threadWEAR 301

I've always liked the look of the West End Jacket. It is a great looking, casual jacket that can be thrown over anything. However, I am not a fan of a hood, so I have avoided making it. But when I was thinking about making a garment using our fabulous Palm Tree fabric, I decided that it was time to tackle a woven, hoodless version of the West End. Creating the jacket without the hood was incredibly simple, involving just a few tweaks to the pattern. Read along to see how I did it and make your own!

 Welcome to the FINAL post of the Stafford Sew Along! Today we are going to finish the garment by hemming, adding buttons to the Flaps and sewing on the snaps. We thank everyone who has joined us through this Stafford Sew Along, and remember, if you didn't have the time to actually sew along with us, you can go back and reference these posts whenever you are ready to make your own Stafford. Let's get sewing! 

 Welcome to the Stafford Sew Along part seven - today we are going to attach the sleeves. If you are just joining us, be sure to look back to the previous the Stafford Sew Along posts. If you have been sewing with us this whole time, then you are almost finished! We will have one more post, and then you can wear your fabulous new spring jacket. Let's get sewing!

Welcome back to the Stafford Sew Along! In this post we will walk through how to attach the collar. If you are just joining us, be sure to check out Part One: Cutting and Marking, Part Two: Topstitching Tips, Part Three: Sewing the Front, Part Four: Sewing the Pocket, and Part Five: Sewing the Back. Now let's get sewing! 

​Welcome to the Stafford Sew Along Part Five. Today we will be working on sewing with the Back, Side Back and Back Yoke pieces. If you are just joining us, be sure to read through Part One: Cutting and Marking, Part Two: Topstitching Tips, Part Three: Sewing the Front, and Part 4: Sewing the Pockets. Let's get sewing!

Welcome to the Stafford Sew Along Part 4. Today we will be inserting the pockets. If you are just joining us, be sure to checkout Part 1: Cutting and Marking, Part 2: Topstitching Techniques, and Part 3: Sewing the Front. Let's start sewing!

​Today on the Stafford Sew Along we want to discuss tips for topstitching success. The Stafford Jacket features decorative topstitching along most of the seams. It is important to spend time before you start on your project testing your fabric and perfecting your topstitching. Not only does this make your garment look more professional, but it will also save you the time of seam ripping. Let's get started. 

Welcome to the Stafford Sew Along Part Three! Today we will be sewing the front of the jacket. Be sure to read through parts one and two of the Sew Along, where we discuss cutting and marking, as well as topstitching tips. If you have already done so, then let's get sewing!  

 Welcome to the Stafford Sew Along. Today we are going to discuss the materials you will need for this project, as well as cutting, marking and some of our signature techniques. Let's get sewing! 

Our new Stafford Jacket was inspired by that most classic of garments, the jean jacket. Who doesn't have a jean jacket (even I have one and I don't own any actual jeans!). There is just something so right about the slouchy denim jacket. It is comfortable, functional and always looks good. Thinking about the Stafford, we combined the archetypal jean jacket with a cropped swing shape. The most unique feature of a jean jacket is the wonderful topstitching featured on the front, a detail we incorporated into the Stafford. Good topstitching is the hallmark of a professional looking garment, but can be tricky to perfect. Read on for some suggestions on making your topstitching clean and professional.

Simple and elegant. A dash of Audrey Hepburn with a sprinkle of Jackie O. – that is the Chateau Coat. Whether you make it in a bold Missoni knit or classic black Scuba, this is the jacket that people will stop you on the street to ask about. "Where did you get that fabulous coat?" The answer? "Well, I made it of course!"

​It's here! The first Sew Confident! tutorial of 2017, the San Diego Bomber. If you haven't used our Sew Confident! tutorials before, they are our monthly digital tutorials that can be subscribed to by the year, or bought individually as they are released (a first for 2017!). This year our theme is Variations With Verve and each month we will be sharing techniques for customizing patterns for your unique style, To kick off the year, Erin demonstrates how she transformed our San Diego pattern into this on-trend bomber jacket. 

Our customer Nancy Means has used the Tremont Jacket pattern to make some fantastic vests. She is our guest blogger for this post. Whether you like sleeveless for summer, or layering vests for the cooler months ahead, we think you'll like these ideas.

In the December 16, 2015 blog post called French Terry Topper, I described the process of lengthening the Chicago Jacket to make a longer version in French terry. The coat looks and feels great, but I noticed after it was made that it wants to fly open at the bottom a bit, even when just hanging on a hanger.

Martha Myers is a wonderful customer and Sew Kansas participant. She writes about many of her projects on her own blog. She made this amazing variation of a Peony Vest so we asked her to share the story as our guest blogger for this post. Enjoy and prepare to be inspired!

Every time I fly to Chicago, I always make time to walk through Neiman Marcus on Michigan Avenue to see the Eskandar line of clothing.The pieces are simple. The designer basically turns out the same designs every season and simply changes up the fabrications and perhaps a length or two.

We are excited to launch our new pattern, the Fillmore Duster! 

The inspiration for this jacket came from an OSKA advertisement. It was a yellow felled-wool jacket that had all the "bones" of our Zona Jacket. I love to create garments with boucle nylon and wool fabric using lapped seams and raw edge techniques.

I can attribute my re-entry into sewing in 1986 to my friend and tennis partner, Hildegard McManus.

French terry is a type of jersey knit fabric that has vertical ribs on one side of the fabric and fine loops on the other side, unlike terrycloth, which has loops on both sides. It has entered the fashion scene once again and is used by designers for all kinds of ready-to-wear including coats and toppers.

This Metallic Terry Knit is very unique. Soft and warm with the perfect amount of sparkle. A traditional sweatshirt or jacket just wouldn't do. The new Tremont Jacket pattern has a great fit. So why not try a vest?