DIY Pantaloons – 4 yard ATS / Tribal Fusion Belly Dance Harem Pants

I’ve been getting SO many requests to do ATS and tribal fusion costuming over the years 🙂

Now that I got inspired to do ATS / fusion costuming, I had a problem. What should I make!?!?

So I asked everyone on my newsletter to submit their ideas, and I decided to do one that was very popular and best of all, I’d LOVE to wear 🙂 And that was 4-yard pantaloons!

These pants are often called 4-yard pantaloons. They are like harem pants but much looser because there are about 2 yards of fabric around each leg!

I’m so excited to share this tutorial with you because they’re super comfortable and puffy, and they beautifully flare out as you spin! And they’re quite simple to make! So let’s get started!

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Looking for this style?

Check out how to make this style with sassy side openings here!

To make these tribal fusion/ATS pantaloons (with no side openings), you need:

Lightweight cotton – Lightweight cotton is recommended because it’s breathable! To make 4-yard pantaloons, make sure the fabric is about 100cm (40in) wide. And you need about 4m (or 4yds) plus 30cm (12in) extra.  

Loose fitting shorts or pants to use as a pattern

1m (1yd) of 5cm(2in) wide elastic

50cm (20in)of 1cm (3/8in) wide elastic

Matching color thread

How to Make DIY Pantaloons for ATS / Tribal Fusion Belly Dance

First, measure your hip circumference. It’s the largest part of your hips. 

Make Pants

Next, cut your fabric into two 2m (2yd) long pieces and lay them right sides together. Since it’s lightweight fabric, it’s hard to align all edges, so focus on aligning the top corners. 

Turn your pants inside out, and put one pant into the other one so you can see the crotch seam well. 

Place the backside crotch, which has the deeper curve, 1cm (3/8in) away from the edge, and the waistband also 1cm (3/8in) away from the top. But I placed my waistband a little lower, because this fabric has this beautiful border and I wanted it to come right next to the waistband. If your fabric doesn’t have any requirements like that, or what I’m saying doesn’t make sense, it’s perfectly fine to place the waistband at 1cm from the top.

Trace the curved section 1cm (3/8in) away from our pattern. The 1cm extra is for a seam allowance.

Then, measure the distance from the top edge to the end of the curved section, and measure it on the other edge of the fabric. Mark a point right there.

Flip your pants so the front side crotch or the shallower curve is visible, and place the end of the curve 1cm (3/8in) from the point you marked. 

Just like we did earlier, trace the curve 1cm (3/8in) away from the pattern, and at the waistband, extend the line right up to the top edge. 

Cut along the lines, and finish the curved edges and side edges of the panels so they won’t fray. I used pinking shears to cut so I can save time, but of course, you can use a zigzag stitch or do a rolled hem, or use a serger. If you use the selvage edges at the top and bottom like I am here, you don’t have to worry about these edges.

Then take one of the panels, and fold it right sides together. Align the straight edges, and do a straight stitch along these edges with a 1cm (3/8in) seam allowance. This is the inseam of the pantaloons

Repeat for the other panel.

Now here’s the fun part. Flip one of the legs right side out, and stick it inside the other leg so the right sides are facing each other. Align the front and back crotch section, line up the inseam, and do a straight stitch along the curve all the way from front to back.  

Take the inside leg out, and you have a pair of gigantic pants. Don’t worry, we’re going to make them fit you just right.

Pleating

Next at the top of the pants, we’ll fold the fabric here. It’s called pleating, and it helps reduce the puffiness around the waist. 

To do this, first, measure the entire waistband section for your pants.

And do a quick calculation. Take the waistband measurement, minus your hip measurement plus 3cm (1 1/4in), then divide that number by 24. Let’s call this number Length A.

So let’s try pleating. From the center seam on the pants, first measure 6cm (2 3/8in) to one side.

Make a fold there, so that the width of the fold is Length A. So the distance between the 2 folds created there should be Length A. Place pins or clips there, so we won’t lose the folds.

Then from the first fold, measure Length A again, and make another fold there. The width of the fold is also Length A, so the fold under the top layer should align with the first fold. 

Repeat to make another fold. So you have 3 folds on one side right now.

Then do the same for the other side. First measure 6cm (2 3/8in), make a fold and make sure the width of the fold is Length A. 

Measure Length A from the first fold, and align the bottom fold to the first fold. Repeat to make 3 folds on this side as well. 

Repeat the folding on the backside of the pants, and you’ll have 12 folds in total. At the side seams, your folds may have to overlap. Then just overlap them with the front fold over the back one. 

At this point, just to be sure, measure the total length of the waistband here. It should be about your hip circumference plus 3cm (1 3/8in). If it’s way off, double check your the numbers or width of the folds.

Then do a basting stitch with a 5mm (1/4in) seam allowance to keep the folds in place. A basting stitch is basically a straight stitch with the longest stitch length setting. 

