Skip to main content

Made By A Fabricista: A Designer-Inspired Jacket in an Embroidered Silk Suiting

Hello my sewing friends!  

When September rolls around many of us look forward to wearing cozy sweaters while sipping pumpkin spice lattes. However, I live in a warm ­weather state – umm, scratch that – I live in a hot weather state, and I wear layering pieces rather than cozy sweaters. Like this jacket!

Vogue 1831 is a Gucci-inspired jacket pattern that was released a few months ago. The fully lined jacket looks like a basic jacket from the front, but turn around and you’ll find an inverted pleat with an adorable bow detail!

I wanted to sew this jacket to wear with jeans and when I saw this embroidered silk suiting, I knew I’d found my fabric.

There is a gold metallic swirl embroidered into the fabric that glitters slightly when the light hits those threads.  Trust me, the photos don’t capture the beauty of this fabric.

Although this fabric was listed as dry-clean, I preshrunk it in the machine using a gentle cycle with a cold wash and cold rinse.  I placed it in the dryer on low heat. Just a reminder, it’s always a good idea to test a sample of your dry-clean fabric first as not all of them will be okay after being machine washed. 

To sew the jacket, I used a size 12 universal Schmetz needle and black all-purpose thread. Inside I used Palmer/Pletsch Perfect Fuse medium interfacing, and a surprise pop of color! The lining is a NY designer rayon lining with purple, raspberry, red, and gold stripes. I used a remnant of faux leather I had in my stash for the contrast collar.

Both the original designer jacket and the Vogue sewing pattern included patch pockets on the front of the jacket at the bust. I eliminated those as I thought they looked odd, and they certainly weren’t functional due to the location. I also did a full bust adjustment using a pivot and slide method so there would not be a dart at the side seam.

Now those metallic threads are gorgeous, but they did present a few challenges. I discovered the threads were difficult to cut so I ended up cutting all my pattern pieces single layer. The threads were a bit scratchy against my skin, but the lining took care of that.

I also found the threads made the fabric too stiff for the back bow detail, which is actually two pieces. There is a small loop sewn into at the bottom of the back yoke and the bow piece is inserted into the loop. I cut both of those pattern pieces in half and used a lightweight fabric on the inside of the loop and on the underside of the bow.

Because the jacket is fully lined, I did not finish the seams.  Due to the inverted pleat at the center back of this jacket, the lining hangs free at the hem line, so I finish the jacket hem with a Hong Kong finish using bias strips of the lining. That way if the lining flips up that hem edge looks quite nice.  

After a summer of quick sewing projects, it was nice to slow down and enjoy the process of creating this jacket.

This is a versatile layering piece! I plan to wear it most often with jeans, but it can easily be paired with trousers or even a short pencil skirt. I know I’ll be wearing this one a lot this season.

SHARON  @thesharonsews


Unfortunately Fabric Mart Fabrics sell out quickly!
You can find similar fabrics by shopping the following categories SILK, SUITING, & LINING.

Comments

  1. Thanks so much for sharing this fun jacket with us. I appreciated all your details, and found your hem finish quite a nice touch!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Stinking cute! May have to break my fabric fast… oh wait, already did!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ha!Ha! I always have good intentions with my fabric fast ... and then FM posts something amazing that I just Have.To.Have!

      Delete
  3. I bought this pattern the moment it was released and can't wait to make it. Your version is fun and fabulous! Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I bought it right away too! I hope you love yours as much as I love mine!

      Delete
  4. Love your new jacket. Thanks for showing this pattern.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Thanks for leaving a comment! All comments are reviewed before posting to help us eliminate spam. Your comment will be posted within 24 hours.

Popular Posts You Might Like

Made By A Fabricista: Bold Aspen Dress for Spring

 As I write this in mid-April, central New Jersey weather is showing small signs of spring. My neighbor’s daffodils are blooming and our magnolia tree is trying to unfold its vibrant magenta petals. I am in the midst of preparing my wardrobe for the warmer months, even if we are still huddling against windy 30 degree days. For me, warm weather means linen. I love breathable, floaty linen sundresses and drapey, loose linen wide-leg pants. My vision for a spring piece was something bold and bright, inspired by the natural colors of blooming flowers, but also something that could transition well between the warmer and cooler months. When I saw Fabric Godmother’s Apsen Dress, I knew that it had the sensible transitional opportunities I was looking for while also providing a blank canvas for fun prints, patterns and colors. With the pattern in mind, I then turned to the stunning linen collection that Fabric Mart always has on hand to see what colors or patterns would best suit my visio...

Made By A Fabricista: Celebrating warm weather with Spring sewing!

Hi sewing friends! I don’t know about you but boy, was winter cold and dreary this year! The weather here in the Philadelphia area has been slowly improving, but Spring sure did take her sweet old time to arrive. So by April, I was definitely in the headspace of needing to sew up things that were either bright and cheery or meant for the warmer weather I am very much craving right now. I recently purchased a few SewBexx Patterns so I took them on a test run to create some Spring makes. First on my list was to make a top using this absolutely gorgeous ITY fabric I picked up last year. I had two yards which was enough for a long sleeve shirt. I chose the Olivia top, which is oversized with a drop shoulder, has multiple lengths and a split hem. I think the pattern is intended for heavier fabrics but I was envisioning how lovely this top would look with the drape of ITY knit fabric, and it did not disappoint. It came together for me quickly and was a straight forward sew…and I love the br...

Made By A Fabricista: Stripes For Spring

Hi everyone!   It’s finally warming up here in southeastern Pennsylvania and I wanted to make a light, flowy dress for springtime. I snagged a vintage Laura Ashley pattern from Joanns on one of my last trips there. I somehow didn’t have anything in my pattern stash with a sweetheart neckline, so I thought it would be a good addition. The pattern calls for a giant gathered skirt, so I knew I would need something lightweight and drapey for it.  Something like a pink striped cotton fine seersucker. The fabric is light and has a really nice drape, almost like a challis . I knew it would gather beautifully. I  got to work cutting everything out, with help from my assistant. When I say the skirt is massive I mean it.  I ran into an issue right away where my fabric isn't wide enough to cut the back panel without opening the fabric out. And my three yards of fabric wasn’t enough to cut two back panels. I ran into this issue last year when making my pinafore dress . In ...