front fly

I finally got fed up with slacks that don't fit. I pulled out the Wild Ginger pattern that I had printed in the summer and made a sloper. That added to my frustration. I emailed them saying the top waist band area didn't look right. They replied it's because of my measurements, the top would not be straight across. While cutting and sewing I kept thinking this will turn out even though it looked very wrong. When finished, the front was a big U and the back was an upside down U. The back looked like the pads football players wear to protect their neck. I put that aside and went with plan B.

A few years ago as a Mother's Day gift, I went to a day long seminar by Peggy Sagers. During the seminar, she made a custom slack sloper for me. I've made a few slacks and have been happy with the fit, but got tired of the zipper in the back. Plan B was to tackle a front fly zipper this weekend. I'm very happy to say I did it!!! It was much easier than inserting a regular zipper.

My question is the front fly zipper I put in, following Peggy's directions, has the opening to the left. All of my ready to wear pants have the zipper opening to the right. Is this like men and women's shirts, open one way for men and the opposite for women?

Suzanne

Reply to
Suzanne
Loading thread data ...

"Suzanne" wrote in Big snip in here.......

I have ladies ready-to-wear pants with the fly front going both directions, so my guess is that doing it the way YOU like it would be perfectly correct...............

Reply to
Pat S. in Arkansas

Did you ever get it fixed? You can get a lot of help by emailing measurements and pix to snipped-for-privacy@wildginger.com, and if you have version

3 and have not downloaded the latest updates, do so.

I can sympathize. I have a few patterns that still fit me and my time is still very limited, and I'm afraid to take the time to do too many new patterns out of fear that they won't fit and my time will have been wasted. I realize this is really ridiculous, as the dress I made for my daughter's graduation 2 years ago in June fit her practically perfectly on the first pass, but I guess I have too many years of alter-and-try-and-toss, alter-and-try-and-toss, alter-and-try-and-toss that I can't get it out of my mind for myself.

Yup.

Reply to
Melinda Meahan - take out TRAS

When I was teaching my fly zippers lesson, I always asked my students which way they wanted their pants to open. Some preferred the left, like their jeans, some preferred the right. It's your option--do what is easier for you.

Teri

Reply to
gpjones2938

In article , Melinda Meahan - take out TRASH to reply of uttered

Indeed, but I don't know many people much under the age of about 70 that actually worry about it any more.

Reply to
She who would like to be obeye

Well, if she didn't care, she wouldn't be asking, and I don't think she's 70.

Reply to
Melinda Meahan - take out TRAS

Could just have been idle curiosity.

Reply to
She who would like to be obeye

If she were 70, she'd be having elastic or a side zipper. ;-) Or not. Forgot for a minute that 70 isn't old anymore. Funny how that happens. "Old" keeps getting a higher number.....

Reply to
Pogonip

In article , Pogonip of Send abuse or DMCA complaints to snipped-for-privacy@bnb-lp.com uttered

Tell me about it. My Nan just turned 101.

Reply to
She who would like to be obeye

Yes, I had noticed that :-). Wish I could go back and apologise to all the 'old' people I wrote off when I was younger.

Thanks to Suzanne for giving me a nudge. I have collected several patterns, articles and books on making a trouser basic that fits (even went on a course) but never sat down and did one. If I admit it on here then I will have to! Sewingsue

Reply to
Sewingsue

I think it is random for women's clothes. I expect that all men's trousers open to the right. I checked my RTW jeans and slacks and 2/3 of them open to the right, 1/3 of them to the left. All are womens' pants. Not all my shirts button the same way, either. But a man's shirt? All the same, I'll bet.

Jean M.

Reply to
Jean D Mahavier

All my jeans (female) open to the right, and they are 3 different brands.

Jean M.

Reply to
Jean D Mahavier

It is just like buttons on shirts. :) I have a few commercial patterns that have the fly opening going to the left. That isn't comfortable for me because I've worn jeans for so long. The fly on jeans are almost always to the right like "male" zippers are supposed to be. lol

So what I do is just reverse the directions and put the fly in the way that's comfortable to me. Just do them "backwards" and it will come out to the right. **If** that's what you want. If the left opening fly doesn't bug you, do it that way. ;) Isn't that the best part of sewing?? You can make it however you please.

Glad you got a pattern to work for you. It's so frustrating when you have to go through 40 zillion that don't work. I try very hard to look at those as learning experiences rather than failures. ;) And they are, for the most part, learning experiences. Each one teaches me something that doesn't work so I know not to do that again. lol

Sharon

Reply to
mamahays

I had this same problem when I made pants for DH. The fly on my RTW jeans went the same way as his RTW pants. But I thought the same as you so I had to check my Reader's Digest Sewing book to find out the difference. It says "Traditionally, the placket has a definite lap direction; in women's clothes it laps right over left...and in men's it laps left over right". I don't know why women's RTW is the same as men's (left over right)..maybe speed or ease of design? Or maybe "unisex"?

I had the same problem with my Wild Ginger pattern too, but I know others like Wild Ginger's stuff alot. I use Sure-Fit Designs pattern making kits now.

Reply to
Raye Ahn

having elastic or a side zipper. ;-) Or not.

You better believe 70 isn't old anymore!! And I rarely wear elastic waists or side zippers. Jeans don't look good that way, and I live in jeans Juno who's 70, feels 30 and thinks 20.

Reply to
Juno

A little history on the direction of the lap... In women's it's reversed from men's to make it easier for the lady's maid. Since most folks are right handed, or were forced to be right handed, when the maid was dressing the lady, it was built for the maid's "right-handedness." (Is that a word?)

Hope that makes sense....

Cappy

Reply to
Cappy

I thought it was only me and that my measurements were off. Did you ever get the problem corrected? I thought I'd work on another set of measurements during the summer when I have more time to recalculate and contact Wild Ginger.

Suzanne

Reply to
Suzanne

What program are you using? If it's a version 3 program, be sure to download the latest updates. They have some great new features that make it easier to fit slacks.

I think a lot of people mess up with WG programs because they measure their pants waistband circumference for their natural waist, and then they don't understand why their pattern doesn't fit.

Reply to
Melinda Meahan - take out TRAS

InspirePoint website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.