Vogue Capelet - Version 2

 A while ago I made the pattern above out of some red polyester twill:

I really liked the way it turned out, so much so that I decided to make a second version. The polyester was great, but nowhere near heavy enough to keep me warm. A little while ago I found some heavy wool crepe at an RSPCA charity shop - perfect for this pattern. Plus I had the big Spring Blogger Meet-Up to attend and I'm one of those people who likes to have something new to wear for occasions, so what better excuse!

And here it is:

Some details:

The fabric was thick - thickest fabric I've probably ever worked with. Turning corners, enclosing seams,etc, involved trimming, steaming, pressing, more trimming, more pressing, and so on until I had a reasonable finish.

Detail of collar edge, graded and clipped

 I love the swingy shape at the back, and to emphasise it I reinforced it with strips of horsehair canvas cut on the bias and sewn inside the hem allowance:

Bias strip laid inside hemallowance, and caught with long running stitches along the hemline, and herringbone stitch around the top edge.

 

 Because of the chunkiness of the fabric, I didn't want to attempt a buttonhole, so I cheated with a decorative button sewn on the outside -

 - with a large press stud sewn underneath:

Sneaky press stud!

I later swapped this for some 'frogs' I picked up at the afore-mentioned Blogger meet-up; I think they look better.

Sewing the frogs on by hand

And finally, I love a jazzy lining, so I used this nautical cotton which I picked up from Rolls and Rems, but never did anything with it:

The jacket is definitely warm enough for the crisp spring sunshine we're experiencing now. I didn't get many photos on the day, but here's that swingy back in action while I chat with Kathryn of Yes, I Like That :

See you soon!