It has been awhile since I made a blazer, and Wardrobe by Me was going into testing for one. The timing was less than ideal. I had already committed to doing some sample sewing and another test, and then I had a funeral. I was soooooo very glad when I got this finished.
It turned out very nice, though, so that was my carrot for the trial of accomplishing this pattern. It took the majority of one week’s sewing. There are a lot of pieces to cut out, interface and mark/baste stitch/notch. Luckily it was drafted well, so everything went together nicely.
Blixen Blazer
I did do a few things that made it more difficult:
- Leather welts and collar
- Thin, slippery satin lining
- Non-stretch interfacing
So…don’t do that. For the first one you make at least. There were also testers that had issues using scuba knit, since it really didn’t iron flat. I would not recommend that type of knit. This was a pretty sturdy ponte knit, and it ironed very well. The thin, slippery satin lining was the devil’s handmaiden, though. It acted like I cut it all on the bias. It suuuuuuuucked.
This blazer looks and feels expensive, and I am very happy with the outcome.
I made a size 12 with no alternations.
There were some changes after this version. The back notches for the sleeve were not in the right spot, so I had to really iron out some puckers. In the final version she had them placed correctly. Mine was made worse, as I did not use a stretch interfacing. I didn’t have enough tricot interfacing to do the jacket. I should have ordered more, but this test came up sooner than I thought it would.
This is the peplum back. If you want it more full, it would be fairly easy to just slash and spread this piece and the lining piece to get a fuller back.
Lots of nice tailoring in this. The notched collar and back darts.
The front piece has the dart and welt in a combined piece. The pieces all went together very well. Christina does a good job at drafting.
I put my buttonhole in wrong. It should be a horizontal and not vertical hole. I should have remembered that, but it was the LAST THING I needed to do. I honestly was so excited I was just about finished.
I think it would be fairly workable to use zippers in the place of the welts, too. You would just use the interfacing piece to make the pocket facing and the sew the zippers to that piece or a narrow seam around the opening. That would look pretty nice and modern.
This is the “bane of my existence” lining. A pretty satin.
Taking photos for this was a challenge due to the angle of the sun. I also did some cloning on the ground where our mulch needs to get raked back up a bit. Looks like the kids have some yard work to do! 😉
I love the details with the leather collar and welt pockets, but they do make it more of a challenge. I used wondertape to hold it in place and also clips instead of pins. I am actually using my clips a lot more than pins these days. Makes it a bit faster and I can’t try to sew over them!
If you don’t have shoulder pads on hand, just use some quilt batting. That is what I usually do now. It gives it some form, but it still forms well to your body.
Details on the pattern release sale:
Blixen Blazer on sale for one week for $12 (reg. $15)
Oh, and I made my shirt, too, but I will post about that later. It is hard to get pictures of white shirts. It actually has an interesting detail on it that really doesn’t show up in these photos.
Oh, this is so beautiful, the leather combination is perfect. Fabulous job.
Thanks, Lori! Leather always makes it a bit more of a challenge, but I love how hit looks. 🙂