Pacific Leggings: Sewing the Gusset

Gussets!!! They’re kind of intimidating right? We’ve had some requests for a tutorial on sewing the gusset in the Pacific Leggings, so I am here today to do just that! I’ll outline our technique for inserting a gusset into these leggings, step-by-step, with loads of photos and some extra tips and tricks. Let’s do this.

Start off by completing Step 1 (View A & C) or Step 2 (View B) for your leggings: sewing the back piece to front along the side seam, and sewing the lower leg panel if you are making View B. If you’re doing any fancy seam finishes, like seams that look like flatlock, do that to your side seams now.

Next you’re going to fold the leg in half lengthwise, right sides together, and sew the inseam at ⅝” (1.5cm), starting at the hem. Stop sewing ⅝” (1.5cm) before the end of the seam. Above I’ve marked that point with chalk so I remember to stop! Repeat with your other leg piece.

Here’s what that looks like when you open it up.

I like to use chalk to mark the corners of my gusset. Mark each corner on the wrong side of your gusset at ⅝” (1.5cm) from the raw edge.

Next we’re going to pin the gusset to one leg piece first. I’m working with the left leg piece here. The longer side of the gusset is the back.

Here it is pinned. I failed to get a good photo of the following: clip your left inseam at ⅝” (1.5cm) from the edge so that it lays flat. You’re clipping at the point where you stopped sewing the inseam. If you’re a visual person, I show this step for the other leg below.

Sew the gusset to leg, starting at ⅝” (1.5cm) from one end of the gusset – the corner that you marked. When you get to the inseam corner, insert your needle, lift your presser foot, pivot your project, and then lower your presser foot and continue sewing. Stop sewing at ⅝” (1.5cm) from the other end of your gusset.

Turn your other leg piece right side out (in my case it’s the right leg piece), and slip it into the leg piece you’ve been working on (for me, that’s the left leg piece).

Pin the two legs together all along the center seam.

To make pinning and sewing the gusset seam easier, clip your inseam at ⅝” (1.5cm) from the edge.

Pin this gusset portion.

Here’s what that looks like from the other side. Clipping the inseam helps you to get a really nice corner and less bulk. It lays flat which makes sewing easier! Okay we’re all pinned now…

Start sewing your crotch seam from one end. I’m starting from the center front. Stop sewing and back stitch right when you reach the first gusset stitch line (see where my pin is?).

You’ll need to pull out your needle and clip your threads, because now we’re beginning to sew from the gusset side. Start sewing at the front corner of the gusset, and sew to the inseam corner. Take your time and make sure everything is lined up on the back side.

As before: insert your needle, lift your presser foot, pivot, and then lower your presser foot. Sew along the last edge of the gusset, stopping when you reach the corner that you marked.

Now you can sew the other side of the center seam. Start sewing right where your gusset stitches stop.

Your crotch is now officially assembled. Above is the view from the wrong side!

And from the right side. If you’re using the faux-flatlock seam finish (I am!), here’s what that looks like… Wrong side:

Right side:

Just for your reference, I am sewing my seams with a triple stitch (3.0 length). Then I open the seams, and use a three-step zig-zag stitch to sew along the center of the seam from the right side. I don’t have the baseball stitch on my Bernina 530, so I experimented with a few other ones and settled on the three-step zig-zag. Bottom right in this photo:

So there you have it! We tackled the gusset and really, it’s not so bad when you mark your pieces properly and take your time, using lots of pins.