Seamstress and pattern designer Louise Cutting, a contributing editor for Threads magazine, wants to make pants fit properly, and she shares numerous helpful tips to achieve that goal in this informative how-to video. Working with two patterns of her own design (one with side leg seams, one without), Cutting demonstrates the techniques that will ensure good results. The finished products displayed here are not tailored trousers—with pockets or without, straight-legged or tapered, all feature elastic waistbands—but many are shown in expensive fabrics that drape beautifully and look quite attractive. In her pleasant voice, Cutting describes how to measure one's body, adjust the pattern (“Alter first, then sew!” is her wise advice), cut out the material, and assemble the garment, along the way including tips on appropriate tools and equipment (so that's what a French curve is used for!). With the increasing popularity of sewing and other DIY projects, this will be a welcome addition to library collections. Highly recommended. Aud: P. (F. Gardner)
Threads: Quick-to-Sew Pants
(2014) 104 min. DVD: $24.95. The Taunton Press (dist. by The AV Cafe). PPR. ISBN: 978-1-62710-973-4. Volume 30, Issue 2