If you follow along here, you've seen Chris's work even if you've never seen his name. He's the one behind the camera for basically every photo on this blog and on my Instagram. So for his birthday, I wanted to make him something instead of just buying it.

I'd had this white and green striped cotton from Matchy Matchy Sewing Club sitting around for a while. I kept going back and forth on what to do with it. For a bit I was set on the Ornella top by Spaghetti Western Sewing, cutting it on the diagonal so the stripes would crisscross. But I only had two yards, and it was summer, so a pair of shorts for Chris made more sense.

Picking the Pattern

I used the Simplicity S9795 pattern, unisex pull-on shorts with a drawstring and pockets. It was pretty straightforward. I didn't follow it exactly though. I skipped the lining, and instead of the front and back pockets it calls for, I just did pockets in the side seams.

Cut striped fabric pieces and rounded pocket pieces laid out next to the Simplicity S9795 pattern instructions

Grommets Instead of Buttonholes

The pattern wants you to make buttonholes for the drawstring to come through. I struggled with buttonholes on my machine before and I don't think they look that professional when I do them, so I used grommets instead. I think it looks a lot nicer. I ordered the cording from Amazon to go with them.

Grommet hardware, drawstring cord, and the Simplicity pattern instructions laid out on the cutting mat Close-up of the grommets and drawstring cord along the finished shorts

Getting the Fit Right

I tried the shorts on myself first and thought they looked great, and I liked the length. But since these were for Chris, I also checked them against a pair of his own Lululemon shorts just to make sure I was getting his measurements right.

Emily trying on the finished shorts in the mirror before giving them to Chris

Keeping It a Secret

This was a surprise, and Chris and I share an office that doubles as my sewing room. So for a few days I had him move his Xbox downstairs so I could actually get in there without him seeing what I was working on. I hid the whole project in a brown paper bag and wrote "No Chris Allowed" on it, so he definitely knew I was up to something.

A paper bag taped up with 'No Chris Allowed' written on it in marker

Once they were done, I ordered some fray glue and went over the cut ends of the cording so they wouldn't fray with wear. Overall I'm really happy with how these turned out, and I think this is a great pattern. I'd make it again for myself.

Chris lifting his shirt to show off the finished shorts and drawstring Chris adjusting his shirt outside in the finished shorts

Chris likes them, and I think he looks pretty good in them.

The finished striped shorts laid flat with the drawstring tied

What I Used

If you make these, or anything with grommets instead of buttonholes, tag me on Instagram @DesignsbyERB. And follow Chris's work too, since it's on every single post here.