Well it seems that warmer weather may at last be on its way to the UK so contrary mary that I am I decided to finish a winter suit that has been languishing in my UFO pile for quite a while. It was my second forage into vintage pattern sewing and I chose this pattern from McCalls. I don’t know why I always get seduced by the covers on vintage patterns as the women look so slim and elegant but the end result is never the same on my more, shall we say, rounded figure? However I always find that vintage patterns tend to be a better fit for me than their modern equivalent which is strange.
I made the jacket a few months ago – this was intended to be a try out for the pattern and I used some sale fabric from John Lewis which to be honest was probably intended for a coat. I just couldn’t find the right trim to finish this off until I went to Paris. I used the black chanel braid purchased there – I ummed and aaahed about using it on this project as after all it is a long way to Paris if I wanted more. I did make a straight skirt rather than a pencil one from the pattern as my hips will not bear that kind of scrutiny. I made a few mistakes on this – one I didn’t match up the pattern very well on the centre back seam of the skirt and secondly I don’t know what possessed me to put a stay lining in the back which only added to the bulk around the collar which is quite horrendous as I also have a facing there. Luckily my hair is shoulder length and hides most of the damage. Third I should have made the sleeves a bit longer. Apart from that it is perfect 🙂 Still we live and learn.
Here are some more piccies –
The lining:
Actually I prefer these as separates – the jacket looks nice with my black trousers (there’s a surprise) and the skirt looks really nice with a red jumper so they may end up like sausage and trifle – rarely seen in the same dish unless you are a ‘Come dine with me’ contestant. Actually I prefer the inside anyway but that would be a step too far! I have made another version of the jacket which you can view on my blog.
