How to make samue pants

1. Materials & tools

Materials (one pair, size M)

• Main fabric (cotton, sashiko weave or denim) — about 110 cm wide × 210 cm (43 × 83 in)
• Flat elastic, 2.5 cm wide — your waist measurement × 0.8, plus 5 cm
• Cord for the hems (4 mm round cord) — 2 lengths of about 60 cm
• A bodkin (or a safety pin)

Tools

• Sewing machine (or needle and thread)
• Fabric marker or pencil
• Ruler and scissors
• Iron
• Pins or clips

2. Make the pattern (auto-generated in Katagami)

With the Katagami pattern tool, you just enter the finished size and it drafts a seam-allowance-included pattern, tiled to print at actual size on Letter or A4.

1. Open the tool
   Open the pattern tool and choose “Adult clothes” → “Samue pants” from the tabs at the top.
2. Enter the size
   Enter the hip, rise, inseam, leg opening, ease, crotch extension and waist casing depth. Presets cover S to XL.
3. Set the seam allowance
   Use the slider at the bottom (beginners: 1.0–1.5 cm / about 3/8–5/8 in).
4. Print
   Press “Print (actual size)”, then in the print dialog set Scale = 100% and turn “Fit to page” OFF. Check the 50 mm calibration box on the first guide sheet with a ruler.

3. Cutting the fabric

1. Trace the pattern
   Lay the pattern on the wrong side of the fabric and trace both the cutting line and the finished line. Line the grain up with the grainline on the pattern.
2. Cut the pieces
   Cut 2 fronts and 2 backs — 4 in all, from the same pattern piece. Cut 2 hem drawstrings.
3. Transfer the notches
   Mark the point where the crotch curve ends. That is where the side seam and the inseam divide.
4. Finish the edges
   Zigzag or overlock the seam allowances.

4. Sewing

4-1. Sew the crotch curves

1. Place the two front pieces right sides together and sew the crotch curve.
2. Do the same with the two back pieces.
3. The curve stretches easily, so let the feed dogs take the fabric. Clipping the seam allowance every 1 cm stops it pulling when opened out.

4-2. Sew the sides and the inseam

1. Place front and back right sides together and sew both side seams.
2. Then sew the inseam in one run, from one hem right through to the other.
3. Backstitch over the crotch junction — that is where the strain lands.

4-3. Thread the waist elastic

1. Fold the waist over by 1 cm, then again by the casing depth.
2. Stitch close to the fold all the way round, leaving a 3 cm gap for threading.
3. Thread the elastic and overlap the ends by 2 cm and stitch. About 80% of your actual waist is the guide.
4. Close the gap.

4-4. Make the hem casings

1. Fold each drawstring in four and topstitch.
2. Fold the hem over by 1 cm, then again by 2 cm.
3. Make two openings near the inseam for the cord to come out. Work them as buttonholes or set eyelets so they do not tear.
4. Stitch close to the fold all the way round, thread the cord and knot the ends.
5. Finish the other leg the same way.

✏️ Always reinforce the openings where the hem cord comes out. That spot takes the pull every time you tighten the cord, and a raw cut edge tears within a few wearings. A buttonhole or an eyelet is the reliable answer — even overcasting it by hand lasts far longer than nothing.

5. Tips & variations

• Make the set: in the same fabric as the samue top, the two read as a bought set. Choose the same size.
• Monpe too: drawn-in hems are exactly how monpe work trousers are built, so they suit gardening or a summer festival.
• Without the drawstring: make the leg opening wider and simply hem it, and you have ordinary loose trousers.