Make a Drawstring Waistband

Waistbands come in different styles. For these pantaloons, I chose this drawstring waistband that I used for making the 25 yard skirt before. This is a nice sturdy stretch waistband, but the elastic won’t roll around inside, and you can fit better with the drawstrings.

First cut a 14cm (5.5in) wide strip that is your hip measurement plus 5cm (2in) long. 

At the centre of the waistband strip, mark 1cm (3/8in) tall lines that are about 2.5cm (1in) apart, from 3.5cm (1.5in) from the bottom edge.

 

And sew button holes around them. It’s basically a narrow zigzag stitch with the shortest stitch length around the lines. And open up the button holes. 

Take it to your ironing board, and fold 1cm (3/8in) from the top edge towards the wrong side and press. Do the same from the bottom edge. Then fold it in half and press again.

Then open it up, and sew the short ends right sides together with a 1cm (3/8in) seam allowance to make a circle.

Now match up the top of the pantaloons and waistband right sides together, and make sure the edge closer to the button holes is aligned with the top of the pantaloons. And first align the back seam of the pants and the seam on the waistband. Then align the front seam of the pants and the center point of the 2 button holes. Then match up sides. 

And that’s how you should do it, but as I mentioned earlier, I moved my waistband a little lower on the pants, so the border on the pants will end up right beside the waistband. 

Then stitch along the fold of the waistband.

Then fold the top edge of the waistband 1cm (3/8in) and fold it over to encase the seam allowance and cover the stitches on the wrong side of the pants. Place a pin on the right side of the pants to hold the fold in place, and do this all the way around the waistband.

With the right side up, do a straight stitch right along the seam. It’s called ‘stitch in the ditch’ 🙂 And leave a few inch gap to insert elastic.

Take your elastic and figure out how much you need for it to be snug around your waist. Add 2.5cm (1in) to it, and cut.

Insert the elastic through the casing. I’m using a safety pin to guide the elastic. Once it’s gone through the entire casing, make sure it’s not twisted in there, and overlap the ends 2.5cm (1in). Sew the ends together, and close the waistband by stitching in the ditch.

Now using a straight stitch, do a top stitch over the elastic waistband at 1cm (3/8in) from the top and another one at 1cm (3/8in) from the bottom. Pull and stretch out the waistband while you sew. This keeps the elastic from rolling around inside the casing AND creates a channel for you to add a drawstring in.

Now if you have a long string for this, go ahead and use that, but if you don’t, you can cut a strip like this that’s 2m (2yds) long and 3cm (1 1/4in) wide. I sewed 2 strips together to make 2m. Fold it right sides together lengthwise, do a straight stitch with a 5mm (1/4in) seam allowance, and turn it right side out. Fold in the ends, do a straight stitch, and give it a good press, and you have a nice matching string.

Take your string, and insert it through the channel using the buttonholes. 

Once it comes back out, tie a knot at each end of the string. The drawstring makes the waistband sturdier and helps hold up the pantaloons made of 4 yards of fabric!

Finish up!

Finally, at the bottom of the pants on the wrong side, fold 5mm (1/4in) then fold again 2cm (5/8in). Press, pin, and sew with a 2mm ( ⅛ in) seam allowance. Again, leave a 5cm (2in) gap.  

See how much elastic you need for your ankle, and add 1cm (3/8in) and cut 2 pieces at this length.

Insert one of them into the elastic casing. It helps to attach another safety pin to the other end and the fabric, so you won’t lose the end as you pull the elastic through the casing. Overlap the ends about 1cm (3/8in), and top stitch to secure the ends. And stitch the opening shut. 

Repeat this for the other pant.

And now your 4-yard pantaloons are complete! I can’t wait for you to try them on! 😀

They are really comfy, and even though they have the beautiful volume, the waist area is NOT puffy thanks to your pleating effort, and the pantaloons are pretty light! Make sure to try spinning while you’re in them, because they flare out so nicely, and they look amazing under a skirt as well. They certainly add colors and fun to your ATS or tribal fusion costumes!

I really enjoyed making these pantaloons, and I hope you liked this tutorial! If you did, please share the love and share this tutorial with your dancer friends. 🙂

And if you make your own pantaloons, share your creation at SparklyBelly’s Facebook group! I really love seeing what you all make inspired by my tutorials, and you’ll find lots of amazing ideas shared by members there!

And next week, I’ll continue the ATS theme, and I’ll show you how to make a simple yet fun ATS belt!

If you’re curious how to make the belt, be sure to sign up for my newsletter below so I can send it to your inbox! 

Click here to sign up for my newsletter & get the ATS belt tutorial next week in your inbox! (Bonus: I’ll send you 6 more ATS/tribal fusion tutorials!)

Thanks for reading, and keep sparkling! 🙂

P.S. I now have another style of pantaloons! Check it out 🙂

Learn to make this style here!

P.P.S. Pin this image on your costuming board! 😀

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