Joggerathon – Sinclair – JJ
It’s the 16th pair of joggers on the Joggerathon! Today is the JJ Joggers from Sinclair Patterns. This pattern has 3 different files based on height (petite, reg and tall). There are 2 lengths to choose from (capri and ankle) and one pocket option. The instructions say these joggers are semi fitted at the hips and upper leg, tapering down to the calf, finished with elastic waistband and optional drawstrings.
* The Joggerathon is going on ALL month long. If you would like to go back and see any of the previous posts on the Joggerathon, click HERE or to see the pattern line-up, click HERE.
** Don’t forget to head over to my instagram to see all the fit videos on my IGTV!
Price: $9.99
Size Range: 12 sizez // SSX-XXL // 33.9″-53.5″ hip
Options Sewn:
- Regular Height, ankle length, size XS graded waist up to Sm
My Measurements:
- Waist – 27
- High Hip – 31
- Hip – 36
- Upper Thigh – 21
- Inseam – 28
- Height – 5’4
Fabric
I used the Grey Heavy Rib from Mily Mae Fabric. This fabric is nice! It’s thicker and more structured than your typical rib but still has great drape and excellent stretch and recovery. It’s a poly/rayon/spandex blend with 100/40 stretch percentage.
Recommended Fabric: Light to medium weight knit fabric with at least 30-50% stretch.
Instructions
Were the instructions easy to follow?
- The instructions were pretty straight forward for the most part. There were a few places where there was a typo with the seam allowance so make sure you double check the cm (for instance: when sewing your elastic together, it says to overlap by 1cm or 5/8″. It should be 3/8″, not 5/8″).
- The instructions for sewing the casing stitches for the waistband weren’t my favorite. It tells you to stitch 3/4″ apart OR according to your preference (What?!). So naturally I followed the instructions since the casing should fit the recommended elastic width. (The photo in the instructions also doesn’t quite look like it was sewn at an even 3/4″ spacing from the fold line, which is a little confusing.) The elastic you are instructed to use for the waistband is 3/8″ wide, which is way too small for the 3/4″ casing. It easily twists inside. I’m not sure if that was another typo or what, but either the casing needs to be smaller or the elastic needs to be wider.
- The pattern instructions says these are semi-fitted at the hips but says the hips are true to size on the finished measurement page. So I guess that means the hips will have 0 ease?
Pattern
DID IT LOOK LIKE THE PATTERN PHOTO/DRAWING ON THE PATTERN ONCE YOU WERE DONE SEWING?
- My version looks a lot more relaxed from the knee down than all the pictures. There is a finished calf measurement chart but it doesn’t go smaller than 13″ for any of the height sizes and the tutorial for grading you calf doesn’t really help if your calves are smaller!
- My waistband also doesn’t look quite like the photos (more on that below).
WHAT DID YOU PARTICULARLY LIKE OR DISLIKE ABOUT THE PATTERN?
- The pockets are deep and they lay nice and flat!
- I don’t like how the waistband is constructed at all. The casing for the elastic needs to be smaller or the elastic should be wider to better fit inside the casing. No one likes twisting elastic. I don’t love the way the casing is done BUT it does allow for easy removal of elastic without having to rip out any of the seams.
- The height of the cuffs are a lot shorter than what I prefer for joggers.
- The rise is a little high for my preference.
- I wish the calf measurements were included on the actual size chart. The snippet about checking the calf measurement is in a box with smaller font and can be easily missed if not reading everything on each of the pages.
- The calf/ankle of the pants are pretty loose. Even if I sized down from the mid thigh down, they still would be pretty loose. I feel like I’m pretty proportionate in size in my legs and I wish they would have tapered a bit more from the knee down. They just look baggy at my ankles.
- Totally forgot about this so editing to add: the band for the pocket is SO long. Like more than just a little too long. I remember I had to trim quite a bit off and I probably should have trimmed off even more. Not my favorite method of adding bands to pockets. I can see needing to stretch more depending on fabric and trimming because of that, but having it really long just because seems a bit of an over kill for me.
WOULD YOU SEW IT AGAIN? WOULD YOU RECOMMEND IT TO OTHERS?
This was one pair I was excited to try and I am so disappointed on how they turned out! At least for me, these did not fit at all like the listing photos.
- If you are on the smaller end of the size range, it will be a bit harder to grade down the calfs if they are smaller than the smallest finished measurements (which might not be as easy to do for a beginner).
- Keep in mind the uses with the waistband elastic. Make a smaller casing or use wider elastic.
I probably won’t sew these again as there are other jogger patterns that are a better initial fit without having to make additional adjustments. It’s hard for me to recommend these when I didn’t have a great fit.
Have you sewn up the JJ Joggers? What are your thoughts? I’d love to know in the comments below! If you missed the Redwood Joggers from Sew Like My Mom, you can check that out by clicking HERE. Be sure to come back tomorrow for the Chelsea Pants from So Sew English!
Cheers!
5 Comments
Laura
These are my favorite joggers for me, so I was interested in your review. I agree 100% with your thoughts. I have a deep hip measurement, so I like the higher rise. It doesn’t cut into my hip bones. I hate the way the waistband is designed. I only made 1 that way and I don’t like them. I sandwich 1″ knit elastic in the fold and then run 3 evenly spaced parallel lines of basting stitches to secure the elastic. I’ve also used my coverstitch, but the elastic feels better with the 3 rows. I like the smaller cuffs and I have to increase calf room in slim fitting pants so I fill out the calves nicely. They look too big on you. My advise is to cut them off at the capri length. I love them on me and wear them all summer. And take off the waistband and redo in a nicer finish. I’m sure you have a favorite by now! Your pockets are a little saggy. It helps to gently stretch the folded little binding piece between the pocket opening and the pocket lining. That piece is a bit big anyway. I love those deep, flat pockets! My large phone stays nice and secure! Loved your review of our favorite pattern! My college age girls love them too. The tall fits my daughter beautifully!
Trissa Marie
The calfs in this pattern are definitely the widest out of all the joggers that I sewed. A 13″ calf is pretty common at a size Sm but this pattern doesn’t even go smaller than 13 for the smallest size! I know a lot of people also forget to measure their calves, even when the measurement is included on the chart. I also totally forgot that the pocket band is so much longer than the pocket piece. This isn’t my first rodeo but I definitely should have stretched and trimmed off even MORE of the pocket band than I did. I swear I trimmed off well over an inch. It was ridiculous haha. If I keep these and fix them, I’ll shorten them (since they are too long), taper them at the bottom and add a new cuff since I don’t like capri joggers <3.
Ginger
Thank you for sharing. I’ve been wondering about these after reading so many over the top “fan” reviews. I appreciate your honesty in all these reviews.
Trissa Marie
You are most welcome! I tried really hard to give each pattern my honest opinion
Elena
I have to say I am a fan of Sinclair, mainly because of their petite sizing. They are the one indie company with a large selection of petite sized patterns. I know there are several others with smaller catalogs. I have made 2 pairs of these joggers and love them. At 4’10” it is almost impossible to find pants patterns. One of the other things about Sinclair is that Oxana Sinclair will answer questions on their Facebook page. I always read through the tutorial before I sew garments and also check the designers Facebook page for tips on any particular pattern. I find Sinclair patterns instructions easy to follow. But I give HUGH kuddos for Sinclair for petite and tall size range. She even has short, reg and tall sizes for male patterns and slim for kids. I wish other indie designers would draft for different heights. The average female height in the US is under 5’4″ but pattern designers insist on drafting for 5’7″.