Vogue 1493 , My Way or A Relaxed Denim Jacket

I loved Vogue 1493    as soon as I saw it.Then I watched this  irritating video on the McCall's website and loved it even more. But I knew that to justify buying the pattern and making the jacket , it would have to be something I would wear more than once or twice. I shopped my fabric stash and came up  with the beautiful shirt weight  denim in a watermark print that had been waiting for years to be used.

I never really entertained the idea of the bias strip trim shown on the pattern, however. My idea was to instead quilt the front and  sleeve bands. I tried , using cotton flannel  between the fabric layers but that proved too stiff. Instead , I sewed multiple rows of top stitching and decided, for whatever reason, to use matching thread which doesn't show up at all.

As you can see, I opted for patch pockets after sewing the  inseam pockets  and not liking the result.
I was trying to copy these pockets which I had pinned to my pockets board  on Pinterest.

When that didn't work ( I really missed the mark there, didn't I ! )  and I had no  fabric left, I turned them upside down because I liked them better that way and they seem to mimic the sleeve bands.

This garment is very different for me. I like it a lot but every time I catch a glimpse of myself in it , I think choir  or graduation gown and hubby thought artist smock !

Now about the pattern. It has a princess seam and when I tried it on the seam was way below my bust. As a matter of fact , everything was too low including the waist and pockets. I ended up  raising the whole thing by another 3/4" at the the shoulders and then cutting the extra small sleeves.I had cut a size Medium and that was way too big.  ( I'm 5'4 1/2'' tall and weigh 135 lbs if that helps anybody on what size to make for this one. ).A lot of draping was necessary to get this thing to look right.
The side seams were curved at the waist and that didn't seem to jive with the design of the jacket so I straightened that out.

This was a very time consuming project because of the extra fitting issues, the weird sleeves which each took one hour to construct and also because I added Hong Kong finishing to most of the seams
before I put the jacket together. That's why you see such wide seams in there. I didn't trim away excess after taking everything in to a smaller size.

How weird  is this part!!!

I've worn my jacket to good reviews and I regard it as a fun and casual piece. It will take the place of cardigans  this spring and summer. I can see it with white jeans , or with a simple tank dress too. I'm glad I got this one out of my system and can now go on to simpler things. However, I've run out of hangers and will have to give some things away first !!

I do hope you had time to sew this weekend and that you all have a good week filled with lovely spring weather.

More later from

My Easter Outfit and Surefit Designs

I hope everyone had a great Easter, I know I did.  And yesterday I spent the whole afternoon with Ann of  Ann's Fashion Studio now called Ann Made . We have become very good friends and enjoyed lunch and fabric shopping together. Spending time with sewing friends is always so special, I think.

I didn't get my Easter outfit finished on time but it didn't matter because Winter had made its appearance again last week but I have it ready now to show you.

 It consists of three pieces. The first two are a funnel neck top  made entirely from my SFD sloper and by following Glenda's instructions on a funnel neckline in the Dress Kit book on page . I admit I didn't lower my neckline enough and it fits rather tightly but is still wearable.

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The skirt is yet another Rachel Cowlan  ( V1247 ). Look here to see the changes I make to the pattern.. the fabric is a textured polyester knit from  Fabricville but not available online.

The jacket is made with a quilted look textured knit also from Fabricville. This jacket was a real challenge because the fabric is spongy which resulted in bulky seams and it easily snags  but I love the result.

I designed it by first using Sally Silhouette from Surefit Designs which is a great tool and is free. I use it a lot when planning my seasonal pieces and when I get overwhelmed by all the fabric I have and continue to buy ! Lol.

I used my SFD sloper, Burda 6988 and Silhouette Patterns 1825  to draft my pattern. I used the shoulder  armscye , back and sleeve  of my  SFD sloper, the French dart and side  from 6988 and the neckline, collar  and front opening of the Silhouette Pattern,

Do you like my buttons? I couldn't find large navy buttons so I covered two mismatched ones I had on hand. First I padded them and then I used a rayon knit from my stash that matched the navy of the jacket perfectly. I didn't add  a shank to the buttons but merely sewed them to the jacket . I wanted them to lie flat. The real closures are snaps.

I lined the jacket with poly charmeuse.

I had lots of fun coming up with this outfit and designing the jacket using Surefit Designs as my starting point and I can't wait to do more.

Ooh ! The princess lines aren't attractive in the photo and I think it looks better in real life.

The spot you see on the jacket is the snap which I didn't get in the right place so I left it unsnapped.
I never get the snaps right! Never!

My outfit isn't perfect but I like it and will wear it to church first chance I get. I'm making a navy rayon knit top to go with the skirt and I'll wear the jacket with white pants later in the spring. As for the funnel neck top, it will probably only get worn as this outfit.