
Occasionally I buy fabric with a certain project in mind but end up using it for something else entirely.
Such was the case with this pinstripe linen. Look closely at the weave. Is this a knit, a crepe, or something else entirely? It has a crepe-like texture (somewhat spongy) but it's very loosely woven. It's shifty and prone to fraying -- a lot.


If it were a knit, wouldn't it be stretchy? (It isn't.) If it were crepe, wouldn't it be more densely woven? The label on the bolt only said linen.

It's not worth going into what I originally thought I'd do with this, but after washing it I realized it had to be something very (very) drapey. I decided to make drawstring pants, using the same vintage John Weitz McCalls pattern (5944) I'd use to make linen shorts last month.

The drawstring pants came out fine -- nothing to write home about but certainly worth a blog post. I wish I'd thought about matching the pinstripes in the seat -- an unfortunate oversight, though it will probably be covered up with a shirttail most of the time.

I ran the stripes horizontal on the back pocket just to make things interesting.

I still have to make the matching drawstring, but here's the front view. There's a front patch pocket too but it's hard to see since it's on the same vertical.


Black and white pinstripes are so closely associated with men's suits that they look a little strange to me as drawstring pants, but the pants very comfortable and would be a nice thing to wear to dinner at some beach resort -- I just have to get to some beach resort (end of August, I hope).
And that's it: another one-day project completed.
Have a great day, everybody!
PS - Any idea what my linen weave is?

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