The Twig Woven Pant by Style Arc came into my life because of a spring sale (and because of Missumlaut, who flagged it, if I remember correctly).
Like love at first sight in a Harlequin novel, I spotted it, I wanted it, I paid so it would leave with me. Hmm, less Harlequin than pulp spy thriller, actually.
Why? The barrel shape, which I’ve loved against all odds since the style came out. The pintucks* front and back. The classic fly at the front and the elastic at the back for comfort. The relaxed, cool, stylish vibe, and every other fashionable word you like. In short, everything about it spoke to me.
*plis nervures
And above all, I immediately pictured it in linen, perfect for summer and serious heat. Which is exactly how it turned out.
| ITEM | SHOP | QUANTITY | PRICE |
| Twig Woven Pant sewing pattern | Style Arc | 1 | AUD 13.82, around €8.50 |
| Navy linen | Sacrés Coupons | 1.4 m | ? € |
| Reversible jacquard wool | Sacrés Coupons | 0.40 m (scraps) | €0 |
| Fusible interfacing | Stash | 0.20 m | €0 |
| Elastic, 3.2 cm | Stash | €1 | |
| Zip, 15 cm | Stash | 1 | €5.00 |
| Button, 18 mm | Stash | 1 | €0 |
| Voile bias binding | La Réserve des Arts | 5 m | €0.50 |
| Thread | Stash | 0 | €0 |
| Total | €15.00 |
The Twig Woven Pant pattern
Let’s be a bit more objective, with a factual rundown of the Twig Woven Pant…
It’s a barrel-shaped pant, ankle length.
It features:
- a buttoned waistband with a fly at the front (very classic),
- elastic at the back (very comfortable),
- pintucks down the front and back of the legs (very chic),
- and a side panel (very handy for playing around a little).
It also comes with in-seam pockets, of course, sitting slightly forward because of the side panel.
This is my first Style Arc pattern, and for good reason: for a long time, Style Arc only sold single sizes, which gets expensive fast.
Poof, the moment your size changes, you pay again. And the multi-size option was priced at a level I found prohibitive. The sale definitely helped!
The Twig Woven Pant PDF is sold in Australian size ranges: 4-16, 10-22 and 18-30. A very wide span. I bought the 4-16 range and, in hindsight, I should have gone for the 10-22 to leave myself room at the top end. It’s fairly unlikely that I’ll shrink.
Unless…
The file comes with layers and includes 1 cm seam allowances, drawn as dotted lines on every piece.
The instruction booklet, in English only, deserves a word.
You often read that Style Arc patterns are excellent but that the instructions don’t keep up. I think it comes down to the format of those instructions, clearly aimed at intermediate to advanced sewists.
There’s no classic step-by-step here, no one diagram plus one block of text. You get 18 diagrams on one side, and a dense list of 30 numbered instructions on the other, with no breathing room.
Not exactly user friendly, but I found every piece of information I needed. There’s also a video tutorial behind a QR code, which I didn’t watch.
Style Arc rates this pant as challenging. I’m probably a poor judge given my track record (pants are my thing), but I didn’t find it difficult.
Sewing the Twig Woven Pant
Size 12, with no adjustments at all
I sewed size 12 straight out of the envelope. No grading between sizes, no shortening, nothing. For a pant, and at 1.60 m tall, that doesn’t happen often.
The fabric: navy linen and reversible jacquard from Sacrés Coupons
The body of the pant is cut from a navy linen bought at Sacrés Coupons a few years ago. I didn’t note the exact yardage, but it was less than the 1.90 m listed, probably around 1.50 m.
For the side panels, I used up a scrap of a lovely wool, also from Sacrés Coupons, that I’d already sewn into the Berlin skirt by Orageuse. It’s a jacquard with a mixed stripe and dot motif. When it came to cutting, I didn’t choose. One leg got stripes, the other got dots.
The accidental pencil pocket
For the right-hand side panel, I didn’t have enough fabric left to cover the full length. So I pulled out a trick I’ve used several times: cut the panel strip into 2 pieces and work a vertical pocket into the join.
The result is a sort of pencil pocket on the side. It’s not a mistake, it’s a feature.
Six to eight extra centimetres for the cuffs
The only real pattern change: I lengthened the hem by 6 to 8 cm so I could turn up a cuff. It plays up the barrel effect narrowing at the ankle, and it gives the lower leg some weight.
The finishes: voile bias binding and tonal topstitching
On finishes, I made a bit of an effort: the side and inseam seams are bound with voile bias binding. It looks much nicer when you turn up the cuff, and it shows.
The inside of the waistband is bound too. The rest of the seams are overlocked, and I went with single tonal topstitching. The pattern suggests double topstitching, but I couldn’t be bothered.
The fly grimace, my sworn enemy
One thing irritates me enormously, and this pant is no exception: that little offset at the top of the fly, that grimace between the fly and the button.
I see it on my own pants, and on ready-to-wear ones as people walk past me in the street. I’ve tried moving the button, which doesn’t fix much. It probably comes from the pattern drafting.
If anyone has the solution, the comments are open!!! Really.
The verdict
This is one of my favourite pants right now. Maybe even the favourite, but I have a lot of me-made garments that I prefer… you don’t pick between your children.
The linen does exactly the job it promised: it creases! No, I’m kidding. Well, yes, it creases, but above all, worn all summer long, it’s wonderfully comfortable, even in serious heat.
The photos were taken in the south of France during the Thread & Needles forum meet-up. I’m wearing two tops that haven’t been blogged yet in these pictures, and I’ll tell you about them in their own posts.
A quick aside for the sewists who trusted me during the shoot: your photos are coming, I promise. The past few months have been intense. My sincere apologies.
I’ve already thought several times about sewing the Twig Woven Pant again, in a purple linen remnant I found on Vinted. Except that I already own two purple pants, the Sunshine barrel jeans in indigo purple denim and the Wide Leg Pants in corduroy. Three purple pants, wouldn’t that be a bit much, love?
The day I unpack my fabrics, currently already in boxes, and set my sewing room back up in the new house, I’ll have to pick another cut. A winter version, maybe.
What about you, are there colours you get obsessed with? I go through phases. As a teenager, it was my yellow period. These past few years, huge amounts of blue-green with a bit of purple. Lately, purple has been gaining serious ground… ♥︎
Tell me your colours of the moment, I can’t wait to read them!
Frequently asked questions about the Twig Woven Pant
Is the Twig Woven Pant pattern suitable for beginners?
Style Arc rates the Twig Woven Pant as challenging, so probably not for a first attempt. You have to insert a zip fly, in-seam pockets and a waistband that’s half buttoned, half elasticated. Nothing insurmountable once you have a bit of mileage, but it isn’t a first pair of pants.
How much fabric do you need for the Twig Woven Pant?
Style Arc lists 1.90 m of 148 cm wide fabric for sizes 4 to 14, and 2.25 m above that, plus pocket lining and interfacing. In size 12, I used noticeably less, around 1.40 m of linen, not counting the side panels cut from a scrap.
Does the Twig Woven Pant work if you’re petite?
Yes, in my experience. At 1.60 m, I sewed size 12 with no shortening at all, and the ankle length works as intended. I even added 6 to 8 cm at the hem to turn up a cuff. The barrel shape is roomy enough that it doesn’t need a petite adjustment through the leg, and the elasticated back waist absorbs a lot of the fitting work.
