Saturday, November 24, 2012

Yellow shorts

Papercut Patterns - Pleated Shorts 1007


Coloured shorts are so hot right now! They're popping up everywhere. So many clothing labels are jumping on this trend and I am all for it. Anyone who has followed my blog for any reasonable length of time would know that I am all about colour and live by the motto 'more is more'. 

Last year my younger sister (who also loves colour) and I ducked off to Sydney for a long weekend. After wandering around a cute little shop in Surrey Hills the shop attendant commented to my sister, 'You're not from around here are you?...... I mean that in a good way'. My sister and I spent the next hour scrutinizing our outfits and the outfits of all the other people wandering the streets. We were a little stumped. Maybe it was the hot pink metalicus scarf, the blonde hair and the oversized hoop earrings. Whatever it was, we must have looked different. Too much colour perhaps? Is that really possible? I didn't think we looked different enough to stand out. Other people were wearing colour too. I guess we'll never really know. 


Anyway, back to the yellow shorts...

I'm not going to go into too much detail about my alterations as I used an existing toile. If you're interested you can read about it here (Version 1). My toile was not perfect but good enough. I still need to work on the front fly area as there is way too much fabric pooling at the CF. 

This version was made using a stretch cotton from Emma One Socks. It was kindly gifted to me from my sister Katherine. It's actually the leftovers from the fabulous peplum shorts she made a few months ago. I'm not actually a fan of stretch fabric on my bottom-half but couldn't resist the colour. To overcome this, I lined the shorts with bemberg rayon lining also purchased from Emma One Sock. To avoid additional unwanted stretch, I used a non-stretch woven as the waistband facing. I also interlined the waistband with calico. The waistband is bound with white bias binding. 




I'm kinda loving the bright yellow paired with the turquoise. It really makes the whole outfit pop. 


 I would have worn shoes but the truth is I was running late for soccer and didn't have time to search for them. I did wear shoes to soccer....just not ones that looked particularly good with this outfit.


 After half a day's wear I feel that the shorts are a tad too big. I think I need to remove 3cm from the waistband and sew down the pleats....don't you hate having to revisit an already completed project (sigh).

13 comments:

  1. I always notice the eye popping colour when I go home to Brisbane. Sydney is more 50 shades of grey.

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  2. I love your use of colour! The shorts look great... what a pain if you have to alter them after all that beautiful finishing inside.
    Steph at 3 Hours Past The End of the World wrote an interesting post a while ago about colour and how her clothing palette had changed significantly since living in Queensland. It wasn't about fashion or trends but more about the light and climate and environment and what simply looks and feels right in a particular place. I think you are living proof!

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  3. I LOVE them! I love yellow. It's so cheerful. I can't wear yellow close to my face but I could like this. They look great.

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  4. I love the shorts, and the whole outfit looks great together. I admire those who will go back to a completed outfit and make the necessary adjustments.

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  5. Love your yellow shorts, especially with the white and turquoise.

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  6. These look great!

    Did you make the t-shirt? I love the seam lines for the sleeves...raglan, but not in the usual locations.

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  7. Love 'em! Yellow is a super colour. I also hate having to go back to projects that I thought were finished.

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  8. Love 'em! I have a pair of mustard yellow shorts cut out and sitting under the desk waiting for warmer weather since winter started XD Must sew those up-thanks for reminding me.

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  9. oh my, they're so gorgeous it almost hurts me. I have SOOO many shorts patterns I want to try this summer, and this one has just been added to the list!! I love how you've combatted the stretch fabric with the lining and stabilisation at the waistband - very smart. You look wonderful in that yellow, too. Is your top self-made as well?

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  10. What a great color! Love them with the turquoise too. I too hate to go back and fix, but one thing is for sure, I'm always so happy I did.

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  11. Hi Katherine and Poppykettle, No I didn't make the top. It's current-season in JAG.

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  12. Great shorts. I am loving coloured shorts as well this year.

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  13. Fantastic outfit! I love the turquoise and yellow together. I hate going back and fixing too - but with those shorts it'll be worth it!

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