I sewed up the Montreal Lounge Collection by Closet Core Patterns.

Of course I did!

I think most regular readers know that if there’s anything I can’t resist, it’s a new release by Closet Core Patterns!!

The Montreal Collection consists of the Mile End sweatshirt, which comes in a couple of variations, and the Plateau Joggers, which have sweatpants (sorry, the Australian in me really wants to call these “trackies”) or shorts variations. The patterns are available in sizes 0-32, catering for a hip measurement of up to 160cm (63 inches). I have worked here with the 0-20 version of the pattern, as this size range is designed based on a B-cup difference between high and full bust, which is most appropriate for my body.

OK, so those are the technicalities, now can I just jump for joy for a minute?

Doing loungewear…

You know, when I first saw the Montreal collection, I first tried to tell myself it wasn’t for me.

While I sometimes wear leggings, I tend to try to wear clothes that are comfortable all the time, rather than just for lounging. Working from home has really solidified this thinking. I solemnly swear that even when I am no longer working mostly from home, if I ever wear another piece of clothing which is so uncomfortable that I’m desperate to take it off the moment I get home, that piece of clothing will be directly disposed of.

Clothes should feel comfortable!

But because so many of my clothes are already comfy and warm and cosy, I hadn’t thought of lounge clothes as being a gap in my wardrobe.

Notwithstanding this, I couldn’t stop looking at the pretty architectural lines on the Mile End sweatshirt and it was ultimately those lines that made me click BUY!

Speaking of those lines, I knew instantly that I wanted to play with them for a bit of colour blocking. I have to say, though, that, at least where I am, this collection was released just as thick comfy fabric seemed to be on the way out in a lot of my fav fabric stores. Buuut, luckily Meter Meter released some new pastel colours of their organic basic brushed sweat just when I was about to give up hope and it felt as though the sewing goddesses were smiling at me.

I guess I must be pretty lucky – those sewing goddesses seem to say pretty much nothing else to me except “buy the fabric, Beck!”.

I have combined here the creamy white, sage green and dune colours of this cotton-based organic basic brushed sweat. As it doesn’t contain any elastene but is 100% cotton, it doesn’t actually have the stretch factor recommended for the Mile End sweatshirt and Plateau joggers, so I used the matching organic 2 x1 rib for all the places where stretch would matter: i.e. the cuffs and bands!

My only word of warning is that, while the brushed sweat is extra wide, the rib is very narrow (as is typical for rib fabrics). The ribbed fabric was actually slightly too narrow to cut my waistband size as a single piece. It would have fitted as two pieces but as I was only a few centimetres short and my ribbing was extra stretchy, I just cut my waistband a few centimetres too short. It wasn’t an issue due to the extra stretchy nature of this ribbing.

My Mile End Sweatshirt by Closet Core Patterns

Since it was the Mile End Sweatshirt which really sucked me in to buying this bundle, let’s start there.

This is view C, a hoodie option with a deep crossover neckline. Views A and B are variations on a more classic crew neck sweater, including a variation with a cool twisty tie detail at the waistband.

I selected my size for the Mile End Sweatshirt based purely on my body measurements, so this is the size 14.

I was so pleasantly surprised by how quickly this all came together. I think I spent more time deciding how to arrange my colour blocking and cutting than I did actually sewing!!

I had no issues sewing it and found eveything easy to follow. I particularly enjoyed all the optional topstitching to really make these pretty lines pop!

The one little thing I would note is that the inside of your hood is going to be visible at times, so think about this when decided how to finish those insides (if at all!). Unless it’s deliberate, maybe contrasting overlocking isn’t the way to go inside the hood!

I actually elected not to finish my seams at all here, so there is nothing visually jarring happening on the inside of mine. I would have gone with matching overlocking if I had had coordinating thread but, alas, I did not!

I quite like the shape and feel of the hood on me (I think this may be the first hoodie I’ve work since I was about 14), so all-in-all, I finished this Mile End Sweatshirt feeling decidedly chuffed!

Plateau joggers by Closet Core Patterns

I’m not going to lie, I was a bit more scared going into the Plateau joggers. The Mile End Sweatshirt, I was confident it would work. I mean, how could the lines on that hoodie not work!

The Plateau joggers were more of a leap of faith for me.

Not only have I not worn “joggers/trackies/sweatpants” for years, when I have they tended to be wide legged. I don’t think I have ever owned a deliberately slim fitting pair of joggers.

I definitely see the appeal of them. The fact of going for comfort, without looking slouchy and oversized, sounds appealing indeed. Comfy, not saggy, sounds good in theory!

But, having a pretty thigh-heavy body, I’ve always felt afraid that this shape is just not sufficiently comfortable.

And if I am making loungewear specifically, complete comfort is essential!

Further, when I looked at the size chart for the Plateau joggers, I anticipated some issues.

All of this is to say, that I started the Plateau joggers off with a bit of trepidation!

My Plateau Joggers – sizing

I am so very grateful that Closet Core Patterns have a comprehensive finished garment measurement table which includes thigh measurements!!

This chart enabled me to see that even though my wait and hip measurements would have me at a size 16, my thighs would not have fit into them! The comprehensive finished measurement chart in the Blanca Flight Suit also saved me from this same disaster.

