How to Do a Full or Small Calf Adjustment

Are your pants too tight or too loose around your calves? Learn how to do a full or small calf adjustment with this simple pattern fix.

There’s nothing worse than pants that squeeze your legs or bunch up under your knees. On the flip side, if your calves are smaller than the pattern expects, you end up with excess fabric flapping around as you walk. Neither’s great, but either way, there’s an easy fix!

How to Tell If You Need a Full Calf Adjustment

• Your pants feel too tight around your calves
• The fabric is bunching up underneath your knees

How to Tell If You Need a Small Calf Adjustment

• There’s excess fabric around your lower legs
• The pants legs look baggy or shapeless below the knee

Measuring How Much to Adjust By

You’ve got two options here. Either measure your own calves and compare that to the pattern piece at the same height (don’t forget to account for ease if you’re not making skin-tight pants), or slash your muslin vertically down through the calf to the hem and see how much it needs to spread (for full calves) or overlap (for small calves) to feel comfortable. Mark the fullest point of your calf on the muslin so you can transfer it to your pattern.

Note: These tutorials assume that you mostly need the adjustment at the back of your leg. However, if you also need it at the front, repeat the same approach with the front leg, splitting the additional width between the front and back leg.

Prepare for the adjustment

On the back leg pattern piece, make the following markings

• Mark A: height of fullest point of your calf, in the center of the leg.
• Mark B: 2” (5cm) up from mark A
• Line 1: Vertical line from mark B down to hem
• Line 2: Diagonal line from mark B to side seam
• Line 3: Diagonal line from mark B to inseam, about 2” (5cm) below the crotch
• Mark seam allowances at the ends of lines 2 and 3

Making a Full Calf Adjustment

Step 1: Cut along line 1 from the hem up to mark B. Then cut along line 2 from mark B up to the seam allowance, snipping in from the other side to create a hinge. Do the same with line 3. Now spread the two bottom sections apart, opening a horizontal gap at mark A that equals the width you need to add.

Step 2: Trace your new pattern piece. There are two options at the hem. If you need, or want, extra fullness all the way down the leg, trace the full pattern piece as-is and even out the hem. If you prefer to bring the hem back in below the level of the calf fullness, simply taper it in evenly on either side.

Making a Small Calf Adjustment

Step 1: Cut along line 1 from the hem up to mark B. Then cut along line 2 from mark B to the seam allowance, snipping in from the other side to create a hinge. Do the same with line 3. Now overlap the two bottom sections, closing the gap at mark A by the width you need to remove.

Step 2: Trace your new pattern piece. There are two options at the hem. If you need, or want, a smaller calf all the way down the leg, trace the full pattern piece as-is and even out the hem. Check that the smaller hem is still large enough to get your foot through.

If you prefer to bring the hem back out (or need more room to get your foot through), simply taper it out evenly on either side.

You Did It!

No more tight, bunchy calves or baggy lower legs! Your pants will now fit smoothly all the way down.

Want to dive deeper into fitting? This adjustment and many more are covered in detail in Ahead of the Curve, our best-selling book on fitting for curves. And if you’d like in-depth video tutorials that go much deeper, check out Cashmerette Club‘s library of fitting masterclasses.