Multi Strappy High Heels,High Heels Sandals,High Heels Slipper,Snake High Heels GDMK GROUP WEIHAI SHOES CO., LTD. , https://www.gdmkgroup.com
Welcome to the first day of the School Days Jacket Sew-Along! Today, I’ll be covering fabric selection, assembling the hood, and putting together the front jacket panels. Thank you so much for joining us, Janice!
A huge thank you to Liesl for hosting this Sew-Along on the Oliver + S blog.
I’m Janice, and you can find me blogging over at So-Cal Sewing Mom. On Flickr, I go by the name Juliamom2009. I sew for my youngest child, Julia.
I bought the School Days Jacket pattern almost immediately after getting hooked on Oliver + S patterns. However, I hadn’t yet made it—partly because the many pattern pieces seemed intimidating, and partly because we live in sunny Southern California, so we don’t really need a heavy winter jacket. But, I love the pattern so much that I finally decided to give it a shot. Here we go!
One of the trickiest parts of making this jacket is the initial prep. Do you want a raincoat, a wool coat, or maybe a denim jacket? And where do you find good-quality fabric? If you’ve been reading through the Oliver + S forums, you’ve probably noticed that many questions revolve around sourcing quality wool. Here’s my advice:
I prefer to stick with fabrics I know and trust, fabrics I’ve personally felt and worked with before.
1. **Pendleton**: Expensive, but worth it. You can find it online in their official store, and I’ve even come across small-town shops that carry it.
2. **Johnson Woolen Mills**: I visited this shop last month and picked up some stunning pink plaid fabric (unfortunately, it's not listed on their site). The staff is incredibly friendly, and they'd probably be super helpful if you were looking for something specific.
3. **Moda Wool**: I’ve used Moda wool in a previous project, and I can vouch for its quality. It’s 80% wool and 20% nylon, and the bolt indicates it’s washable. I haven’t washed mine yet, but a Google search should help you find online shops that carry it.
4. **Thrift Shops / eBay**: I recently found a full-length women’s size 16 coat in gorgeous authentic suede. Recycling fabric has its perks—it’s likely already been cleaned, so you know how it will hold up. Men’s big and tall sections are fantastic sources for affordable fabric. One of my favorite pieces from Nicole is a creation she shared. She recommends searching eBay for extra-large men’s sizes and sorting by price to find deals.
5. **Local Fabric Shops**: Not the typical quilt shops, but the older, locally-known stores. These can be hard to track down, but using technology during travel (like checking Yelp for nearby fabric shops) can help. I’m lucky to live near LA’s garment district, but sometimes too much selection can be overwhelming. I still prefer smaller shops.
If anyone wants to share their favorite sources for jacket fabrics—wool, etc.—I’d love to compile them on my blog. Just drop me an email via the “Email Me†link on my blog—I’ll format it nicely and make it easy to browse.
After much deliberation, I decided to make my first version of this jacket using beautiful dark brown corduroy, lined with Polartec Classic 100 (fleece) for the body, and quilting cotton (from Liesl Gibson’s Ladies Stitching Club line for Moda) backed with Thinsulate for the arms and hood. Let’s see how this turns out.
Of course, there are excellent instructions in all Oliver + S patterns. For the jacket, the ones that stand out are grading the seam allowance if you're using wool, and the tip on page 2 about edgestitching versus topstitching.
**Assemble the Hood**
Step one involves inserting the center hood between the two side hood panels. When inserting a flat piece into a curved piece, I always pin from either end first, saving the curved part for last. Although the instructions don’t mention this, I like to run a line of stitching just inside the seam line along the part of the hood that will be eased to give myself a "stop" line for clipping.
For this step, I chose to edgestitch since I’m using corduroy—a fabric that’s not too thick or bulky.
Repeat steps one and two for the lining, but don’t edgestitch the lining seams.
