Sewing 307 - Pattern Drafting: Hip Pockets

Welcome back dear readers. I have recently been working on a pair of trousers and thought to myself, that it would be great to share how to draft hip/Slant pockets for trousers, or even skirts. I think it's a simple and very useful technique to have in your arsenal and a step up from the easy to do In-seam or patch pockets.

Tools you will need

1. Basic Trousers /Skirt block

2. Straight ruler

3. Curve ruler

4. Pencils / Eraser /Sharpener

5. Brown paper/ Drafting Paper – for tracing

Drafting the Hip Pocket Pieces

The pocket has 2 pieces for the Bag and 1 piece for the Overlap. These will be drafted directly on the main pattern then traced onto another paper.

1. Trace out your front trouser block (or the pattern you would make the pockets for). Mark the hip line, crotch line, and darts. These are for reference.

2. Separate the waistband from the pattern, or lower the waist line to the desired level. I am taking off 2 inches from the top, following the curved contour of the waist.

3. Point A to B - From the Crease line or the Dart line, measure the length of the waist and divide it proportionately to estimate the opening of the pocket. Depending on the style of pocket, you can assign anything from 1.5 to 3 inches (4 to 7.5cm). For this draft, I got 6 inches and divided it by 3, so I will be using 2 inches.

4. Point A to C - From the waist down, measure the depth of the pocket opening at the side. Consider the size of your hand and the functionality of the pocket. I will be using 6 inches (15cm). Label as point B. Connect points B and C with a slightly curved line for the pocket opening.

5. Point D  - Next we shall consider the width of the pocket. I would advise that you leave the first 3 inches from the centre front of the pattern free. Consider that you may have a zipper and it is impractical for it to be that wide. For trousers, stopping at the crease line or slightly beyond it is great. I will be marking off 1/2 inch before the crease line.

   
   

6. Point E - For the depth of the pocket, once again consider the size of the hand and the functionality of the pocket. Anything from the hip line to the crotch line will the good. Any shorter and the pocket might be more decorative. It also depends on how tight the garment is. I will be stopping at the crotch line. Square down a straight line from Point D to the Crotch Line. Label as point E.

Note: if it is for a pair of shorts, the pockets must be proportional to the length of the shorts, so that they do not stick out.

7. Point F - Finally, mark a point about 1 inch (2cm) from the crotch line upwards at the side. Label as point F. Connect points E to F using a curved line to complete the bottom of the pocket. This will allow it to contour to the body.

8. Line G to H - At this point, we have drafted two parts of the pocket. The last step is to draw the outline of the Overlap, which serves to hide the pocket fabric, and you can also attach a coin pocket to it in the case of jeans. Draw a line about 3/4 inch (2cm) inwards from Line BC following the same contour.

Tracing Out the Pieces

• Piece 1 (Bag) - Points AFEDA

• Piece 2 (Bag Facing) - Points BCFEDB

• Piece 3 (Overlap) - Points AHGA

  
  

• Pieces 1 and 2 can be joined together at LINE DE and cut as one piece, using the joining line as a fold.

Finally, the front trouser block shall be cut at Line BC for the Pocket opening.

Layer pocket in the following order

• Piece 1(Bag) first, then Piece 3(Overlap) is top stitched directly on top of it, with the right side facing up.

• Place piece 2 (Bag facing) over Piece 1 with right sides facing and stitch at the side (Line DE)

• The Pocket is stitched to the Front Trousers at the pocket opening (Line BC) with the right sides facing, then folded into the trousers.

• Stitch close the bottom of the pocket (Line EF)

• The waist and sides of the pocket and trousers should be aligned and basted in place

Appendix.

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Thank you for reading and I hope you found this tutorial easy to follow. I'll post a how to sew video in the near future, so watch this space. Love to hear from you, so email me or leave a comment below.