How much fabric for straight trousers or cigarette pants?

Why the width matters so much

Each trouser leg is cut from two pieces, a front and a back. The back is the wider of the two at the top, because it has to curve over the seat. Laid side by side, the front and back of a leg take up more than the folded width of a 44 inch fabric, so on narrow cloth the pieces go one after another and you need two trouser lengths.

On 58 to 60 inch fabric all four pieces can usually lie across the width at once, top to tail, and a single length does the job. That is the whole difference between the two figures above. Our guide to fabric widths shows the common widths in inches and centimetres.

Working out your own figure

Here is a worked example. A trouser length of 97 cm (38 inches) plus 10 cm for the waist and hem is 107 cm. On 44 inch fabric that is doubled to 2.14 metres, and with a waistband about 2.3 metres. On 60 inch fabric it stays at 1.07 metres, about 1.2 with the waistband, so a 1.5 metre piece leaves room to spare. Follow the same steps with your own numbers:

• Measure your trouser length from where the waistband sits down to where you want the hem, often the ankle bone for cigarette pants.
• Add about 10 cm (4 inches) for finishing the waist and the hem.
• On 44 to 45 inch fabric, double it. On 58 to 60 inch fabric, keep it single unless your hips are over about 107 cm (42 inches).
• Add 10 to 20 cm for a separate waistband, facings or pockets.
• Add about 25 cm more if the print runs one way or the fabric has a pile, a sheen or a border that must sit at the hem.

Straight trousers and cigarette pants compared

The two styles need close to the same amount. Cigarette pants taper to a narrow ankle, so the pieces can be nested more neatly, the narrow end of one beside the wide end of the next. Straight trousers keep their width to the hem, which leaves less room to fit pieces together and can cost an extra 10 to 20 cm. Height has a bigger effect: every extra 5 cm of leg adds 10 cm wherever two lengths are cut.

Using the trouser piece from a suit

Many unstitched suits include a trouser piece of about 2 to 2.5 metres, which normally covers straight trousers or cigarette pants with some to spare. Check the width as well as the length before relying on it: our article on checking you have enough fabric shows how. If you are sending your own fabric through our Stitching Only service, tell us the piece’s length and width in your quote request and we confirm whether it is enough before you post it.