For steps five and six, pin the lining and outer hood with right sides together and sew the perimeter with a 1/2" seam (leaving the neck edge open). Turn the hood right side out, edgestitch the outer edge of the hood, and then baste together the lining and the hood at the neck.
**Assemble the Front-Jacket Panels**
This is where you’ll need to make some decisions. Are you using Velcro or snaps inside the jacket? Or maybe toggles? If you’re using toggles, are you making them yourself or buying cord or leather? This is where a thorough read through the Oliver + S forums on the School Days Jacket really comes into play. Leather closures, while stunning, didn’t pass the kid-test for me. I tried making fabric cord from my corduroy jacket material and failed miserably due to the fabric’s thickness.
Since I’m a bit of a sewing supply hoarder, I dug up these toggles from my stash:
I’m not sure how they’ll look or function, so I’ll report back later. But that’s what I’ve decided to use for my test version.
I’m hoping to use magnetic snaps inside the jacket, but I’m still unsure when to insert them. That’s why a test version is essential!
Attach the front yoke to the jacket and decide whether to edgestitch or topstitch—another choice!
Depending on what you’re using, follow the instructions to attach Velcro to the front closure or wait to insert snaps.
If you’re using toggle or tab closures, steps 3 and 4 will guide you through making and attaching them. In step 5, attach the front placket to the jacket/yoke panel. Edgestitch or topstitch the seam allowance on the placket side, making sure **not** to catch the toggle cords or button tabs.
Isn’t all this topstitching/edgestitching looking great already? Contrasting thread would be awesome—maybe next time.
Check my blog/Flickr for my finished jacket later this week!
Send me any suggestions you have for sourcing wool, etc. And I hope to see everyone’s kids in gorgeous School Days Jackets soon!
This is day two of the School Days Jacket Sew-along. Our friend, Deb, is back today. You remember Deb, right? She previously joined us with her lab coat, favorite pattern, and a Flat S visit that included pirates. Today, she’s guiding us through assembling the back jacket, sewing the shoulder and side seams, and attaching the patch pockets. Over to you, Deb!
This section of the jacket is straightforward and relatively quick. With your cut-out pattern pieces (#5 back yoke, #7 back, #10 pocket, #11 pocket lining, and the finished front portion from day one), let’s dive in.
Start by pinning pattern piece #5 (back yoke) to pattern piece #7 (back) with both pieces having their right sides facing each other.
Stitch with a 1/2†seam allowance.
Flip the yoke upwards and press the seam so both sides of the seam allowance are on the yoke portion. On the outside (right side), edgestitch or topstitch along the yoke side of the seam. Use the same topstitching distance and stitch length as on the front of the jacket.
Trim the excess seam allowance on the inside (wrong side) if desired, being cautious not to cut into the stitching or jacket.
Move up to the back neck edge and stay stitch all around the neck 3/8†from the edge.
Next, attach the two front pieces to the back piece you just finished. Pin the front sections to the back section at the shoulders with right sides together and stitch with a 1/2†seam. Note that the shoulder seams have been moved 1†forward, so the lengths for the front and back will look uneven. This is part of the design and will look perfect when the jacket is completed.
Press the seam towards the back section and edgestitch or topstitch.
On the inside, trim excess seam allowances if desired, being careful not to cut the wrong bit of fabric!
Pin the sides of the jacket together matching the notches and stitch with a 1/2†seam allowance. Press the seams well. The pockets are going on that area, so those two seams need to be flat.
Since the side seams will be hidden in the lining, it isn’t necessary to finish the seam allowance edges.
Turn the instruction sheet over to Page 3. Woo-hoo, progress!
Now we’re going to construct the pockets.
At the end of the instructions for Pocket Construction are some tips and ideas for pocket lining and design. You may want to read ahead before continuing with the pocket construction.
**Pocket Construction**
Using pattern piece #10 (outside pocket), pin it to pattern piece #11 (pocket lining) with right sides together along the unnotched edge.
