Pinstriped Pants: The long and the short of the Crotch

I spent some time before flying to Vegas and again this weekend working on my "Amazing Fit" pants.

Crotch length

Mostly, I've been working on the crotch. It's pretty easy to alter pants for the fit at the waist/hips by adjusting the side and/or center back seams. But at the crotch, where 3 seams come together, the fit can make or break a pair of pants. If I can master how the crotch fits, I should consistently be able to make pants that fit me well.

There seems to be a lot of confusion in the sewing world about alterations to the crotch - crotch length, crotch depth, "scooping out" the crotch.... I am just starting to wrap my head around the terminology and what they mean in regard to how pants actually fit.

Crotch depth

RTW pants rarely ever fit me well in the crotch - they are always long with extra fabric in the front. In the fitting room mirror, if I lift or roll the waist the crotch looks better. Anyway, these pants started out a bit long thru the crotch - much better than RTW, but not 100% perfect. So I adjusted the crotch length by taking in the inseam. However, I think the crotch depth may also be a problem. And the best (read only) alteration to fix it is one that you do to the pattern before cutting the fabric. I did measure my length/depth and compared it to the pants pattern before I cut. So, I am not exactly sure how to account for this.

That said, the pin-stripers are looking good! (photo to follow) Even though the crotch is not perfect, they are light years better than any pants in my closet. Hurrah! And the next pair will be even better...