So, message to all sewing pattern designers, please include as many finished garment measurements as possible, as it allows as many sewists as possible to easily address the idiosyncrasies of their own bodies and make your patterns work for them!

I decided to select the smallest size which would give me a couple of centimetres ease around the thigh, which was a size 18.

So this is a size 18 and I’m really glad I chose to size up. This is definitely the minimum size that I feel would be sufficiently comfy for my personal lounging comfort preferences!

I’d be curious to know how others out there for whom the hips are not the widest part of their body approach making choices on sizing charts. For me, my thighs are significantly wider than my hips, but it feels that hip measurements are drafted on an assumption that the hips are widest. If I try to substitute my “widest point of the thigh measurement” for my hip measurement when choosing a pattern, sure, I can probably make sure I won’t end up with anything too small to fit over my thighs, but it will be way too big at my actual hips!

Grading from my actual waist and hip measurements to give more room in the thighs is generally how I go about doing it, but having patterns like this which provide a range of finished garment measurements is immensely facilitative in this regard.

Speaking of measurements, I could also see in advance from both the finished measurement chart and the promotional pics that the inseam length of the Plateau joggers was a tad too short for my preference.

I get that the ankle length looks stylish and perhaps more “put together”. And it looks great when standing.

But if I am specifically making loungewear for once, I’ll be damned if I am going to have cold ankles!! Especially since I spend a lot of time sitting when wearing loungewear (“joggers” is definitely a massive misnomer in my case!).

I had planned, based on the measurements, to add 10 centimetres to the length of my joggers. Then I noticed that the version of the Plateau joggers designed to be finished by adding elastic was exactly 8cm longer than the version designed to be finished with a cuff. So I just used the longer leg and added the cuff on top, making these 8cm longer than as designed. I like to think of it as a “lazy lengthening” technique.

I’m really happy with the cosy leg length I’ve ended up with here!

When sewing, I did modify the cuff width by cutting it a few centimetres shorter to make sure it fit around my ankles nice and snuggly.

Sewing the Plateau joggers

Again, these were very straightforward to sew and I had no issues following the clear instructions. The pocket construction is unusual so it didn’t feel instinctive but I had no issues getting them done. I quite like these pockets because the unique design means you have no seams at all at the side of the hips which, in general for me, is a good place to avoid bulk!!

Speaking of pockets, you can see that in this light colour, the outline of my pockets is quite visible. If making these again, I might try to use a lighter weight fabric for the pocket piece which isn’t visible in order to reduce the visible bulk.

I really like the way the instructions called for the elastic insertion and attachment of the waistband. First, you baste the waistband in place with the last few inches left free. Then the elastic is inserted and once you have the elastic secure and the right size, you can then properly attach the entire waistband to the pants with a secure stitch all at once.

However, there was one part where I should have listened more intently to the instructions. They say that the optional topstitching down the seam allowance at the waist line may not be possible on bulky fabrics.

As I was feeling very top-stitich happy this project, I wanted to go for it.

All was fine until the final inch (located over the pocket bulk), where I ended up breaking 5 needles, swearing a lot and going for a short walk outside before I managed to get it done. I trimmed bulk. I pressed down. I hammered. I switched to a jeans needle. I switched to a top-stitching needle. I used a hump jumper!

But those damn needles still kept breaking.

Then after my walk, I came back inside and did nothing special at all and it finally worked perfectly.

I think my machine was just in an evil mood!

So, with a thick sweatshirting, there really is a lot of bulk around the pocket area and those instructions are totally correct when they say that you may not be able to topstitch it all down.

Waistband topstitching dilemma

Which brings me to another sewing topic worth musing over – do you topstitch your waistband elastic in place or not?

The pattern calls for topstitching the elastic in the waistband into place.

The advantages of this are that it absolutely looks sooooooo much better. It also gives me a better fit, feeling much more snug around the lower back.

The disadvantage, of course, is the lack of flexibility it involves. After all, for me, the joy of elastic is that it is flexible. My waistline fluctuates a lot so sewing for a flexible size is something I’m always thinking about.

Further, when top-stitiching elastic down, there is a risk that the elastic can stretch out if it isn’t the best quality (and in my IMHO it’s not always easy to tell if you are buying good quality elastic or not, especially if purchasing online).

I also have a special talent for managing to somehow put my elastic in in the first place either too tight or too long and needing to go back in there!

So all of this is to say that I’m never sure whether to topstitch down my waistband elastic or not.

Because, when replacing the elastic involves unpicking two rows of top stitching in addition to unpicking part of the waist band, which is possible both surged and topstitched, let’s face it, I’m probably not going to do it!

This time around, I was determined to wear them for a while first and then topstitch down only when I felt sure of the fit and that my weight was being relatively stable.

But then I got impatient and just wanted to be really, truly, absolutely DONE!!

I’m really happy with the look of it topstitched down, so here’s hoping I’ve gotten the sizing right this time around.

Does anyone else agonise over whether the topstitch down elastic or is am I on my own in this strange obsession?

So far, I’ve worn this quite a bit already and I really love them. I took them on vacation recently and deliberately put them on for cooking dinner and chilling in the evening everyday for an entire week! It felt like the epitome of cosiness!!

If you want to see more of my sewing adventures, you can find me on Instagram here.