Stitch the two together with a 1/2†seam allowance. Press that seam downwards toward the lining and trim the edges to reduce bulkiness.
Line up the notches on the lining piece with the notches on the outer pocket piece along the bottom edge. Pull the lining piece down to meet the outer pocket piece. Notice that more of the outer piece fabric will show at the top.
Pin and stitch with a 1/2†seam allowance, but leave open the area between the notches. Pivot the fabric so you are stitching into the seam allowance when you reach the notches.
Trim all around the pocket to within 1/8†or so, clipping corners carefully without clipping into the stitching. Leave the seam allowance at the bottom between the notches untrimmed. You’ll need to turn the pocket inside out through that opening, and the stitching into the seam allowance by the notches will force that section neatly inside.
Turn your pocket right side out.
My favorite tool for this task is a bamboo point turner and presser. The pointed end isn’t too sharp, making it perfect for poking corners out. It’s slightly contoured, and since it’s wood, it can lay behind fabric and then ironed without fear of melting.
Oliver + S sells them in their 'Supplies and Tools' section, and they aren’t expensive. Actually, I have two point turners in case one goes missing mid-project. My husband does the same thing with his hammers.
Topstitch along the top edge of the pocket on the outside (right side) 1†from the top edge.
The bottom open edge will get sewn shut when it’s placed on the jacket and stitched in place.
Do the same procedure for the other pocket and then your pockets are ready to stitch to the jacket.
**Pocket Tips and Ideas**
Because I used a heavy wool, pink Melton, and black Cashmere for two of the jackets I made, I found the lining needed to be made from broadcloth in the same color as the outer fabric. The pockets sit nice and flat on the jacket and don’t look bulky at all.
On the grey denim jacket I made, the plain pockets looked a bit bland to me, so I created an inverted pleat.
To do that, I simply cut the fabric wider than the pocket pattern piece and played around folding and creating a pleat until I was happy with how it looked. Then I placed the traced pattern piece over what I had been folding and cut it to the correct size.
Since the denim was fairly thin, it could be used for the pocket lining too.
For added interest (and because I have a small cache of colorful buttons thanks to a sale at a craft store), I stacked and stitched some buttons matching the jacket lining on the pocket.
After making an inverted pleat pocket on the grey denim jacket, for the orange rain jacket, I thought I might try making a regular pleated pocket with a flap.
The pocket was constructed the same way as the grey denim pocket, playing with a wider piece of fabric and then cutting it to fit the traced pattern piece.
The lining was also the outer fabric, except for the flap because I wanted the lining fabric to show.
The pocket flap pattern piece comes from the Explorers Vest in Little Things to Sew book.
Topstitch it on the jacket, the flap straight edge was butt up to the top edge of the pocket, stitched on the inside, then topstitched on the outside and lastly trimmed on the inside.
Once again, the big box of colorful sale buttons came in handy to decorate the flap.
Pockets for this jacket could be many different styles depending, of course, on the type of fabric used.
You could make pockets like the ones on the Field Trip Cargo pants, or like the pockets on the Hopscotch skirt, or the pockets on the Secret Agent Trench coat, or a welt pocket, or a repurposed jean pocket, or a zippered pocket, or a shaped pocket, or an appliquéd pocket, or a machine embroidered pocket. Goodness, I’m starting to sound like Bubba from Forrest Gump when he was describing ways to prepare shrimp!
Okay, so let’s get our pockets attached to the jacket.
Hopefully, on the front and back pieces you cut out, the pocket placements have been marked with either chalk or water-soluble marker.
Place the finished pocket within that marked area and pin in place.
You’ll notice that a small portion of the pocket is about an inch on the other side of the side seam sitting on the back piece.
Do this step on both sides of the jacket.
To make sure the pockets are the same on both sides, after pinning them in place, take the time to measure.
Measure up from the hem, in from the placket, and over the side seam.
