Pattern Review's Sewing Bee

I'm in this year! Wish me luck! Here are the rules for the first challenge. I emphasized some of the more salient points.

Dates: September 1 at 9:00 AM Eastern Time through September 7 at midnight. All times are per the Pattern Review website.

Rules:
1. Sew a pair of shorts or capri pants. (Not allowed in this contest: full length pants, ankle length pants, 7/8 pants, overalls, rompers, jumpsuits/onesies, pull-on/elastic waist pants or leggings.) By definition, capri pants are meant to be calf-length.
2. The shorts or capris may be made from any woven fabric. Knit fabrics are not allowed in this round. Stretch wovens are allowed.
3. The shorts/capris must have a closure. They may include elastic as part of the waistband, but there MUST also be some sort of closure- button, zipper, snaps etc. Ties are not considered a closure. So Wrap Style Shorts are not allowed.
4. The entry must be intended for any adult: man or a woman it can be for yourself, members of your family, friends, acquaintances or charity - basically, anyone! As always, items intended for sale are disallowed in this contest.
5. One entry per person.
6. Write a complete review including photos. The review must be self-contained; no links to blogs or affiliates allowed.
7. You must include a minimum of 3 photos in your review. Front view, photo of the closure and a photo shown worn on a live model.
8. Self-drafted or commercial patterns are allowed. Combinations of multiple patterns or self-drafted and commercial patterns are allowed.
9. You may NOT make any changes to your review after the Round 1 deadline.
10. Failure to adhere to these rules will result in disqualification.

I am choosing to make shorts because I think capris can be tricky. The sewing of them is not tricky, but the fitting of them and the length are tricky. Here are some options from Burda that I’m mulling about in my brain. I like them all. I am thinking of doing a wool coating type of “business” shorts that could be worn with tights and still look work professional. Maybe. Also maybe not. At this point, the challenge came out this morning and I’m thinking of all possible shorts that I like. I won the first ever Sewing Bee and I chose patterns I had already muslined and used at least once before. I haven’t used any of these patterns before. Here are some inspiration pictures from Pinterest that caught my eye.

 

All of these shorts are kind of the same with minor differences. They all have some sort of pleat or tuck in the front. they are all pretty short, and I think they might be perfect for inspiration photos.

 

These are not like the others, but I like the tie detail.

 

I really like the seaming on these but they are very different than the others too.

 

Hmmmmmmm . . . I’ll muslin something together in the next couple of days and then I’ll make my shorts. I’m thinking of a pink wool coating. Too much? It might be. It might also be just enough. :)