stretch woven – Sew Beach Life

I’ve been waiting for these shorts for over a year! Volunteering to pre-test them last year, and loving them even back then. The pattern was put on hold until this year, when shorts season rolled around again. One of the things that makes GreenStyle patterns fit so well, is the fact that they are truly put through the test. Comments and fit photos submitted by the testers are taken into consideration, and the pattern gets tweaked again and again to perfect the fit.

With curved back seams to fit smoothly over the bum (with an optional fuller bum cut line), and welt pockets (with optional zipper) the Windward Shorts are flattering and practical. I tend to wear a lot of athletic wear style of shorts. I probably have seven pair of Moxi compression layer shorts that I wear all the time. But my dress shorts options are severely limited. As in I didn’t have any until the Windward Shorts came along!

I love being able to add another category of clothing into my life. There are occasions that require a slightly dressier look, and now I’ve got something that fits the bill.

I thought it was so cool that my husband caught this shot of the dragonfly zooming by my head!

The pattern is designed for stretch woven fabrics, so that inherently leads to a dressier look. Stretch wovens can be made of different materials (all of which contain a small percentage of spandex, which is what gives them that little bit of stretch.) The periwinkle stretch cotton twill from Mood Fabrics is a heavier, crisper fabric, which gives a different look than say a polyester blend that is thinner and a bit drapier.

I also made a pair out of stretch charmeuse from JoAnn Fabrics. The softer drape makes them look a bit more form fitting.

I love that the pattern accommodates a wide variety of stretch woven fabrics and looks great in all of them. A unique design feature is that there is no inseam, which makes the shorts very comfortable for people bothered by inner leg seams. The welt pockets are generously sized, so even my large phone fits perfectly. Since it’s anchored in the top and side seams, the pocket lays smoothly, and stays in place.

As a tall girl, I chose the high rise with the 2″ elastic waistband for both my makes. (I actually made a third pair, but didn’t photograph them.) There is a mid rise, and an options for 3″ wide elastic too. With 2″, 3″, and 4″ inseams, you’ve definitely got choices!

I love that there are no zippers or buttons to deal with (other than the optional zipper on the welt pockets) so the shorts are a quick sew and easy to wear.

I hope you’ll flip for these shorts like I did!

I love that I’m not afraid to still do a cartwheel. And I probably did 10 or 15 of them before my husband actually caught a shot with my legs up in the air and his finger not in the frame! 🙂

As a note of encouragement, don’t let the idea of welt pockets scare you. The tutorial is easy to follow and makes a fancy detail simple to accomplish. And face it, all shorts need pockets!

The waistband is comfortable, and makes the shorts easy to wear.

The details:

The GreenStyle Windward Shorts pattern includes sizes B-M, which covers hip measurements from 32″ to 62″.

The periwinkle fabric is stretch cotton twill from Mood Fabrics. I wore it with a Power Sports Bra that I hacked into a workout top made of black spandex and black snakeskin yogi fabric from GreenStyle. You can read more about the hack here.

The brushstroke print is a stretch charmeuse from JoAnn Fabrics. They were worn with one of my Tangled Swim Tops, blogged here.

Thank you for reading and sharing my love of patterns, sewing, fabric, and cute shorts with large pockets! ❤

The links to GreenStyle may be affiliate links (if I did them properly!) which means that I may earn a few pennies if you use my links without it costing you anything extra. Since this is my blog and represents me, I always give my honest opinion about any patterns, fabric, or supplies that I talk about. I do like knowing whether the time I spend writing posts actually interests people enough that they take a look at the patterns I review, but I write for me. It’s one more creative pursuit that I hope is helpful or interesting to others. I write to share my love of sewing and to encourage others to love it as much as I do! 🙂

The Moxi Shorts pattern just got updated into the extended GreenStyle Creations size range, the pattern received a few tweaks, and a youth size version of the pattern was released! The Moxi’s are one of the few GreenStyle patterns I hadn’t tried yet. I think I was afraid that they’d be too short, or hard to fit, or something. But living in sunny (although currently rainy, thanks to the tropical storm) Florida, I need all the shorts patterns!

Color me very pleasantly surprised with the fit. I mean, look how cute these shorts are!

Although they are shorter shorts, they’re not too short if you know what I mean. When I cut out the first pair, I figured that I’d want to make the optional bike shorts as a lower layer to cover a bit more leg. But once I sewed them up, I was happy with the coverage and decided I didn’t need either the bike short or briefs under layer. There is a great FIT TIP in the tutorial to help slim the lower back leg, and it worked perfectly to curve in under the booty. I narrowed the lower back one size and it gave me just the fit my booty needed!

Everything stays in place whether I’m jumping into a cartwheel…

…or completely upside down, no one can see my panties!

The Moxi shorts have a unique method of construction, and the wide binding is a great opportunity to add a pop of color whether you’re using a solid or patterned stretch woven fabric. Here’s my little tip for binding: although you can use stretch woven cut on the bias, I think it’s easier to use a high quality knit with plenty of spandex. That way you don’t have to cut on the diagonal and stitch a bunch of strips together. I chose a nylon spandex swim fabric for my binding, and cut it with the greatest stretch (across the “grain”) and it worked great!

Here is another sewing tip for the Moxi’s: although stretch woven is just that- a woven fabric, since it does have stretch, it’s a good idea to up the differential to 1.3 on your serger to keep the seams from becoming wavy. It seems like such a small change, but it can be the difference between a good sewing job and a much more professional looking job.

Isn’t that pop of coral fun against the floral print?

I used GreenStyle stretch woven “Mint To Be” and absolutely love that it coincidentally matches one of my Cami Tanks blogged here. When my husband first saw the fabric, he was surprised that I bought a floral print. I tend to wear a lot of solid colors, and floral is generally not my gig. But once I had them made up, he kept commenting how cute they look. And here’s the proof- the photo he snuck while we were walking.

Husbands take the best sneaky booty shots! 😉

I also like that the shorts are comfortable while sitting. Or preparing to jump off of railings! 🙂

The Moxi’s also look super cute when paired with a Power Sports Bra hacked into a workout top. I hacked this one similarly to the one I made to match my Spark Tights with photo instructions blogged here. Except I used a powernet insert in the back panel, and used two strips of bra strapping for my straight straps.

The Power Sports Bra really does give great support, and looks super cute with Moxi’s!

And no, I didn’t use bra cups in my top, even though it’s white. The design of the bra, thickness and support of the Supplex and powernet is sufficient. Like the Power Sports Bra, the Moxi Shorts are another brilliantly designed pattern that’s definitely worth sewing.

And let’s talk about the updated waistbands. There is an elasticated waistband meant to be used with stretch woven fabric. There is also a nicely contoured waistband meant for knits, with a high and low rise. I ended up making both my waistbands 1/4″ higher than low rise. I know, I know, I’m generally a high rise waistband girl, but going just slightly higher than low rise gave me a perfect fit.

The details: as noted earlier, the mint Moxi Shorts are made of GreenStyle stretch woven. The mint Cami Tank fabric, and the mint waistband fabric came from JoAnn Fabrics.

The navy shorts are Phee Fabrics stretch twill, the neon green and neon coral binding and the navy waistband are nylon spandex tricot, also from Phee Fabrics.

The links to GreenStyle are affiliate links, which means that at no extra cost to you, I may receive a small commission if you purchase through my link. As always, I only give my honest opinion. After all, it is my blog, which represents me! Thank you for reading and sharing my love of creating, sewing, patterns, fabric, and making beautiful, well-fitting garments! ❤

Tag: stretch woven

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