Japanese Garden Pyjama bottoms

I didn't mention anything about making pyjama bottom's for Karen's Pyjama Party because, in my typical fashion, it was a last minute thing. I thought it could be a great occasion for some stash bustin' and in fact I pulled out this flowery cotton I've had for ages and never got around to use.

This wasn't exactly your 2-hours-super simple project.

First of all: the pattern. Much to my surprise, there are no pyjama patterns in any issue of Burda from the last three years. I found a pair of bermuda from the 06/2010 issue that could be lengthned, but then I flipped through an old La Mia Boutique and found a pair of pants with elastic waistband that looked perfect for the job.

Of course I realised AFTER cutting the fabric that the pattern was meant for knit fabrics, so there was no way I could pull them up past my knees. Since I didn't want to just throw the fabric away, I added two triangular panels at the sides. The print is busy ebough not to make them too evident.

I also realised that they were too low, expecially at the back (thank you, big butt), so I added a waistband in a contrasting fabric. I also ended up removing a bit of witdh from the leg, because they were extremely wide.

Whew! That was much more work than I expected, but at least they're finished, wearable and quite cute.

Karen also asked us to share our current readings. For me, it's "A Dance With Dragons", the fifth book from the fantasy series "A Song of Ice and Fire" by George RR Martin. I started reading the books last year after falling in love with the TV show by HBO and now I'm a huge nerd. I have about 200 pages left to read and then I'll start to desperately wait for the next book to come out, which won't happen for at least another year. I really don't know how I'll do without reading daily about these characters! At least, in the last year I spent reading the series, my reading list became quite long, so it'll keep myself busy for a while. First up will be "Starship Troopers" by Robert A. Heinlin.