Fall 2013 Collection: Meet Jordan!

The Jordan Jacket: Silver Metallic Linen with vintage glass and rhinestone buttons

The next reveal is the Jordan Jacket! I was noticing how much the classic denim jacket was showing up in fashion these days. To tell the truth, the style of this particular jacket never goes out of style...it is truly a classic. I had some fun with the fabrics on this one and show it to you made up in wool, linen, and cotton sateen. It really is so versatile! You could make it from velveteen or corduroy as well. Even a heavy silk would be fabulous!

The details are what make this jacket special. I took special care to give you the set in pockets so many of you said are important to a jacket. I think you will find that the pockets are great for stashing your phone or whatever other small items you may want to carry. The upper pockets are fully functional as well, but of course they are small, which is how it is with these types of jackets.

This particular jacket is unlined, so you don't have to worry about messing with another layer of fabric. I also designed it so that there are no facings to deal with either. The front facing is built into the front pattern pieces, so it will be folded around to the wrong side.

Don't let all the detailing intimidate you! This jacket does take some time, but the steps are very manageable. I highly recommend that you have a serger handy so that you can finish off your seams neatly. After all, they will be seen on the inside of the jacket. I think the choice of buttons for this jacket is very important. For most of the ones seen here, I chose vintage buttons from my personal stash....I'm a bit of a button hoarder!

As with all of my patterns, how much detail you decide to add is your choice. If you don't want to do some of the pockets, you can always opt to leave them out. I encourage you to make the pattern uniquely yours.

Here are some images of the different jackets I made along with some fabric details.

Metallic Denim (just a bit of a sheen...love that!)

 

Houndstooth Wool and Heavy Silk for the contrast

 

Free Spirit Tanya Whelan Petal Home Dec Cotton Sateen fabrics

 

Here's the back of the jacket. Notice how I fussy cut the fabric to showcase the motif.

 

Westminster David Butler's Parson Grey World Tour linen fabric

 

So, there's the Jordan Jacket!

Again, we will have this pattern and the rest of the new items up on the website later on this week.

 

Happy Sewing!

 

 

 

 

New Fall Collection: Meet Savannah!

The last new design in the fall collection is the Savannah Swing Jacket. Featured in two lengths (hip or fingertip), this jacket has a slight flare that floats away from the body for great and stylish swing! The sleeves are 3/4-bracelet length with many options for finishing out the cuff. You can choose a contrast turned cuff, ruffle, narrow band, or plain band with an optional button trim. The bodice has variations for double or single pleats as well as a squared or rounded front. The collar has a few options too. You can make it from the same fabric, contrasting fabric, or ruche it for great added textural interest.

For those of you who have been wanting a lined jacket, here it is! I have included full instructions for lining the jacket as well as an option to leave it unlined for those of you who would like a lighter weight jacket or maybe you just aren't ready to tackle the whole "lining thing" just yet!

This jacket is just fabulous made up in lovely textured heavy silk, wool, home decorating weight twill or sateen, and linen. It is best to stay with a heavier weight fabric for the jacket so that it hangs appropriately. This is one of the few times that I would recommend that you NOT use quilting weight cottons. There are so many wonderful heavier fabrics available that I am sure you will find something fabulous to make your jacket from.

You will notice that I also chose to mix it up a bit with my buttons. I have placed covered buttons on several, varying the size based on my whim at the time of making the jacket. Sometimes the buttons match, covered in the same fabric as the jacket, and sometimes they are made from contrasting fabrics. I also found some great accent buttons too, so don't be afraid to mix two different styles of buttons or more on your jacket. Let this design speak for your personal style!

It looks like we will be able to get these patterns listed very soon, so watch for next week when they will be available for purchase!
Happy Sewing!!

Sewing with Style!

Hello again! See how quickly I am posting again? I am going to keep this up until market hits at the end of October and then I might have to skip a week, but better than skipping a whole month! I am still hustling to get the sewing complete for that show, but quite a bit has settled down now and I actually don't feel guilty spending time at the computer instead of the machine, which is good...

Anyway, I have two more new designs to share with you today. Both are a type of jacket and my first two that have been generated on my clothing design software, so these have tissue pieces. I am excited to have conquered the set-in sleeve and raglan styles. It took some time and patience, but I got there!

The first one I want to share with you is the Elise Jacket. It is a cropped style with a great gathered collar. I didn't realize how popular this collar is until I saw it EVERYWHERE on ready-made jackets after designing this little number. I also added a band and ruffle to the three-quarter length sleeves and hemline. It is so fun to make this jacket because of the infinite possibilities of fabric combinations. I show it all buttoned up, but more than likely I will wear it open with a cute tunic underneath. Surprisingly, it is EASY to sew and I can make one in an afternoon easily. So without further ado.....here it is!

Detail of the gathered collar

The next jacket is actually a coat.....a trench coat, that is. It is the Sophia Trench Coat. It has this wonderful oversized collar that stands up so nicely! The basic line of the jacket is A-line, so it floats away from the body in all the right places. I chose to design it with or without a belt. The beltless version has a pleat in the back to take up some of the extra fullness. I even got adventurous and made one out of vinyl coated cotton as a raincoat (the polka-dotted one). THAT was an adventure! It turned out great, but let me tell you, I don't want to do it again anytime soon. It isn't that the machines don't like the vinyl, it just gets a bit unwieldy and bulky at the machine once you get a few pieces sewn together. Maybe I will do a post sometime on just sewing with this stuff.....

Getting back to the design.....it features a raglan sleeve that fits so beautifully because the sleeves are cut on the bias....they just flow down your arm and hang with perfection! I had a lot of fun with this design because it lends itself so well to heavier decorator weight fabrics. In fact, you have to use something heavier than regular quilting weight fabric or it just won't hang right when it is finished. The green one in the photo is probably my favorite...that is Moda wool with the bird applique also from wool. It is just so lovely on! I can't wait for the Texas heat to be gone so I can actually wear it without breaking a sweat!

Here is a close-up of the sweet applique:

Again, these patterns will be available at the end of October once we get all of our ducks in a row for market. Let me know what you think of these and have a wonderful day!