Getting active - Super G + Jalie 3247

Do you know how long I've been planning on sewing a set like this? 

Since June 2019, to be precise. Too long, in other words! I had sewn up the sports bra with some pole shorts then, and carefully put away the remnant of this amazing marl activewear fabric back in my stash, until the day I was ready to make matching leggings. 

Sure,  thought about those leggings in between other projects, but couldn't quite settle on the exact project. I really love the marl fabric, for its softness, sketchiness and recovery, but was worried that using only this fabric for an entire pair of leggings would be "too much". It's pretty jazzy in its own right, and make your eyes struggle to focus sometimes. 

Finally, last autumn, Tia Knight emailed about the new medium weight (280gsm) supplex that it started stocking (in addition to its lightweight supplex), and I jumped on the opportunity to buy some as soon as the newletter landed in my inbox. The navy and this marl worked beautifully together. 

After a lot of deliberation, I went with the Super G tights by Greenstyle Creations. As someone that enjoys yoga and aerial workouts (pole, sling etc), that huge "Lulu" gusset which allows for all sorts of ranges of motion sold the pattern to me. 

Greenstyle Creations are known for its on-trend activewear collection. What's more, in my experience (I've tried 5 or 6 of their patterns so far), the patterns are meticulously drafted, and come with all sorts of options. Against my high expectations, the Super G did not disappoint. 

Wearing my merino wool top here.

I cut a size C, graded to D for my calves and waist. I made the pocket version (on both sides), shorted the legs by an inch (and cut a 29' length), and included the optional clear elastic in the waistband. I did tweak the crotch slightly too, by scooping out the front crotch curve by 1/4, trimming the widest gusset piece by 1/4 and shortening the gusset piece between the dots (so that it is slightly more stretched when attaching to the legs). 

I also tried reverse coverstitching on all the seams, with a rainbow bulky thread no less. To make this slightly easier, instead of sewing up the gusset last, I left the back side seams (where the pocket pieces join the back pieces) open on each leg, and sewed these up as a final step. They were still tricky to reverse coverstitch (through the legs), but it was preferable to doing the long gusset seams through both legs, if you see what I mean. 

Let's not forget about the bra, too. By now of course, it has been worn countless times, and has been a firm favourite of mine. It fits well and is super comfy to wear. 

The pattern is the 3247 by Jalie, another reputable name in the activewear pattern game. I really love their huge size range, all the way from kids sizes to adult. You feel like you are getting 2 patterns in one. I made a few changes including: 

• Replacing the sewn and folded bottom elastic with a band (chopping 3.6cm from the bottom pattern piece, and adding a band measuring 56cm x 5.7cm for a 2cm wide elastic that's 57.2cm long);
• Lowering the centre front by 2cm
• Lowering the shoulders by 4cm to attach the straps differently (directly onto the back rather than folding over to hold the straps);
• Using shop bought lingerie straps here as a "cheat";
• Adding a lining with cut-outs for removable cups. 

I love my "new" workout set! It's totally been worth the wait. I haven't included a picture of my pole shorts here (I'm saving that for another time), but I love having a matching pole set plus leggings for warm-up and cool-down. The leggings are great for yoga, too, which may just give me the motivation that I need to get myself a bit more active during this lockdown!