Oh! What’s that I spy? A new pair of lacy undies? Let’s take a closer look…
Why, it does appear to be an exquisite pair of Clothhabit’s Rosy Ladyshorts (free online pattern) made from a black and pink stretch floral lace designed by Anna Sui with black lace trim, both from Mood.
This pair of ladyshorts marks my first foray into lingerie making. And, I’ll admit, it wasn’t without its bumps and scrapes. Making underroos is harder than it looks!
On the hanger these ladyshorts looks so discrete…
Until a bit of light shines through them. These ladyshorts are racy! Va va voom!
Even up close you can be quite taken by their charm. Look at the scallops of lace trim dancing around the perimeter; aren’t they so alluring? But, I’ll let you in on a little secret. They were a pain to sew on. The comfortable fit of these ladyshorts is due in part to the excess of fabric in the body that needs to be eased in to the bands at the leg openings and around the waist. The instructions implore you to ease the body into the bands – not to stretch the two to fit while they’re in the machine – which, at least for me, made for a lot of wayward pins in slippery lace.
And, as for that beautiful Anna Sui lace? It’s inside out. I went back and forth and back and forth about which side was the front, and I chose the “neat” side. When I went back to the main image of the lace on Mood’s site, after much of the lace trim had already been attached, I discovered my error. It’s still gorgeous, mind you. But, the pink doesn’t pop like it should. So, another pair of these little shorts will be in my future, right side out. I need the practice anyway!
The stitching is a little more obvious from this close up. I serged the main seams of the body using a narrow three-thread seam. I then stitched the lace bands on using the zigzag suggested in the pattern instructions and aligning the seam midway through the narrowest part of the lace trim. Finally, I traced around the interior scallops using the same zigzag. Sounds simple enough, right? Hopefully after a bit more practice, making lingerie will go as quickly as it sounds like it should!
