Hi everybody! It’s Heather Fletcher from @Fletchersewing. I’m going to show you how easy it is to add inseam pockets to the Be Active shorts pattern.
First, find a pocket pattern piece that you like. I’m using this one from the women’s Zip It Hoodie pattern. Make sure that the wearer’s hand will fit into the pocket nicely. If you don’t have a pocket pattern piece, you can draft your own by drawing around the wearer’s hand and leaving a little bit of room and a flat edge to attach the pocket to the side of the shorts. Don’t forget to add 1/4” seam allowance if you are making your own.
Cut out all your pieces for the shorts as instructed in the pattern and then cut out four mirrored pocket pieces for two pockets. Two mirrored pocket pieces are shown below.
Determine where you want to place the pockets. I did this by taking a pair of shorts I had already made using this pattern and having my son try them on and put his hand where a pocket would go. By doing this, I determined that placement would be approximately 1.25 inches below the top of the shorts pattern piece.
Next, take one piece of the front shorts and one piece of the back shorts and lay them next to each other as shown below. Place your pockets on top of the shorts pieces Right Sides Together. The straight raw edge of the pockets will align with the shorts outseam.
By placing the shorts next to each other you can make sure that the pockets will be exactly in the same place on the front shorts and the back shorts piece so that they will line up perfectly when you sew them together. Now sew the pockets to the shorts pieces using your favorite stretch stitch.
Fold the pocket pieces away from the shorts pieces and press.
If you desire, you can understitch the pocket to better keep it tucked in place. To do this, press the seam allowance toward the pocket (away from the shorts) and stitch the seam allowance down to the pocket along the edge. You can use a long narrow zig zag to understitch. I skipped understitching on these since they were just going to be play shorts for my son.
Lay the shorts pieces right sides together matching the outseam and pocket raw edges. Pin or clip together.
Now sew all the way down the outseam and around the pocket using your preferred stretch stitch. I like to use my triple stretch stitch on my sewing machine and then my serger to make sure that the pocket is secure since it can be a high stress area. Make sure that your seams are pressed toward the pockets and that you catch all corners as you sew around the pocket.
Close up of sewn pocket below.
Repeat all steps with your other pocket pieces and shorts side. Then sew the rest of the shorts together by following the pattern tutorial.
Yay! The shorts now have pockets that I’m sure the wearer will appreciate. I think I’ll be finding some Legos in the pockets of these!
