Creamy, Dreamy Jacket

Stash busting 2014:  Vogue 1263 Jacket

Fabric:      2.9 metres

Thread:    1 spool

Button:     1 large decorative button (maybe)

I forgot how many darts are involved in the creation of Vogue 1263! There are a total of sixteen darts in the making of this jacket, four in the back shawl collar plus another four in the facing.  And there are those beautiful six darts that start from the back hemline and radiate upwards. The two double pointed dart in the front near the pocket. Yes, all those darts give this jacket the incredible shape. You're going to have to take my word for it with these photographs that are not doing the details justice.

There are also flat felled and french seams that give this jacket a beautiful finish. I won't talk much about the flat-felled seams as I did write about them when I made the first version of this jacket. The french seam finish on the pockets is a nice finish. I didn't do these on the first version but I'm glad I took the time and did them here. What a difference!

The fabric is a 2014 addition to my stash. I fell for it when I first laid eyes on it two years ago at Fabricland but waited until it was a bit more affordable. It took awhile until it reached my affordable range and luckily the last bit on the bolt was enough to make the jacket. That's what you can call cutting it close (sorry for the pun). I actually cut this out in February shortly after I picked it up but it took some time to get around to sewing this up. It feels soft, it is not wool but has the thickness of wool, but also like a soft felt, the label said there is a high amount of polyester. My fingers are crossed that this fabric won't pill because right now it looks great. I just hope it wears well over time.  

Pinned front as I debate if I should put the button on, hmmm?  

The button that I have in mind has been in my stash a decade, at least. I picked it up at Courage My Love in Toronto. I plan to go with the majority vote and used the rectangular shaped button if I go with a button after all.

You see, I just have one problem when it comes to sewing the button and buttonhole. My Janome sewing machine has this wonderful automatic buttonhole maker. The problem is that the button I want to use is too big for this feature on my sewing machine. Mama R has a Singer sewing machine that can make any size of buttonholes but she is not too keen on letting me use her machine. I don't think she has completely forgiven me over that Singer threadle incident.

Yeah, after seeing this picture and looking this wide,
maybe I should keep it open and skip the button? 

I could use this opportunity to learn a new-to-me technique and sew a button hole by hand. Or I can take the easy way out and see if Stitch It! would sew a buttonhole for me.

For now, I'm considering this project done until I decided how to tackle the buttonhole. Or maybe I'll leave it alone and go without. Until then...

Happy Sewing!