The Crooked Hem

I was a tester for the Daughter Judy Coe trouser, a design that Chelsea had teased months ago and that I couldn’t wait to sew. I have been looking for a good wide leg, flat front trouser for a while now. Many contenders were on my list but none grabbed my attention like the Coe, so I jumped into the tester pool.

Design and fit

In typical fashion, Daughter Judy elevates the basic wide leg trouser with some interesting design features that we don’t see that often in the home sewing world. Instead, I would guess that the inspiration for this design came from high end RTW brands, where this silhouette has been popping up everywhere:

While each of these designs is slightly different in its own way, the side seam is moved more toward the front of the body, and it curves forward as it descends down the leg. The wide leg doesn’t hang straight down, but instead has a barrel shape, which complements the curved seam.

Similarly, the Coe trousers have a side seam that wraps around the leg and ends at the center of the hem. A flat front and a proportional barrel shape to the leg accentuates this design detail:

Finally, the belt! It completes the look, and I’m left wondering why more trouser patterns don’t come with a self belt (although this is an easy problem to solve, I know). Don’t skip this detail if you make this pattern.

Fit and Fabric

The Coe trousers come in two size ranges, spanning a 35.5-66.5 inch (90.2-169 cm) hip.

These trousers are designed to be high waisted with a curved waistband. They are close-fitting through the waist and hip, although not tight. Coe has about 1 inch of ease in the waist and about 2.5-3.25 inches of ease at the hip, depending on where you fall in the size range. The vertical ease between the “saddle” of the trousers and the body is about half an inch.

The leg is wide and relaxed for a full range of movement, with tons of ease from mid-thigh to ankle. I can sit, squat, and move around very comfortably in these trousers.

I’ll do a deep dive on my fitting process for the Coe in my next post, but the beautiful design details of the Coe trousers call for some thoughtful decision making when fitting. My measurements (32″ waist, 42″ hip) put me in a straight size 12. Daughter Judy drafts for a height of 5’6″, and I am 4 inches taller, so I added length to the rise and the leg on my trousers.

I made these in two different fabrics: a heavyweight linen and a lightweight denim. Both work well, but they each give a different fit and feel.

For my linen pair, I used a 6 oz linen from StoneMountain & Daughter. This linen has a lot of drape, so these pants feel very summery and breezy. The fabric in the leg feels very fluid when I walk, and the barrel leg shape of the leg is softened considerably. The linen also relaxes on the body, so these also feel slightly looser than the denim pair, which is not a bad thing in the summer heat. They are ridiculously comfortable.

For my denim pair, I used an 8 oz denim from Merchant and Mills. This denim is very soft and needs no breaking in, but it still has some structure. It really shows off the barrel shape of the leg much more than the linen pair. The drape on the denim is much crisper than linen, so when I walk, these pants feel more structured and a bit heavier, but they are just as comfortable.

It’s hard to choose a favorite. The linen pair feels more dressy to me, like something I could wear to the office easily if paired with the right top. The design details are more subtle in the linen fabric and without a contrasting topstitch thread. The denim pair feels more casual and on-trend; they are a little more of a statement piece. I think they both have a place in my closet.

Construction

These trousers came together easily for me in about 6 hours from cutting fabric to the final stitch. The instructions are clear with helpful and accurate diagrams. Like other Daughter Judy patterns, they are aimed at a the intermediate level.

The fly construction deserves a mention here. After making two pairs of Coe trousers, I jumped into a second pair of Open Studio Shop Pants, and I *strongly* prefer the Daughter Judy fly construction. It was much more intuitive and easier to get accurate zipper alignment on the Coe trousers.

These trousers have lots of fun details (hello, topstitching!), so if you are the kind of sewist who loves adding those signature touches to your makes, this pattern is for you.

The Coe tester version did not come with a pocket stay, and on-seam trouser pockets like this are prone to gaping open like you see in my linen pair below. After chatting with Chelsea about this, I added a pocket stay on my second pair, as well as a small adjustment to the back dart. I’ll share more details in my next post on fitting.

The commercial release of the Coe trouser includes an optional pocket stay. It’s tucked in with the supply list on page 8, so could be missed if you tend to skip ahead to the instructions. I’d recommend adding the stay if you are working with a heavier weight fabric or if you like that extra “secure” feeling in the front of the trousers.

Final Thoughts

I’ve said it before, but Daughter Judy just gets me when it comes to design, and that’s probably why many DJ patterns are in heavy rotation in my wardrobe. The Coe trouser hits that sweet spot in between a casual jean and dressier, pleated trouser that I didn’t know I needed until now. It checks all of the boxes that I look for in a wardrobe staple: ✅ versatile enough to be dressed up or down, ✅ works in a wide range of fabrics, ✅ classic and modern at the same time, ✅ comfortable with high range of motion, ✅ makes me feel fabulous.

In my next post, I’ll share my process for fitting this pattern with Top Down Center Out, and how I made decisions along the way. Stay tuned!