count, and I am so close to having a really well-fitting pair - if only I can remove these folds!

Many thanks again for your reply. I'll let you know how I get on.

Best wishes

Jancie

Jancie, try shortening the "full length contour" back measurement. Don't change anything else and only change in small increments ( 1/4" at a time).

Joan in Concord, CA

Hi Joan - and thanks for your email. I'll try your suggestion and see what happens. At the same time, I'll bear in mind what Peggym said, though I'd rather do it by adjusting the chart.

I'll let you know how I get on, but it will be a little while as I have to fit it in around other commitments!

Thanks again - Jancie.

Jancie .... not an expert by any means. Got close to a fitting pant before life got in the way. Had your problem with wrinkles in the back that went away when I pulled up the waist.

First, don't make a pair of pants every time you change measurements. Print out the pattern at 25%. (Ea pc fits on 1 page.) Then print again with new measurements at 25%. Overlay the pattern pieces on a light box or window & verify that the measurements made the changes that you expected and where you need. Uses paper but not fabric & sewing time.

I was using MPD but DS has the same default. It's under Pant Customizer Ease menu. I know most people love the 1/2" inseam ease on the pants. Kaaren always said that it made the pants cup under the rear. Problem is if you don't have a rear, it cups with nothing in it.

I'm flat in back. The last pair of pants I made I decreased the inseam ease to Zero. The pants fit much better in back for me. No matter what I did with the other measurements I always had 1/2" too long in the back. It took a long time for the light bulb to go off that it was exactly the inseam ease. Just another option to try depending on your shape.

Hoping to get back to sewing by the end of the year and will be able to test whether this is really the solution for me. If you want to see if it works for you, just print the 25% scale patterns first.

Vicki

Hi Vicki - and many thanks for writing to me about my pants problem. I had thought about ease but was trying to make the change purely on the measurement chart.
Hadn't thought about the 25% idea either. Many many thanks for that - it will ease the frustration a lot.
Sorry to hear you haven't been able to sew for a while. I was out of sewing too for over 5 years - hence a lot of my problems.
I will follow up your ideas and report back in due course. Best wishes. Jancie. :-)