City Gym Shorts for All Ages
I have enough expired memberships under my belt to finally admit that I am not a gym person. Although you may not find me sweating on an elliptical, I haven’t completely abandoned the idea of a workout regimen. I’ve just redefined the whole concept!
My StairMaster is countless flights of stairs scattered throughout my daily subway commute; my weights come in the form of two wriggling girls (often carried up the aforementioned stairs); and my hot yoga is just about anything I do in New York’s sweltering summer heat. My gym is the city itself, and my gym clothes are these City Gym Shorts!
Designed with a classic tulip hem and an easy elastic waist, these shorts have all the comfort and ease of traditional exercise gear but with way more style! I used Robert Kaufman’s Chambray Union in Slub Indigo for the back, a fabric that is soft, comfortable and so versatile it was easy to match it with a range of prints in Liberty of London’s exquisite Tana Lawn.
With so many beautiful Liberty prints to choose from and with sizes for kids and women, it looks like my sewing machine may be getting a workout too! -Corinne
Materials
Kids
- 1/2 yard of Liberty of London’s Tana Lawn Classics. We used, shown above from top to bottom, Katie & Millie Peach, Strawberry Theif Gray and Lodden Lavender.
- 3/4 yard of Robert Kaufman’s Chambray Union, Slub Indigo
- 1 yard of Braided Elastic – 1 inch, White
- A 110-yard spool of Gutermann’s Cotton Thread, color 9280
- An 18mm Bias Tape Maker
- A free Kids’ City Gym Shorts Template available here.
Women
- 1/2 yard of Liberty of London’s Tana Lawn Classics. We used, shown above from top to bottom, Katie & Millie Peach, Strawberry Theif Gray and Lodden Lavender.
- 3/4 (3/4, 3/4, 1, 1) yard of Robert Kaufman’s Chambray Union, Slub Indigo
- 1 (1, 1, 2, 2) yards of Braided Elastic – 1 inch, White
- A 110-yard spool of Gutermann’s Cotton Thread, color 9280
- An 18mm Bias Tape Maker
- A free Women’s City Gym Shorts Template available here.
Sizes
Kids
- To fit ages 2 (3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9, 10, 11) with finished waist sizes 19 (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25) inches in circumference
Women
- To fit hip sizes 33-34 (35-37, 38-40, 41-43, 44-46) inches in circumference
Notes
Pre-wash all fabrics before starting.
To print the PDF template, be sure to first download the pattern and then print it. This means rather than simply clicking the link and opening the PDF in a browser window, you should click on the pattern link using the “right click” or “control click” option on your mouse or keyboard. This will give you the option to “Download the linked file.” Once the file is downloaded, it should print like a charm!
For the sake of clarity our instructional photos use Robert Kaufman’s Botanics + Architextures in Tangerine Hatches, a fabric with a clear right and wrong side, for the front panels (instead of the Tana Lawn). When you are working with a fabric without a clear right or wrong side, choose either side as the right side for the first seam and follow this precedent for all subsequent steps.
Pattern
Cut
Front Pieces
Use the prepared Template to cut two Front pieces from the Liberty. Cut one Front with the right side of the fabric facing up and one with the wrong side facing up. The two Front pieces should be mirror images of each other.
Back Pieces
Use the prepared Template to cut two Back pieces from the Chambray Union. (If you are using a fabric that has a right and wrong side, be sure to cut the pieces as described above so that the two Back pieces are mirror images of each other.)
Waistband
Cut one 4 ¾-inch wide piece for the Waistband from the Chambray Union. For Kids it should measure 23 (24 ¼, 26 ¾, 28 ¾, 30 ¾, 32 ½, 33 ½) inches long; or for Women, 36 ¼ (38 ½, 41 ¾, 45 ½, 48) inches long.
Bias Strips
Cut two 1 5/8-inch strips on the bias from the Chambray Union. For Kids each strip should measure at least 30 (33, 36, 39, 42, 45, 48) inches long; or for Women, at least 48 (50, 53, 56, 60) inches long.
You may need to piece the strips to get the appropriate length. For detailed instructions on how to piece binding strips, please visit our Making Bias Tape Binding Tutorial.
Elastic
Cut the Elastic. For Kids it should measure 19 ½ (20 ½, 21 ½, 22 ½, 23 ½, 24 ½, 25 ½) inches; or for Women, 30 (32, 35, 39, 43) inches.
Piece the Front and Back Pieces
With right sides facing, stack the two Front pieces on top of each other. Pin along the concave edge of the inseam.
Sew along the pinned edge with a 1/4-inch seam allowance.
Sew along the seam allowance with a zigzag stitch.
Press the seam to one side.
Repeat with the two Back pieces.
