WIP: Vogue 8756, A Jacket for Elaine

My friend Elaine Luther is a metalsmith. Isn't that a cool word?? I wish there was a word for sewing that included the suffix "smith" - fabricsmith? needlesmith? If there was, I would get a tattoo with that word.

Elaine makes jewelry and art and art jewelry. I met her through Berwyn Makers, a group I co-founded to support people who are trying to make a business out of their creative hobby. Elaine is now a co-organizer with me and I feel lucky to get to work with her. We cooked up a plan to do a trade since we admire each other's work.

You can see what Elaine's up to (and check out her shop!) by visiting her website: ElaineLutherArt.com.

Elaine is speaking at a conference this weekend and I'm in the process of finishing a jacket for her. I'll then get to pick something out of one of her jewelry collections, and I'm having a hard time figuring out what I want! I love how strong her jewelry is - feminine and striking without being too pretty.

Back to the jacket. It's a fairly simple jacket - fitted back with loose, drapey front. It's a good style for Elaine's body type, as it hits above her hip with only the draping dipping down to hip level. A long jacket would just make her look shorter.

Vogue 8756

We took a trip to the Textile Discount Outlet in Pilsen and found some magenta (see! I'm not the only one!) wool crepe. We originally picked out a gray Bemberg lining but then I found more interesting fabric in my stash:

We did a muslin fitting last week, and in spite of the fact that I went down a size from Elaine's measurements, it was still too big. I needed to raise the shoulder and the sleeve and shorten the front drape (Elaine is petite and it overpowered her frame). I also decided to add a princess seam line to the back since the darts nearly met in the middle of the back.

Once I started working with the wool I decided to underline it with cotton batiste to keep it from wrinkling so much and to give the jacket body a bit more structure (without losing the drape). 

I also used a technique I learned from Peggy Sayers for the sleeve head. I decreased the seam allowance to 3/8" and used tie interfacing to ease the sleeve head into shape. It made the sleeves so easy to insert!

Tomorrow I will do a final fitting with Elaine to see if I need to make changes and then I'll sew in the lining. I need to get it done by Thursday  - think good thoughts for the fitting tomorrow!