I have this weird romantic fascination with big, billowy linen beach pants. Normally, in my head, they are white linen, but when I saw this “warm sand” color, I thought it would be perfect for my big beachy dream pants, but also a warm enough color that I might be able to extend the wear a little bit into autumn without looking super silly in my big white linen pants!
When I was planning out this make, I had two main things in mind for the design: big and flowy. I considered a couple of different patterns, but I have a pair of chiffon Winslow Culottes that are my favorite pants to wear over a one-piece bathing suit when I want to sit by the pool in a big hat and pretend I’ve gone somewhere beautiful and exotic for a little beach resort vacation, but it’s really 2020 and the best I was gonna do is faux-resort-wear and a homemade margarita in the backyard. So, while wearing my pre-existing Winslows and visiting a white sand beach far far away in my head, I decided that my linen beach pants would also be Winslows!
First of all, let me just tell you that this fabric is a dream. Anything with tencel in it gets my vote, and I’ve been really falling pretty hard for linen this year. This fabric is the best of both worlds – a slub linen tencel. It has the look and feel of linen, with all of the beloved wrinkling, with the added softness (and sustainability) of tencel. The color is absolutely perfect for what I had in mind, and overall I achieved what I had planned!
My favorite way to wear Winslows is with either a tight knit top / leotard / onesie underneath, or with a cropped tank. The design of this pattern offers so much volume below the fitted waistband, and the best way for me to balance that aesthetic on my body is with a tighter fit up top that helps define my waist line just a little bit. The Winslows I’ve made in the past are in a busy tropical print, so they pair best with a simple solid colored top, but the neutral tone of these pants has really offered me the opportunity to play around with some of the cute tops in my wardrobe! I shared these on Instagram not long after I made them in August, and wondered to the sewing community how you guys might style these pants to take them a little further into the chillier months!
I’m happy to say you guys delivered. While these pants are still linen, and won’t do much to keep me warm and toasty once more biting chills start to arrive, I’ve found a few sweaters in my closet that I am excited about pairing with these! Luckily, we don’t really feel the full effect of autumn and winter until late October / November where I am at, so I think I’ll really be able to take these into the first few weeks of autumn without a problem.
The first day I wore these pants for anything more than a fitting try on was a Sunday in August. I was hosting an episode of “The Sewing Zoom,” excited to show off my new pants, and planning to go hang by the pool and grab a few photos after the video chat. Meanwhile, I decided that I’d work on cutting out and sewing a few projects while I chatted. My husband often refers to my fabric cutting strategies as resembling a kindergarten arts and crafts project, as I like to sit cross-legged on the floor using my giant cutting mat. I’d settled down to cut out a quick sleep sack for my little one, and as I used my rotary cutter to cut out the shape, I thought “hmm, I thought I’d smoothed everything out pretty well… Must’ve been a wrinkle in the fabric!” Little did I know that the thick hump I’d just cut through was actually my giant, billowy pants leg that had spread itself out under the fabric! I was devastated!
Luckily, the ladies of The Sewing Zoom came to my rescue with a way to mend up the crescent shaped slit I’d created in my pants! I held the sliced edges of the pants together, and pressed some fusible interfacing to the backside. I then used a very narrow zig-zag stitch to attach them back together. While they don’t look quite as good as new, they are wearable again, and quite honestly, the flowy nature of the pants makes it very hard to spot the slice! So now for a quick game of I Spy… Can you find the cut?
Pants: handmade by me
Fabric: Minerva – Meet MILK Fabric – Slub Linen Tencel in Warm Sand
Pattern: Helen’s Closet – Winslow Culottes
Key Ingredients:
Brother XR9500PRW Sewing Machine
Brother 1034D Overlocker
Schmetz Jersey Ballpoint Needles
Dahle 36×48 Self-healing Cutting Mat
Heat & Bond Soft Stretch (Lite)
Thanks for reading my thoughts on this pattern! The fabric used for this post was provided to me by Minerva in exchange for photos of my finished garments posted on their website. The Winslow Culottes Pattern by Helen’s Closet Patterns was purchased by me. All words and opinions expressed throughout this post are my own, as always. Links provided throughout this post may be affiliate links – if you choose to purchase any products through these links, I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you. This simply helps me justify the costs of my sewing habit and the time it takes to share it with you!! Happy Sewing!
- XX Elizabeth