When they both have the same measurements, you can edgestitch the pockets in place along the sides and across the bottom, pivoting at the corners and backstitching at the beginning and end of the stitching.
In the stitching, you’ll be encasing the open edge that’s on the bottom of each pocket.
Well, that’s it from me for my section of the sew-along.
Tomorrow Amanda will take you through more steps. In the meantime, sit back and admire your handiwork. The jacket is coming together quickly and overall, rather easily, don’t you think? All the jacket needs now are the sleeves, hood, and lining.
Here are my finished School Days Jackets.
I’ve documented on my sewing blog some tips, tricks, and shortcuts that I discovered during my journey with this pattern.
Welcome to day three of the School Days Jacket Sew-along. Today we are delighted to have Amanda join us. She will not only be taking us through all the steps for day three, but for day four as well. Thanks so much for being here Amanda!
Hi, I’m Amanda from LilypadMontana and I’m pretty thrilled to be a contributor for this sew-along! I’ve always loved sewing for my kids, but it wasn’t until I discovered Oliver + S patterns that it became a true passion. I’m sure many of you have felt the same way; discovering such a great resource as Oliver + S to help create such lovely things for our little ones! Anyway, let’s continue with the School Days Jacket Sew-Along! Today we will be preparing and attaching the sleeves, preparing the lining and facing, and assembling the jacket, hood, and lining.
Let’s get started!
**Prepare and Attach the Sleeves**
First, we will be working on the sleeves. Sew the gathering stitches as directed, being sure to leave your threads long enough to pull later, and then pin and stitch the sleeve sides.
If using bulky fabric, do follow the hint provided to trim away the seam allowances to allow for easy hemming, and then hem the sleeves either by machine or by hand. I choose to use the machine since I like using the stitching line as reference for hand-sewing in the lining later.
Attach the sleeves, making sure there are no puckers along the armhole once sewn in. The gathering is to ease in the sleeve, not to create a gathered puffed sleeve! If necessary, you can rip out the seams where any puckers are, smooth it, and re-sew. This part can be tricky so you may want to take the advice of the directions and baste this seam first before stitching. Once the sleeve is sewn in to your satisfaction press and trim the seam allowances and repeat for the other sleeve.
**Prepare the Lining and Facing**
Next, we will be preparing the lining and facing. If you are using Velcro now is the time to sew it on! I’m using snaps so those will be sewn on later. Finish the side edge of the facing as directed and then sew the front facing to the front lining. When sewing two opposing edges clipping into the seam allowance (but not past) will help your edges line up.
Here you can see how the opposing edges line up after clipping the edges.
Baste the pleat at the center back of the lining, and then sew the shoulder and side seams of the lining together.
Prepare and attach the lining sleeves in the same manner as the outer sleeves. The lining sleeves are 1†shorter than the pattern so be sure to trim them down before ironing up the hem.
Also iron up the lining bottom hem.
**Assemble the Jacket, Hood, and Lining**
Now to assemble the jacket, hood, and lining. First baste on the hood.
Sew the lining to the jacket with the hood sandwiched in-between. As you can see, I like to use lots of pins to make sure everything lines up nice and neat! Make sure you don’t stitch your sleeves into this hem by accident. Trim your seams and corners, turn right side out and press.
Last step for today! Sew the sleeve lining down with either a slipstitch or blindstitch. While sewing this part, I like to keep the sleeve wrong side out to more easily reach the seam. Also, if you sewed the outer sleeve hem by machine you can now line the edge of the lining up with this seam, giving you an easy reference of where to sew.
That’s all for today! Join me again tomorrow, and we will finish our jackets plus sew the optional quilted lining.
We have reached our fourth and final day of the School Days Jacket Sew-Along. Thanks for joining us this week for the sew-along. Amanda has returned to finish things up, so I will hand it over to her. Thank you Amanda!
Hi! This is Amanda from LilypadMontana back today for the final installment of the School Day’s Jacket Sew-Along. By now you should have a pretty awesome and nearly complete coat or rain jacket, so let’s finish it up! Today we will be finishing the jacket and sewing the optional insulated vest.
