For quite a while now we've had people ask us to please make a jogger in the Junior Miss size range (since we already have the Railway Joggers in our girls size range). The Trail Joggers were our answer to that request and we decided to make it in both the Junior Miss (size 0-20) AND Girls (size 2-16) range while we were at it.
These tapered leg joggers feature curved style lines along the top of the legs (front and back) as well as a side stripe/panel. The back yoke and side panel are all one piece, with the front yoke as a second piece. Our testers had fun trying out different colour blocking options with these few different pieces.
Topstitching along the pieced sections is optional, but can give a nice finish. I'm always impressed with people brave enough to use a contrasting thread for topstitching. You are amazing!
Front pockets are optional, but if you choose to use them you'll have plenty of carrying room 'cause these beauties are nice and deep! The trim on the pocket is drafted for rib knits or cuffing fabric but can also totally work with any of your main fabrics with a slight adjustment. Ribbing is quite stretchy and eases around that curve nicely but if you choose to use a slightly stiffer fabric (perhaps a french terry?) you'll want to cut that piece a little wider so it doesn't have to stretch as far/hard to ease in along that curve. As a general idea/guide: on the bottom end of our Junior Miss chart and top end of our Girls chart an extra half inch was enough.
A drawstring is also optional. It only feeds through the front yoke, so you won't need as big of a piece as a full drawstring would, but it still gives a bit of adjustability to the jogger's waist. At the very least it's a fun accent/addition to the look!
One final choice to be made is what length you want: capris or full length.
These joggers use a folded over elastic waistband (rather than an elastic casing). What this means is that one long edge of the elastic is sewn to the top of the pant waistline and the whole thing (elastic and fabric) is folded over and then topstitched in place. We love this style for the professional and clean look it gives as well as reducing seam allowance bulk that a sewn on casing would add. The multiple topstitching lines also mean you won't be dealing with twisting and turning elastics during wear. The downside here is that it's a lot of seam ripping if you decide you don't like the elastic width. We encourage everyone who can to "try on" their elastic before sewing it on. At this stage it should feel almost too tight. Once sewn in place the multiple topstitching lines will stretch the elastic out and hold it in a more relaxed fit.
One big thing we came across during the testing of the Junior Miss Trail Joggers was how to get the best fit when blending sizes between hip and high hip for this size range. There are 3 possible fit scenarios here:
- High hip is a smaller size than hip.
- Blend the yoke pattern pieces from high hip size out to hip size along the short edges
- Use hip size for the front and back leg pattern pieces (blending for thigh/calf/ankle as desired)
- Use the elastic measurement that corresponds to the high hip size
- High hip and hip are the same size.
- No blending necessary between the two spots, lucky you!
- High hip is a larger size than hip.
- Use the hip size for the yoke pattern pieces (the reason we don't suggest blending in this case is that we've found that blending these pieces out to a larger size at the top can create too much fabric bulk in an area that is about to angle back in for a smaller hip)
- Use hip size for the front and back leg pattern pieces (blending for thigh/calf/ankle as desired)
- Do use the elastic measurement that corresponds to the high hip size
We look forward to seeing all the Joggers you create (plural because we're pretty sure it'll be hard to stop at just one pair)! Tag us on Facebook and IG and use the hashtags #sofitrail. #sofimisstrail #trailinthewild. #misstrailinthewild. #sofionadesigns
