Stick a fork in it!

Sorry...that's my silly way of saying my jacket is done.  LOL.  I'm so pleased with this pattern and the resulting jacket.  I will make it again; not this year but possibly in a year or so.  I'd like to add a couple of things next time around.  I'd love to add an inside pocket to the lining and a hanging chain.  I totally meant to add one this time, but just forgot.  Shrug.  There's always next time, right? 

This is how I chose to sew on my large snaps this time.  It's very secure and you can sew it from the top side of the garment. 

After seeing this picture, I suppose you've guessed I chose to use decorative buttons and functional snaps.  These snaps are large, about the size of a quarter.  

HA!  You didn't think you'd get to see me did you?  LOL.  Well I grabbed Alan from his shop and made him get a few shots this time.  

Love this coat!!!!  I think the length is right for me, the style isright for my laid back lifestyle with the fiber content (wool & cashmere) making it a little luxurious and the color is yummy.  And it only took about 2 weeks of off and on sewing to complete it.

No, I don't have a stomach ache; that's my normal face squinting into the sun.  LOL.  These aren't great shots and we were hurrying because we were loosing the late afternoon sun.  

In summation, followed the pattern directions pretty much.  The extra things I did were:  added 2 inches in length, narrowed the sleeve by 1.5", added underlining and catch stitched the seams and added snaps.

Later!

So close...

The jacket is coming along beautifully.  I really like working with wool; it's such a behaving fabric.  LOL.

These are the sleeves all done up and a picture of the new label I had to make since I ran out.

I lightened this up quite a bit so you could see the catch stitching I did on all the seams in the jacket. 

I'm at the point where I have both the outer shell and the lining stitched together and turned.  I've pressed the heck out of it, again using my clapper for those really thick areas.

Now I'm working on all of the little invisible attachment points inside the jacket.  The picture to the left  is the pattern showing you lifting the lining up and loosely sewing the upper and lower collar sections together.  Well I find this terribly tedious and awkward, so I changed it a bit.

Here I've aligned up the seam lines of both collars and am using a loose back stitch to bring them both together.  This the same method you use to attach a shoulder pad through the shoulder seam.  By stitching it from the outside, you can still make your stitches invisible and take away the strain of the inside finish.  So much easier for me.  Hopefully I'm not breaking any sacred rule.  LOL. 

Oh, btw, I should mention I did install 1/4 inch shoulder pads too.  I thought it looked so much better with a slight padding to the shoulder area.

I'm hoping to finish up this weekend as I have a couple of tee shirts I'd like to whip up to take with me to the UK.  Oh, one is the new Vogue 8854 and I've already been warned the sleeves are really long.  LOL.

Later!

Close to the finish

The outer shell of the jacket, except for sleeves, is constructed.  Here I'm in the process of pressing the collar seam open. 

This is my lining.  Pretty wild, eh?  I love it.  I think a lining should be a solid color only if you can't find anything else you like.  LOL.

I still have to press the collar open on this piece.  I hope to get the sleeves constructed and installed today.

I'm starting to get excited; the finish is almost here.  I hope to have it done by the end of this coming weekend.  If I can get it completed, I'll take it to the UK with me. 

That's all for now!

PS.  I forgot to explain the tennis shoes comment.  I've been talking with friends who've already traveled to Europe and they say not to wear tennis shoes for a couple of reasons.  LOL.  First, they'll know without you saying a word you're American and second tennis or gym shoes are only worn in the gym over there.  They'll think you're a poser.  How about it my UK friends?  Is this true?  Should I just wear normal walking shoes?  

Winter Jacket, etc.

I changed my mind.  LOL.  The coat/jacket project is back on but I've changed the pattern.  I think I finally am able to put my finger on my issue with that pattern.  I've never really cared for the fit of an armhole princess style.  If I make a princess style, I really prefer the shoulder cut instead.  I should have remembered and not put myself through all the work of that muslin.  So I've put that pattern and muslin aside and have found another newer pattern I'm liking even better.

Butterick 5823 -  I like the seaming detail; it's basically a shoulder princess style.  It's a loose-fitting, lined double-breasted with welt pockets and I've already cut out the tissue and fitted it to Ruby.  As usual, I'll cut the size 16 from the neck through the upper waist and finally end up with a 20 at the hips.  I've added 2 inches in length to each of the pattern pieces.  The sleeve length is fine, its just too full at the wrist so I'll be narrowing down the sleeve so it doesn't look so baggy on my arms.

There's really not a whole lot of shaping going on, although, there are places you could slim it down like the back and side seams.  But that would defeat the purpose of a loose-fitting jacket. 

This really all the progress I have to report today.  I expect to get the coat cut out within the next day or so and actually start putting it together.  It's a pretty straight forward project with no real surprises.

Did you all have a lovely Christmas?  I had a great time with family up north.  Our drive was delayed by that huge snowstorm and we got to see all the idiots in the ditch who just HAD to drive in that crazy weather.  I'll bet I counted over 50 semi's alone off the road along I-80 between Des Moines and Davenport.  And this happens every snowstorm.  You think people would learn to pay attention to weather reports.

Ah well I got one really useful present from the parents; Susan Khalje's Bridal Couture.  I haven't had a chance to dig into it yet but soon.

Later!