With right sides facing, match up the short crotch ends of the Front and Back along the raw edge, making sure that the center seams line up, and pin in place. Sew along the pinned edge with a 1/4-inch seam allowance.
Sew along the seam allowance with a zigzag stitch.
Press the seam to one side.
Attach the Binding
Following the manufacturer’s instructions, use the 18mm Bias Tape Maker to press the bias strips into single fold bias tape.
Fold in half lengthwise, aligning the folded edges and encasing the raw edges. Press.
Pin the bias tape around the outside edge of the shorts, following the raw edge all the way from the top corner of the Front side, around the bottom hemline, and up the Back side, or vice versa. Use one strip for each side. With the right side facing up, sew the tape to the shorts with an edgestitch, making sure to catch both sides as you stitch.
Sew the Side Edges
With the right sides of the Front and Back both facing up, bring one Front side edge over one Back side edge so that the two bound edges are stacked on top of each other. Push the outer edge of the front about 1/8 inch towards the Back so that the sewn line of the Front bias tape runs roughly through the center of the bias tape on the back.
Working from the waistline down and using the line of stitching on the Front bias tape as a guide, sew the Front to the Back along this side edge. stop sewing when you reach the top of the curve of the bottom hem. Backstitch at the end of the seam.
Repeat with the other side.
These are now the Shorts.
Sew the Waistband
Fold the Waistband piece in half lengthwise with wrong sides together and press to create a crease. Open up the fold. Now, fold the two long raw edges in towards the wrong side to meet at the center crease. Press the folds. Refold in half lengthwise, aligning the folded edges and encasing the raw edges. Press again.
Open up the folds at the two short ends. With right sides together, stack the ends together, matching up their raw edges. Pin in place. Sew along the short edge with a 5/8-inch seam allowance.
Press the seam to one side and sew it down with an edgestitch.
Turn the Shorts inside out.
Open one side of the waistband. With the right side of the Waistband facing the wrong side of the Shorts and matching up the seam of the Waistband with the center seam of the Shorts Back, pin the open raw edge of the Waistband to the raw waist edge of the shorts.
Sew the Waistband to the Shorts with a roughly 1 1/8-inch seam allowance, using the crease as a guide.
Now, turn the Shorts so that the right side is facing out. Fold the Waistband over the Shorts’ raw waist edge and pin in place.
Edgestitch along the bottom of the fold of the Waistband, leaving a 1 1/2-inch gap.
Attach a safety pin to one end of the Elastic. Insert this end into the gap. Pull the pin through the Waistband, exiting out the other side. Make sure not to pull the Elastic’s other end into the channel.
Checking that the Elastic isn’t twisted, overlap the two ends by 1/2 inch. Sew the ends together widthwise with a zigzag stitch.
Tuck the Elastic into the Waistband and close the gap with an edgestitch.
Your shorts are ready to wear!
PRINT
Thanks so much! Great pattern d tutorial. I even did the bias binding myself (first time for everything!) I tried these & added a couple of inches in length & adore them! I used blue chambray & leftover liberty from a top I made (making, haven’t quite finished yet). Wish I could attach a picture to show you!
These are so adorable! I made them for myself using a plaid for the back piece and a coordinating paisley for the front. I used solid colored bias tape for the trim. They look expensive and designer. Thank you so much for sharing this pattern.
Thanks for this pattern! I made these a couple of years ago and wear them a lot, getting ready to make another pair❤
I can not find the pattern in this tutorial. I see PATTERN, but there is nothing to click on or download to print. Any suggestions? Thank you for your help, I would like to make these for my daughter and her college friends.
Hi Patricia,
Thanks for writing in! You can find link to download the pattern in the materials list above, or by clicking right here for the Kids template or here for the Women’s template.
Happy sewing!
Julianna
Can you provide link to download this pattern. I can print and download the instruction but unable to find the short’s template or pattern. Thank you!
Hi Lylan,
Thanks for writing in! You can find link to download the pattern in the materials list above, or by clicking right here for the Kids template or here for the Women’s template.
Happy sewing!
Julianna
Thank you so much ++++! I’m so looking forward to make these shorts for my daughter.
I want to make these, can you tell me how long they are in inseam?
Thank you.
Hi LeeAnn,
Thanks for writing in! These shorts have a fairly short inseam – only about 1.5-2″ for the adult sizes – but you can easily adjust the pattern to make it longer if you wish!
I hope that helps!
Julianna
Thank you I did add length, I am also making bias tape myself . Instructions say to cut 2 PC’s 60″ length and 1-5/8 wide so once the tape is folded what size is it? Mine came out 1/2 inch once all folds are made, is this right?
Thank you ?
Hi LeeAnn,
Yes, that sounds correct! After folding the bias tape in half, it should measure just under a half inch!
