I finally sewed my first pair real jeans - the Dawn Jeans by Megan Nielsen. Non stretch, high waist, classic tapered fit. Needless to say, they are fulfilling my handmade jean dreams.
I bought 2 yards of 12 oz., dark wash, non stretch denim. I cut it in half and soaked one half in bleach water for 3.5 hours.
The longer you leave the denim in the bleach, obviously the lighter it gets. I checked on it every 15-30 minutes and swished it around to make sure it was bleaching evenly. When the color looked about as light as I wanted, I took it out and washed it.
Once I washed and dried both the light and dark wash denim, I cut out the pieces and sewed them up.
The Dawn Jeans pattern instructions are a joy to follow and sew along with. I made a size 4 and tightened up the waist a bit by taking off some extra width from the center back and the side seams — a common adjustment I have to make with pants.
To see my favorite way to sew beautiful topstitching on a button fly, check out my photo tutorial here!
What a joy to have my very own jeans, handmade by me, fit perfectly to my own body. So thankful for this pattern!