Mile End & Plateau Tracksuit | Closet Core Patterns

I am ridiculously excited to show you my brand new ultimate comfort tracksuit…. and it’s YELLOW! Honestly, this outfit is so incredibly comfy… I am in love.

This make was a case of seeing the fabric first, then matching it with patterns for the top and bottoms. As you have probably guessed, I am a big fan of all things yellow. And what I love about this sweatshirting is that the colour isn’t too ‘in your face’. It is a beautiful soft colour, with a marl look to it too. And it is fleece-backed, so really warm and cosy. I bought this fabric from Backstitch (disclaimer – I work there, and bought with my staff discount), and also picked up a little bit of matching ribbing too.

The patterns I chose were both by Closet Core Patterns – the Mile End Sweatshirt and the Plateau Joggers.

I had been intrigued to try a Mile End for a while – I have made lots of sweatshirts over the years, and the shape of this one is just a little bit different. It’s quite boxy, a little bit cropped, and also has some interesting seam lines. I’m a little bit self conscious when I reach up when wearing this, as it rises and flashes my tummy a bit. But when I wear with a vest or tee tucked in underneath then I feel fine.

I loved the slanted side seam lines, and the seam line across the upper back (kind of like a yoke) – it just makes this pattern that little bit different I think. I did a bit of top-stitching on these seam lines too, which looks lovely. I just used a simple straight stitch for the top-stitching because I wanted it to look nice and neat. I know it’s a bit of a no-no on a knit/stretch fabric, but I figured that the areas I was straight-stitching were places where the fabric wouldn’t be stretched or under pressure.

This fabric was such a dream to work with. It keeps its shape really well, and pressed nicely too. The neckline, once I’d finished and pressed, looked so neat! I get a real kick from getting details like that super perfect.

Onto the Plateau Joggers! These gave me a bit more of a headache than the sweatshirt. But that was more about me than the pattern! I had a bit of a nightmare with the elastic as I bought one which was a bit too wide (by accident). I tried to use it anyway, got it all snarled up in my stitching, so ended up completely cutting out that attempt and starting again. I bought a more narrow elastic, and it worked perfectly. I toyed with the idea of adding cord and eyelets, but I didn’t love how it looked on my first waistband attempt, so decided to leave it off.

Otherwise, the construction of the joggers was relatively straightforward. I did decide to switch the pocket fabric to a thin jersey I had in my stash, as I felt as though using my fleece-backed sweatshirting for pockets would be far too bulky. Definitely pleased I made that call. The construction of the pockets was a little bit different, but I followed the instructions and they worked out well. Perhaps a little bit gapey when finished, but I’m happy with them. Once I stitched the ankle cuff pieces I decided that the length was a bit too much for me – I prefer more of an ankle graze length. So I took about an inch off of the leg/cuff seam. And pleased with the result!

I’m really happy with both garments, and really love the outfit as a whole too. It’s really practical for everyday, and know this is going to get a lot of wear. My only negative is that I’m not 100% sure that I love the cropped length of the sweatshirt, but I’ve been wearing it lots over the past few days and think it’s growing on me 🙂

Anyway, that’s all from me… I have a couple more makes to show you in the next couple of weeks. So see you here again soon!

Pattern: Mile End Sweatshirt and Plateau Joggers by Closet Core Patterns

Fabric: Yellow Sweatshirting and Ribbing from Backstitch

Notions: Elastic bought from Backstitch

Size made: 12

Alterations made: Shortened by an inch (approx) at the leg/ankle cuff seam

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