Disclaimer: This article is all about drafting patterns and choosing the right fabric but not about sewing the piece. If relevant, I’ll attach video instructions on how to do so at the end.
Today we’re going to learn how to draft a Pleated Trousers Pattern. I’ll show you how to draft it from scratch, so let’s get into it.
This design shows straight leg trousers with two front pleats, two visible side pockets, and a lowered curved waistband that is 4cm wide. They have a side opening that uses an invisible zipper to reduce the bulk at the front. This pattern might look more advanced, but I think it’s fairly easy to draft and to sew. Don’t get too scared with the images and just take it one step at a time. You can also find some video instructions at the bottom of the page. So, are you ready to learn how to draft a pleated trousers pattern?
DIFFICULTY
These are the main characteristics of this pattern:
This pattern should take you around 2h to draft and 6h to sew (both times assuming you are a beginner)
This pattern only needs three types of fabric, one for the main structure, one for the pocket lining and interfacing to add structure to the waistband.
This design works best with flowy fabrics that drape well, here are the fabrics I used:
| # | Name | Fabric Cut |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Front | Cut 2 main |
| 2 | Back | Cut 2 main |
| 3 | Front Waist | Cut 2 main, 2 interfacing |
| 4 | Back Waist | Cut 2 main, 2 interfacing |
| 5 | Pocket top | Cut 2 main |
| 6 | Pocket bottom | Cut 2 main |
| 7 | Backing | Cut 2 main |
| 8 | Facing | Cut 2 main |
Step number one is to change the shape of the trousers leg-line. For this design I went for a straight leg-line but feel free to leave it tapered if that’s the look you’re looking for.
To create the straight leg-line, draw a perpendicular line from the side hip down to the hem, for both front and back pattern pieces.
The next step is drawing the waistband.
This design has an invisible zipper on the side, so I’m going to have the front and back waistbands separate
This design only has front side pockets
The pocket has 4 pieces: the bottom lining, the top lining, the backing and the facing. It’s like a puzzle, look at the pictures to see which is which.
This design has 2 pleats. First, let’s locate them:
These are the lines where we’re going to add the pleat volume. To do that, cut through the lines all the way but not through the end. This is because we want to add volume to the top of the pattern and not to the bottom.
Once the main pattern is drafted, it’s time to add all the finishes:
And just like that, you learnt how to draft a pleated trousers pattern! I hope you found it easy to follow and if you have any questions, please leave a comment.
If you liked these instructions and are looking for more foundations and ways to modify them, you can check out my ebook on how to draft trousers.
There you have ALL the information you need to draft any trousers designs you’ve ever dreamed of.
The ebook breaks down a pattern into:
All in one place, check it out now!
If you need a more step by step tutorial plus sewing instructions, here you have a video explaining all that:
