Vogue 9191 wrap pants – comfortable and easy to make

Hi, I bought this Vogue 9191 pattern on sale earlier this year from the Vogue Patterns website and wanted to make the wrap pants. They looked so comfortable and they seemed simple to make. I started making them a few weeks ago. They didn’t take long to make but I only had time to work on them sporadically and I needed to familiarize myself with my serger, which had been given to me by a generous Bay Area Sewists member last year. She got a new one and gifted me with her old Janome 204D.

When I found a houndstooth jersey knit fabric at Stonemountain and Daughter Fabrics, I thought Vogue 9191 wrap pants! I got the last four yards of the bolt. The pattern calls for 2 3/4 yards of 60″ wide fabric (2.6 meters)  or 4 3/8 yards of 44″ wide fabric (4 meters). The knit is a stable one with no stretch so I thought it would work for the wrap pants. I confess, I didn’t really give much thought about how you put the pants on. But I did notice that the description on the envelope stated: “Wide-leg, front-wrap pants (fitted through hips) have back-button front waistband, back waistband with tie ends, and no side seams.” No side seams. Hmmmm. The line drawing didn’t really help explain it and my brain couldn’t put it together until I sewed them up.

I bought the pattern that ranged in size from L to XXL. I cut size L for everything except for the sides and waistband, which I cut using the XL line. I have wide hips so I thought it would be good to give my self a little extra coverage. Because these were wrap pants, not really fitted, I decided to take my chances and just go ahead and make them – skipping the mock-up. After all, the pants tie at the waist and the waistband could be easily adjusted by adding another button – especially if I lose some of the extra weight I gained over the past year.

There are just four pattern pieces – the front, back and two waistband pieces. The front piece has six waist darts and it buttons in the back. The back piece has four waist darts and a longer waistband piece that ties in the front. I used a shallow zigzag stitch to sew the darts and used some scraps of tear-away stabilizer to sew the darts. The knit fabric is forgiving so they darts looked fine after pressing them.

The front and back pieces are attached at the crotch and inseam. I neglected to use a walking foot for the first seam and one side was about an inch longer than the rest. I had to unpick that entire zig zag seam and redo it. Ugh. Next time I’ll remember to use my walking foot. I used a zig zag stitch because I didn’t want to serge the pieces and have a thick seam. I pinked the raw edges of the crotch seam so the seam allowances wouldn’t be visible. The fabric is a lightweight knit and any bumps under fabric would show. I serged the raw edged of the inseam.

This is the back view of the front piece, which buttons in the back. The pattern calls for one 5/8″ button but I only had 1/2″ buttons on hand so I decided to add two buttons, which seemed more stable than one. Also my waistband was a little too big (I should have cut size L) so I needed a second button. This open back will be covered by the back piece, which overlaps the front.

To put them on, first you hold the front piece in front of you and button it in the back. The rest of the pants are in a puddle between your legs. Then you pull up the back piece behind you, overlapping the buttoned waistband like so…

You take the tie ends, bring them to the front and tie them.

It’s a little tricky to manage the pants in bathroom. After a little experimentation, I just loosened the front tie just enough to lower the back piece. You don’t need to unbutton the pants because it’s open in the back. It’s hard to avoid the pants touching the floor. You need to pay attention to minimize that – especially if the floor is dirty.

The instructions have you sew a narrow 5/8″ hem on the bottom and sides. I decided to serge those raw edges, fold them over and hemmed in place with a shallow zigzag stitch. Here’s what the side seam looked like from the wrong side…

And from the right side, the shallow zig zag disappears into the fabric. You can barely see it. I used black thread.

And here’s what the finished pants look like. I need to shorten the hem another 1.5 to 2 inches. I cut an inch off before I hemmed them but it wasn’t enough. The pattern says the finished length is 42 inches (~107 cm). My waist to ankle measurement is 41 inches so I thought taking off an inch would be enough. (I got all my measurements at a Bay Area Sewists fitting meetup, which I blogged about here.) However, I’m wearing my highest heels here and they’re still too long. Darn. It could also be that I’m wearing them a little low on the waist.

I’m wearing a RTW top I got several years ago from Gap and a vintage beret in this photo. (Most of the shots wearing this hat were underexposed so most of the photos here are with a different hat.)

These wraps pants are so comfortable. I feel like I’m wearing pajamas! (BTW – I made the ribbon hat band on this hat. You can see how to make it in this post.)

I wasn’t sure how this wide-legged look would be on me but I like it.

Here’s a closer look at the front. You can see the some of the darts near the overlapping part.

You can see some of the back waist darts in this shot – there’s one under my left hand and another one to the right of that one.

Here’s a look at the wrap part. As you can see, it wraps around quite a bit. The back overlaps the more than half of the front.

Here’s another side view.

The fabric really flows as you walk briskly. I was taking more exaggerated steps for this shot.

If you walk normally, it looks more like this.

I couldn’t resist taking this photo, which shows off the width of the pants.

These Vogue 9191 wrap pants are fun and easy to make. The only drawback is clothing management in the restroom.