Eve Trousers by Merchant & Mills made in Ventana Twill

So much love for Merchant & Mills. I was thinking of when I first discovered this company at the Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate around 8 years ago. I remember as I wandered through looking at the usual crafty sections then coming across their stand and going 'wow' thinking this is groundbreaking. Unfortunately, they never came back up North, such a shame but unsurprising. Here they are now just dominating the hand made clothing world. My favourite thing about them is the effortless styles that work for so many people whatever age (I turned 50 during lockdown and I'm in complete denial) 

These Eve Trousers are a departure from my usual denim jeans but I was ready for something new and cooler to wear in the heat. I was totally lusting over these Japanese cotton Eves on the M&M website, so I decided to do a trial run in our Ventana Twill before shamelessly just copying their version!

This pair is made in our Smoke Blue and the more I sew with this fabric the more things I want in it, it has such a softness that once I completed these they already felt like an old favourite pair of trousers. I like the way this fabric relaxes after washing.

Notes on fitting, I cut a size 10 and I need to always consider, being 5'3", things being too long on me. I'd already decided on this ankle graze length for year-round wearing. Also, I'm a straight frame and generally have excess fabric around the hip/thigh area in trousers but I quite like them baggy. The only alterations I made; I added an inch to the waistband (I'm fussy on waist heights and being tucked in and not tucked in...?) plus I took out 1cm in both the crotch and leg length. So on me, you can see they are still quite long, taller people would find these a lot more cropped.

The pattern instructions were perfect with beautiful sewing techniques (the pockets and the turn-ups are my favourite bits). I do have a fear of zips and I felt smug as this was quite straight forward. My only criticism would be the lack of front pockets but to be honest, I think it would be a shame to have the fussiness of extra fabric at the front, these are a really elegant shape and my phone comfortably goes in my back pocket. 

I am so happy with how these turned out.