Best,
Julianna
Im relatively new to sewing but was about to tackle these in muslin before diving into nicer fabric.
My question is: is there a reason the pattern is lettered (A-H) but the written instructions don’t include the letters for clarity sake?
Most commenters don’t seem to have this issue but I think it would help us newbies.
Thanks!
I guess I see now that we don’t use every part of the template? Which letters do we use?
Thx!
Hi Dorothy,
Thanks for reaching out! The letters are to help you assemble the template. Before you cut anything out of fabric, you will need to cut out each piece of the template, which prints out over 8 pages of paper, and tape them together to form the complete pattern piece. Each lettered piece of the template has instructions on the edges telling you which other lettered piece to attach it to. When you’re finished, you will have two pattern pieces, one for the front of the shorts and one for the back, and can cut or trace off your size!
I hope that clears things up!
Julianna
Yes I had a friend explain it to me and felt like a dummy!
Thanks for the response.
These are super cute! My 12 year old wants me to make them for her but I’m unsure if I should do the kids or the women’s. The kids size stops at a 25″ waist and the women’s starts at a 33″ hip. She prefers to wear them on her hips but her hips are 29″ any suggestion on what I should do? I’m thinking it should be okay if I did the smallest women’s because the elastic should keep them up but I don’t want them to be bunched crazy.
Hi Andrea,
Great question! I think the smallest women’s size would probably be a good fit – you’re correct about the elastic holding them up! When measuring her hips for the women’s sizes, you should be measuring around the largest part of her hips, which is usually several inches lower than where the shorts would actually be worn. Just to be on the safe side, I would recommend sewing a muslin in an inexpensive fabric to make sure they will fit before cutting into your final fabric!
I hope that helps!
Julianna
Hello, I’m french so I’m sorry if my english isn’t very well.
I don’t find on the tuto if the “cutting marging” (I don’t know if it is the good word) is on the template.
Can you help Me.
Thanks a lot for this short it is very good.
Bye
Elise
Hi Elise,
Thanks for writing in! Our template includes the seam allowance, so there’s no need to add one!
Best,
Julianna
What a wonderful pattern and this is i was looking for. would like to know if i can use a stretchy fabric….thanks
Hi Monique,
Thanks for writing in! This pattern is written for a woven non-stretchy fabric, so it’s hard to say what exactly will happen if you try it in a knit fabric. Stretchy fabrics usually require a closer fit than woven ones, so you might be able to simply make a size or two smaller than you normally would. I would recommend trying a practice pair in an inexpensive knit to see how it goes!
I hope that helps!
Julianna
Hi Monique,
I made mine using a 95% lycra and 5% polyester stretch knit with fold ever elastic binding just using the size I normally would and it worked well 🙂 I would say as long as your knit has good recovery and is relatively stable it will work! It’s a great pattern!
Sasha
hello thank you for offer this free pattern. I have click on the print link open and downloaded but all I seem to get is only the instruction. I am not sure what i am doing wrong. for the when i go to download and click pattern there is not pattern attached only 24 pages of instructions. please help please and thank you.
Hi Sharmaine,
I’m so sorry you’re having trouble with that! Let’s see if I can get everything working for you.
When you click on the Print link, are you seeing two icons with percentage values on the initial page you see? One should look like a T with arrows on the left for text, and the other looks like a mountain with a sun on top on the right. The T represents text or instructions, and the mountain represents images. The default is 100%. If you want to see all the pictures please make sure that is set to 100%.
I hope that helps. Please let me know if you continue to have any issues!
All the best,
Zha Zha
Thanks for explaining this! Never knew how to get rid of the pictures!
I have made these shorts 3 times now. I love the easy to follow directions. The shorts are so comfortable! I made myself 2 pairs with matching masks. I just made my sister a pair for her birthday. Please continue to share these wonderful garment sewing directions.
Hi Cristine,
Thanks you so much for writing in and for your kind words! I am so happy to hear that you love this pattern!
All the best,
Gianna
Hi
I love the pattern…..but I am stuck,
Sorry….newbie sewer….I cut out two waistband pieces….but the instructions appear to say I am to cut one long piece of different measurements? Would appreciate help walking me through the waistband:) thanks so much!
Hi Cynthia,
Thanks for reaching out! For the waistband you should only cut one 4 ¾-inch wide piece for Women, either 36 ¼ (38 ½, 41 ¾, 45 ½, 48) inches long depending on what size you are making! The numbers within the parentheses correspond to the size you are making, the sizes are for WOMEN To fit hip sizes 33-34 (35-37, 38-40, 41-43, 44-46) inches in circumference. So for example, if you are making the Womens size for 35-37 circumference you would cut your 4 ¾-inch wide piece 38 ½ inches long.
I hope this clarifies things!
Warmly,
Gianna