Colorways by Vicki Welsh

Actually, I don’t think I could ride a bike again. I wasn’t that good at it when I was a kid. I was much better at spending my summers laying on the sofa reading books or sewing things. But, it seems that I do still have my garment sewing skills! I remembered how to grade seams and the collarstand and cuffs were a breeze. This is my test fit garment before I make the “real” one of the embroidered linen. But this one turned out great and I know I will use it.

The alterations I made were for length. I took 2″ out of the sleeve length and over 2″ off the garment length. If you are interested, the pattern is Simplicity 9239.

Did you notice this little strip on the back? The blue fabric had a little hole in it so I added a patch from one of the fabrics as the front. I’m glad it had a hole in it because I like this addition.

I decided on vintage mother of pearl buttons for this jacket but they were filthy. It was time to change the brush on toothbrush so I used it to wash the buttons. A couple of the buttons really needed the extra scrubbing from the electric toothbrush and they all came up great.

After I finished the jacket and was trying it on I was unhappy with how floppy the facing was. Since both front pieces are patchwork, I was able to stitch in the ditch on the piecing seams so that the facing is now fixed and the seam doesn’t show.

I’m really happy with the fit. For the next version I just increased the sleeve length about 1/2 inch because that fabric is stiffer. When I cut this one I debated between 2 sizes and I’ve decided to stay with the XS size. It has plenty of ease for a summer jacket. If I was making this for winter to wear over long sleeves, I might make it a size larger. I think the next version will be a couple of inches shorter but that might affect whether I can have side pockets or not. This jacket does have inseam pockets. I always love having pockets.

I think this was a fun way to use up some feedsack fabrics. I’ve already washed the jacket because, well, these fabrics smelled like they have been in a fabric stash for over 50 years. It washed up really nicely and isn’t going to require much ironing. I think this will be a soft and comfy jacket to have.

I’m getting prepared to start the “real” jacket now and my first step was to look at button options. What do you think? Do you have a preference?