Tag Archives: jacket

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JUNIOR RAVER HOODIE

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Immediately after my niece received her hoodie, almost-7-year-old Kaden requested one of his own and I got to deliver it in person.

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He drew me this picture of poop, pee, and diarrhea. Later we played in the park, and pretended that dogs were poo monsters and the only way for us to be safe was to climb the sprawling oak trees. He has a slight lisp, and hearing him scream “POO MONTHTUZZ!” was equally adorable and hilarious.

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I drafted the pattern myself and it just fits him. I would have preferred for it to be a little roomier, but it fits him now and it will fit a different kid next year, when I will have to make a new jacket for the little guy. Like his sister’s, this hoodie is made from all remnants and stashed fabrics. The shell is lycra, the lining is snuggle fleece, the pockets and hood are minky, and the hood is trimmed in faux fur.

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IMG_0212I also gave him (and his sister) some of my painted goggles that look cool but are rather worthless at Burning Man. And he lost his front tooth that night! The other front tooth popped out a few days later.

He slept with this hoodie on their first night together, so that’s a good sign (Bloppy Bloppy was also jammin’ on the top bunk).

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My niece is almost 13 and definitely no longer a little girl who likes to cuddle and be 100% sweet (though of course I am very proud of the smart and talented teen she is becoming), so it was really awesome to spend time with my nephew while he still is a little boy who will let me kiss his head and just be silly. What sweethearts!

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YELLOW JACKET RECON

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Last winter I found this yellow coat at a thrift store. It’s part of the Liberty of London collection for Target, and I liked the color and fabric, but wasn’t nuts about the cut. The two-piece notched collar does not work for me at all.

Here’s the original coat:

liberty coatliberty coat

But luckily my jacket doesn’t have that awful print repeat in the product photo. There would be no saving it then.

yellow jacket, made by Julianne

 Not exactly the most flattering shape, plus you know I can’t just wear something off the rack.

First thing I did was to cut off the collar, which necessitated binding the raw edge. I also added a faux-yoke for aesthetic reasons. I put in two new buttonholes so that the coat could be buttoned all the way to the top, replaced the black ball buttons with silver plated flat buttons, and I added an extra pleat at the back. I wore the jacket around rainy Richmond VA for my cousin’s wedding, and then forgot about it for a year.

yellow jacket, made by Julianne

yellow jacket, made by Julianne

yellow jacket, made by Julianne

Round 2 of renovations began with opening the lining and re-doing that CB pleat. I added the band to lower the empire waist down to my natural waist, which is so much more flattering on my body. The fabric is silk dupioni from my wedding skirt, and I love the way it plays off the yellow cotton.

yellow jacket recon, made by Julianne

I tapered the back seams to eliminate some of the cocoon shape. The sleeve caps were lowered at the same time I narrowed the shoulders, and I took in the bust of the jacket about 1″. I eliminated pleats at the front and inserted pockets into the seams.

yellow jacket recon, made by Julianne

I’m pretty impressed at the quality construction of this garment. I don’t know what the Target retail price was, but even their designer collections are inexpensive (I paid $20, which was my entire thrifty budget for the excursion). The sleeves are set in with a braided cotton tape to prevent warping, the stitching is all very even and careful, and the fabric feels like a quality cotton.

yellow jacket recon, made by Julianne

The front binding needs some ironing. It had been machine stitched on, but the bias warped and looked cheap. Instead I used a whip stitch in red thread, which is what I’d always wanted to do. yellow jacket recon, made by Julianne

I’m not quite finished though. As much as I love the floral print, I think it’s a little overwhelming for a whole coat. I’m thinking about replacing the set-in sleeves with raglan sleeves, probably a similar color to the belt. I have some bright orange cotton twill that could be toned down by a quick dip in a black dye bath, but California is in a serious drought and I don’t feel good about how much water will be required to wash out black dye. I dunno, it’s wearable with the current sleeve, so who knows when the raglan will happen.

Also those silver buttons are just temporary; I’m on the hunt for 1″ gold buttons!

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MOODY HOODIE

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My adorable little niece has been at it again, always growing up! She’s almost 13, and exactly like her momma has entered the somewhat moody ‘my favorite color is black’ phase of her life (and is just as sweet and funny as ever, but now with added introspection and an Instagram account).

I should have been working on projects for clients, but one morning I came across these gray and black remnants and dropped everything to whip up a hoodie for my little brooding ray of sunshine.

striped hoodie, made by Julianne

I wanted the hoodie to feel like a cocoon, something she could retreat into, something that would make her mother say “I can’t see your face!”

striped hoodie, made by Julianne

striped hoodie, made by Julianne  striped hoodie, made by Julianne

striped hoodie, made by Julianne  v

So it’s all remnant fabrics, and the silver zipper was also from my stash. I had purple and blue thread in my serger, which happens to be Allia’s current favorite color besides black and gray. I used a vintage raglan pattern as a base, and added the hood and pockets.

Of course now her little brother wants one too, but his should be green and blue, and he drew me a picture of poop as payment.

striped hoodie, made by Juliannestriped hoodie, made by Julianne

Don’t let that look on her face fool you, she’s just as weird and silly as the rest of us.

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