**Finish the Jacket**
First, we are hemming up the jacket bottom edge. Pin up the hem making sure the lining is out of the way.
Then topstitch the facing and jacket hem at the same time in the order stated in the directions, starting at the neck facing and pivoting down, around, and back up until ending at the other neck facing.
You have the option to edge stitch the neckline as well to help keep the lining in place. I have found that stitching this portion with lining side up helps to prevent puckers at the neck and shoulders on the inside of the jacket.
Blind-stitch or slipstitch the bottom edge of the lining to the outer jacket at the topstitching sewing line.
You can also tack down the little fold at the bottom corner of the lining to make it a bit neater, as well as the loose bit of facing directly beneath it.
Remove your basting stitches at the lining center back and then sew on snaps (if using) at the marks indicated on the pattern pieces. If using button tab closures sew on your buttons now as well.
**Optional Insulated Vest**
Although this vest is optional I highly recommend to go for it and make one! It adds quite a bit of versatility to your jacket, taking it from something lightweight to cozy warm in an instant. Plus you get to add a bit of fun with additional cute fabrics to coordinate with those of your jacket. It’s really an amazing addition to the jacket and you absolutely will not regret making it! So now that I have you convinced let’s get started.
You can purchase pre-quilted fabrics for the vest, or you can quilt your own. To quilt your own, here are a few tips; first be sure to use a walking-foot (or darning foot for free-motion quilting), use woven fabrics rather than stretchy ones, and use fabrics that are neither too heavy or too lightweight. Quilting cottons tend to be the best, along with double-gauze, and flannel. Of course any other fabrics in that weight range should work wonderfully as well!
To construct the quilt sandwich first lay down your first fabric choice right-side down, followed by your batting, and then your other fabric choice on top right-side up. Smooth out all the wrinkles as best you can on both sides. Then lay down your vest pattern piece and cut a rectangle slightly bigger than the pattern (the pattern is on the fold so cut out your rectangle big enough to accommodate this). Repeat this for the sleeves if including them.
Thoroughly pin your quilt sandwich together and quilt as desired. There are lots of options here, including a free-motion design, or marking nicely-spaced lines with a fabric pen and ruler, or you could even stitch a fun pattern of your own creation. Whichever you decide to do, go ahead and quilt it now.
Once done quilting your fabric, cut out your pattern pieces. If you are making a sleeveless vest make sure to trim away .5†from the armholes now.
Pin and stitch the shoulder seams right side’s together. For the vest the right side is the inside (while worn) and the wrong side is the outside. This is because once the vest is buttoned inside the jacket the side you see will be the inside so it is called the right-side. Keep this in mind while sewing so that the fabric you want to be seen the most is on the inside. Instead of pressing the shoulder seam allowances open I opt to serge them together and then stitch them down towards the vest back, resembling a flat felled seam. Feel free to finish them however you wish! If adding sleeves to the vest follow step 3 to prepare and sew them in.
Cut seven (or nine if you’ve made sleeves) pieces of elastic, fold in half, and baste at the wrong side of center back neck plus at the notches of the vest front (and at the sleeve seams).
Apply bias tape starting at the bottom hem as well as around the armholes. I accidentally started mine up at the vest front in this picture and ended up re-pinning the whole thing before sewing it, so don’t do what I did! Start at the bottom center back. If you decide to make your own bias tape there is a great tutorial for it here. For tips on how to sew on the bias tape you can check out this tutorial here.
Lastly sew in the buttons to secure the vest into the jacket with while being worn. The button locations are specified on your pattern pieces; six on the facings, one at the center back neck, plus two at the sleeve hems if you’ve included the sleeves with your insulated vest.
Congratulations! You’re done! Take some pictures and post your lovely creations to the Oliver + S flickr group. We’d love to see what you’ve made :).