Made By A Fabricista: Bomber Jacket Trend

I've wanted a bomber jacket for a few years now and what do you know, they are in style now in a major way!

I've been seeing lots of florals and lots of satin bombers. I knew I wanted mine to be a bit bold (for me) and when I saw this printed ponte, I decided a knit bomber jacket would be mine!

At the time, I wasn't buying new patterns (broke that fast - shhhhh!) and went for a stash pattern - Burda 2/2013 #125

It comes in sizes 34 - 42 (8 - 16) and needs just 1 1/4 yard of 55 inch fabric - score! I couldn't find ribbing locally so I went with a black ponte for the bands.

I wanted to line it and picked up a run-of-the-mill poly interlock knit in black. It's a bit shiny but it's okay; it serves the purpose.

I don't think I'll ever make another jacket again without a back facing!

I cut a size 40 at the neckline and shoulders, grading to a 42 for the rest. This is standard for me with Burda. After taking measurements, and because I was using a knit, I decided I didn't need a full bicep adjustment and that the blousing at the waist made a swayback adjustment unnecessary. Also, there is no interfacing in this jacket other than a 1" strip where the zipper is inserted.

I really love the fit!

This went together so quickly (I used the serger for most of it) until it came time to figure out how to line, add zipper and add bottom band. I got myself all sorts of confused and Burda's instructions aren't all that helpful. I had attached the bottom band to the fashion fabric and then had no clue how I was going to attach the band to the lining!

In the end, I serged it as much as I could and slip-stitched the rest by hand. I also slip-stitched the bottom band to the zipper tape. For the sleeves, I just attached the band to the fashion fabric and lining at the same time.

I made my hem band a bit smaller than they suggested - both length and width, and skipped the topstitching on the neckline. With this busy print, it isn't missed! I did get those front pieces lined up nicely!!

While I find this print a bit wild and crazy; I absolutely adore the finished jacket! I love the fit and think this will be a fun wardrobe piece.

Are you hopping on the Bomber jacket bandwagon this fall?!

Nakisha

SewCraftyChemist

Made By A Fabricista: Why Sew A Muslin

Here it is, my September blog post featuring Newlook N6692 and this pretty rayon challis from Fabric Mart! This pattern style is so in right now. The square neckline, cute puff sleeves and the tiered skirt are all exactly what I was looking for in a summer dress. As always I started with making a muslin first! Let’s get into why it’s important to start with a muslin. A muslin is basically a practice garment. It prevents you from cutting into your good fabric prematurely. I usually use a muslin fabric (natural cotton) but you should also consider using a fabric that is the same weight as your fashion fabric. This will give you a truer gauge of how the garment is going to lay in the final fabric. Anytime I try out a new pattern company I make a muslin. This was my first time using a Newlook pattern so I need to know what the ease would be like for this pattern. Also I need to see how the bust would fit me and where I would need to make adjustments. Plus there were some new techniques

Made By A Fabricista: End of Summer Swimsuits

My kids have been in desperate need of new swimsuits this summer, but with a busy season of moving house and spending nearly a month in Australia, it left barely any sewing time! When I spotted a whole collection of Beach Riot swim fabric land at Fabric Mart, I knew it was just the motivation I needed to get new suits made! Last year my eldest was on swim team and I was floored at the cost of her suit - somewhere in the ballpark of $80! Using less than a yard of fabric and some elastic, swimsuits are incredibly cheap to make yourself! I ultimately selected three prints and four solids (one being a beige color I intended to use as lining), with input from my children to get their preferred designs. I made an initial sketch in Photoshop to get a visual on what they would look like, and then made a few more changes once the fabric arrived. The easiest suit to make was my son's - I used Jalie Gerald underwear and Nico raglan. This was my first time making Gerald and I loved how quickl

Made By A Fabricista: The Love of Sewing - Basic Pieces for a Beginner

Happy Friday All! It has been a while since I made myself a dress. I am excited to sew after not making anything since my last post (whew) and finally sharing some photos. This past summer has been a roller coaster journey with plans to release a small collection and then deciding that right before the launch to postpone. Sewing has brought me joy over the past 8 years and the mere fact to sew daily for orders had me in a panic mode. I really don’t want to walk away from my craft due to burn out and decided that if I do sew for others, it would be only for local clients. Moreover, If next year I decide to launch, it would be seasonal and not year round. I really want to share my talent and love for sewing with others but don’t want it to be a full time job and lose the passion in me. After a bit of soul searching, teaching and sharing my talent with my community will always be my first love. For the past 2 summers, I was blessed to partner with two nonprofit organizations’ local sum

Fabric Mart Fabricistas

Search This Blog