Since it was a long weekend for us here in Australia, I thought I would embark on a project that has been on my mind for a long time. I purchased the book Sew Serendipity a few months ago and have been eyeballing the pretty tailored jacket ever since. It has been so cold on my walks to work that a warm jacket was in order. So it was time to get cracking!
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To get started, I headed to the sewing shop to get some odds and ends such as buttons, twill tape & interfacing. I think I need to mention that I seem to have a slight obsession with olive green at the moment. (I just finished sewing some olive green buttons on my new Colette Beignet, but wait, thats for my next post.) and out the corner of my eye, I just happened to spot this perfect olive shade... at Spotlight of all places... The label stated that it was 'Melton Wool' 100% wool. I'm no good at fabric classification, has anybody else ever heard of this??? Anywho... it felt lovely so I got 3 metres (And after cutting out the jacket there is still just over a metre to make a sexy pencil skirt with, Hooray.)
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| Front before lining & facing is added |
I cut out all the pieces in the shell fabric, lining fabric & interlining fabric. Oh Boy!
I tried a new technique too! Bound buttonholes. Thanks to Tasia's excellent tutorial, they were a breeze! I think I could improve them next time, the middle one is a tiny bit bigger than the others...shh
The pattern calls for double stitched seams, bodice darts and gathering, and it is simple enough to customize with your own embelleshments! I will be adding button up cuffs to the sleeves and I also drafted a lining as the pattern didn't include this. I love silky lining on a warm winter jacket.
The whole jacket is underlined with some leftover medium weight cotton knit fabric (Thats the crazy orange colour that is poking out.) that I had in the stash and the lining was an ebay grab. It is a silk wool blend and feels divine.
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| Lining & Facing |
It all went pretty smoothly. When it was time to sew the facing and lining in, sheesh there were so many layers! The jacket is so heavy (Super heavy!) but my machine sewed straight on through it without any problems. I love my Pfaff!
Check out the layer action...
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All thats left to do is sew on the cuffs and finish the hem & finally handsew the innards.
Gah, I might even get to wear it before winter is over! Fancy that...
That is a really lovely coat. Nice work!
ReplyDeleteI bought some Melton Wool from Spotlight last week too, though mine is 60% wool, 40% polyester and also a vivid purple - I normally go for black (goes with everything, right?), so I'm pretty proud of my deviation from my norm!
How did you pre-shrink the wool? I read in a Claire Shaeffer book to either steam it with an iron, or take it to the dry cleaner and have them steam press it. Then I can across a sewing blog that suggested throwing it in the dryer with a wet (but not dripping) towel, and steam it that was. I might give that method a try and hope for the best!
Your coat looks great. I love the colour and if I wasn't so busy sewing coats for my kids I would sew another for me!
ReplyDeleteI bought this same fabric though in navy and purple and pre-shrunk it using the dryer method. It worked great - both pieces were 1.5 mts in length and they both shrunk 5-6cm each. So the dryer method definitly works.
Enjoy your coat - it's lovely!
Wow so impressive! I really love the green.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely beautiful. Your buttonholes look fantastic! Makes me wish it was winter here in Georgia...
ReplyDeleteit's gorgeous! your buttonholes are splendid! /jealous
ReplyDeleteWhat a fantastic jacket/coat! Such neat seems and I love the button holes. I hope you get a lot of wear out of it.
ReplyDeletestunning !
ReplyDeleteI would love to make a coat but I am a bit scared of all the construction. Great work on yours though. Can't wait to see it all finished!
ReplyDeleteWow, that looks great. I love the fabrics! Your buttonholes look even to me. I think most of us tend to be hyper critical of our own work :-)
ReplyDeleteWowzers! That's stunning! the lining looks so beautiful, what a treat every time you go to put it on! Looks a really versatile garment. xxx
ReplyDeleteWool Melton is a dream to sew ... Lucky you. Well done for finishing it.
ReplyDeleteI love your bound buttonholes. I have yet to actually finish a garment with them - I'm so picky about them being egZACTLY perfect, and sadly, mine never are!
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