Sewing, thrifting and the like...


Sunday 7 June 2015

A winter coatigan

This coat is a quickie winter layering piece. It's somewhere in between a coat and a cardigan. I think because it is draped and has no structure (in this fabric) and it is not lined, it feels like a big warm fluffy cardigan. I do love it...nothing like a secret or not so secret, blanket to snuggle under in Canberra's super cold winter.
The pattern is the Tessuti Sydney Jacket.

I made a size small and I think I could probably have done with making the extra small! I am in no way extra small - I am generally an Australian 12 - this pattern just runs super large.



Lots of lovely ladies have made it up in beautiful coloured boiled wools. I haven't seen any other patterned ones yet. I chose this beautiful black and white checked/houndstooth-esque wool blend from Spotlight. They had a 40% sale on mothers day and this was my treat to myself. It is woven on the outside and snuggly fleecy on the inside. So its totally perfect for this unlined jacket.


Well.....hmmm...perfect?
The pattern says "Ideally made up in boiled wool knits, ponti knits, boiled felted wools and neoprene fabrics. IMPORTANT: Not suitable for woven fabrics that fray when cut." This is because the fabric pieces are overlapped and so one of the cut edges is visible. I decided to ignore this advice because I happen to love the look of frayed wool, it adds a bit of texture and interest to the garment. AND I am not very good at doing what I am told...I am stubborn..very at times.

So I sewed the pieces together using a triple stitch to make it extra secure and then purposely frayed all the edges to make it fluffy! This was pretty easy.


The hard bit was the cutting and the pattern matching in the beginning! Having to cut bearing in mind the pattern placement and the overlapping 3/8inch and also bearing in mind all the other pattern bits and where they fitted. In the end I managed to match the two front pieces, the size seams, the back and the two back yoke pieces. I am stoked with the matching quite frankly!



I didn't bother with the two back under-arm pieces as they are hardly visible and my brain might have exploded trying! Now its not all perfect. I wanted to conserve as much fabric as poss. I hate wastage, especially when I have actually bought the fabric retail. I usually buy second hand fabric to reduce my environmental impact, and for the cost factor. I had more fabric than I needed for the jacket and I want to make a little bolero or waist coat or similar with the remnants. I therefore decided that I didn't care that the pattern was one way. There is a little arrow shape in the pattern, and so some pattern bits have an arrow going up, and others down. Really its only obvious if you look closely. I didn't want to waste fabric getting everything the right way up!


I also changed-up the pockets. The original calls for a kinda welt pocket inserted into the front of the jacket. Which looks really lovely. This would have been lost with the pattern so I decided to just add inseam pockets. I just ignored pattern piece A and cut two pairs of piece B. Easy. I used the snuggly side of the fabric on the inside, so my fingers will be super warm and happy all winter long, yay!



This coat was pretty quick to make and was a nice change of pace after the craziness of study. It was also a total procrastination piece. Am supposed to be working on my final coat assessment for class. Its due Wednesday. I am also supposed to be sewing a dress for Frocktails in 3 weeks. I havent even started that! Will not be going at this rate!!!


I spent a beautiful afternoon with my family down at the Cotter River, only about 20mins from my house. It was a beautiful sunny but cool and windy day. This jacket was just perfect for keeping out the chill. I hate being cold and I get cold easily. I actually felt kinda stylish, although I was of course covered in kid scum very quickly! I am sure you will find me wearing it all winter long!




17 comments:

  1. I freaking loooooooove this jacket! I did even recognize the pattern initially. I love your version by far the best of all that are out there.

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  2. Lovely. This pattern is on my list too and also with Spotty fabric. :)

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  3. Absolutely love this Jen.... taking Sydney to the next level with the check! I struggle with pattern matching & wastage too. I feel like the scraps I make with regular sewing is already too much! New do looks fab too :)

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  4. this is extra freaking cool. that tessuti fabric is genius, looks to me like you got the placement perfect. (you should see my botch job on a pendleton wool that I was trying to cut economically! THIS is perfect.)

    how does one even find good fabric secondhand???? it used to happen in LA.

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  5. Divine!! And I think frocktails will welcome you regardless, even if you are only wearing this coatigan - love your work - and you rock snugly winter jackets better than anyone I know ;)

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  6. This is so fabulous and your air looks awesome! Such a statement, but wearable look. Love it!

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  7. Ace job on the matching. I feel that I would have completely stuffed that up. Agree with Nic - you rock a layered look x

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  8. So cool! I love your fabric choice!

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  9. I love this sooooooo much. You are right, I've not seen another patterned version and it totally rocks. And what a fabric - fleecy on the inside! You look fabulous... and did you cut your hair? Or is it an illusion? Either way I love it, I love it all xxx

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  10. This is the perfect fabric for this coat. LOVE IT!

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  11. This is so fantastically stylish! And I'm totally jealous of the fabric, both the print and the fleecy insides!

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  12. Amazing!!! I love it. You have nailed that pattern matching and you are totally rocking this jacket. So very cool!

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  13. I love it!! It looks amazing on you!

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  14. Argh I love this in the houndstooth print so hard! So cool that its fleece on the inside. I too adore a little bit of fraying action, and your fabric plays up to that perfectly. I've seen so many amayzing versions of this pattern that now I want it too. It looks awesome with those red tights (great match to the hair in this light!) xx

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  15. Wow that looks absolutely fantastic on you! Love how the softness of the fabric is working with the draped pattern. Also, I am once again in awe at your pattern matching skills! You have far, far more patience than I do. ;-)

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  16. Love this! It's so sophisticated! I'm tempted to give it a try, although our winters are so cold that it's kind of pointless to make anything in wool without long sleeves. The houndstooth is really a perfect choice- this is very Jackie O!

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  17. Looks loads better in a pattern than plain I think, and I love the frayed edges. And the short gloves. Great styling.

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Hey, would love to hear from you, comment away my fine feathered friends....x jen