Allegro Sew Along Day Three

May 20, 2020 | Allegro Pants & Skirt | 2 comments

On Day Three of the Allegro Sew Along, we will be constructing the body of our Allegro. If you are sewing the ankle length skirt, your side seam construction is a little different. If you need to catch up with us, don’t worry, you can always hop back to day two for constructing your pockets, and day one if you are wondering if the fabric you picked will work well.

Sewing the body

The Allegro has a sweet faux fly that adds a nice touch of detail to the skirt, shorts and pants. If you have never sewn a faux fly, don’t worry! I am going to walk you through each step. First though, we need to sew up the side seams. You want to lay your back and front, right sides together, with the side seam lined up. If you are sewing the pants/joggers, make sure you match up the knee marking. That’s the triangle marking on the side. Because of the shape of the back hip section, you may need to ease the side seams together. I like to pin the top and the hem and then the middle and work my way in each direction.

Sew your Allegro side seams together with your standard sewing machine. I know it’s tempting to take it to the serger and do it in one seam, but don’t. Your sewing machine will add some stability to that seam that your serger cannot do. (Unless you have a 5 thread serger) When your serger trims the seam allowance down, it weakens the seam, especially on loosely woven fabrics. Sew the seam first and the serge (or overlock) without trimming the seam allowance.

Assemble the faux fly

Place the two front pieces right sides together. Sew around the fly extension, pivot at the bottom and then continue down the crotch curve. Again, sew this part with a sewing machine. Not only does it give you a stronger seam, but it allows you to make the pivot at the bottom of the fly extension. The serger will now allow you to do this.

After I sew, I like to clip into the seam allowance at the bottom of the fly extension. Then, I finish the raw edge with my serger. The clip allows me to move the fabric out of the way. I serge in two steps, first the fly extension. Then, I fold the fly extension back and serge the crotch curve.

Fold the fly extension to the right. I place a pin where the middle marking is on the pattern and use that to guide my fabric into place. Press well!

Then, you can flip your front over and topstitch the fly extension in place. You can place your pattern piece onto your front and use some tailor’s chalk to mark a line to follow. I feel along the fabric for the edge of the extension while I sew.

Sew the back rise and then refold your fabric so that the inseam lines up. Sew the inseam together. And that wraps up for today!

If you are sewing the Allegro short skirt, it’s pretty quick today! Line up the front and back and sew down each side seam. This orange is athletic wicking fabric from The Fabric Fairy. I assembled this with my serger since it’s a knit fabric. I think this is going to make such a cute running/tennis/golfing skirt! Or in my case, sitting around my back yard this summer, skirt.

Sewing the ankle skirt

Sewing up the Allegro ankle length skirt is a little different. But, it’s still a quick sew! You have a couple of options if you want to finish the raw edges. You can do it to each piece prior to assembling the side seams. Or, you can do what I did. No way is better than the other, do what works best for you!

First, I serged the edges of the bottom portion of the skirt, the side vent extensions. Then, I placed my front and backs together and sewed them together with the straight stitch on my sewing machine. You can NOT use a serger for this part. It won’t allow you to assemble the vent properly. (Make sure you sew all the way down to the marking! You will be sewing past the top of the vent extension.

Now, clip into the seam allowance at the bottom of the side seam, just above the hem vent. Do NOT clip into the seam!! Now, you can serge the side seam. When you get to the bottom of the seam, fold the vent extension to the side. Do NOT serge into the vent extension!!

We can still open the vent extension! That is super important!

Press the vent open to each side and press the side seam to the back of the skirt. Do NOT sew the vent down. That is part of hemming the skirt.

We are going to stop there with the skirt. We will go over hemming on Friday.

Cargo Pocket Hack

We had a request in the Facebook Group to add a cargo pocket to the Allegro pants. I am so happy that I can show you how to do this! It is a fabulous idea!!

Cut out a rectangle, or two if you want a cargo pocket on each leg. My rectangle is 7 1/2″ x 9″. It is taller than it is wide. Prepare you pocket just as we did the back patch pockets yesterday. Fold the top down 1 inch to create the top hem of the pocket. After you have the side seam sewn on your Allegro, center the pocket on the seam. I placed my pocket so the top is about 2″ from the bottom of the front pocket. I held the pants up to guide me on where to place my pocket. I didn’t want it to go over my knee. Adjust the pocket to your liking. Sew it in place in the same manor that the back pockets are sewn.

I am loving how this tencel twill is sewing up! I added some extra topstitching to the front pockets. I love the results!

That is our stopping point for today!

Tomorrow, we will sew our Allegro waistband. I will also show you how to create a yoga waist!

In case you missed our Facebook Live you can view it below

A big big thank you for our sponsors for the Allegro Sew Along!

Style Maker Fabrics and The Fabric Fairy both provided the fabrics you see in this series. I will be using this gorgeous fabrics all week to create Allegro shorts, skirts and pants! Members of our Facebook Support Group will have a chance to win a gift certificate to each The Fabric Fairy and Style Maker Fabrics and Love Notions Patterns for sewing along with me!