I had a wonderful time making the patchwork jacket for my Great British Sewing Bee inspired challenge and I have worn it a lot, but the cropped length and sleeves meant it wasn’t going to see me through the winter. Fortunately, I got the Megan Nielsen Hovea pattern for Christmas and had added the quilted coat to my #makenine22 list, so I was all set to rectify this!
I had originally planned to make my own patchwork for the project, but earlier in the year I splurged on some absolutely gorgeous jacquard fabric from Merchant and Mills and decided to use that instead. The fabric design looks like quilted stars and I thought it would make a really fun and interesting coat.
The jacquard fabric isn’t particularly thick, but it is made up of two layers – much like a double gauze. I pondered what to use for the lining and thought a cotton voile would probably be best as it is nice and lightweight, but I wanted my coat to be really warm and instead opted for some plain quilting cotton. In hindsight I think the voile would have been a better option as my coat has ended up being a little bulky, but it is definitely very toasty!
As well as being a little bulky, I think my coat is a bit too big and if I made it again, I would definitely size down. I am between a size 2 and 4 on the Megan Nielsen size chart and although the pattern states that plenty of ease has been included, I opted to make the size 4 which was probably the wrong decision! It sounds silly, but I feel like someone wearing one of those inflatable sumo wrestler costumes when I put it on at the moment – I think wearing it and washing it to break it in will be key to softening it up, so I will definitely be working on that over the next few months.
In terms of construction, once I had quilted my pieces and cut everything out while painstakingly pattern-matching, actually putting my coat together didn’t take that long at all. I chose to bind the seams using the same quilting cotton I had lined it with and once I had attached the binding using my machine, I slip stitched it down to finish the insides neatly. As a quilter with lots of experience of this, I’m pretty quick and this stage didn’t add much extra time to the project at all.
I decided not to bind the sleeve seams as I was beginning to worry about bulk and stiffness and thought this would be a bad move. Instead, I overlocked the arm syce and sleeve head before inserting the sleeve and then pressed the seam open, which I think is definitely less bulky and was a great call.
I really wanted to be delighted with my finished coat as I had been looking forward to making it for so long and it was such a labour of love, but at the moment, I’m not. It’s certainly very warm and will be worn a lot this winter (mostly around the house) but I just think my choice of lining fabric and size means it has missed the mark slightly and, in all honesty, I’m a bit disappointed with it. I still adore the Hovea pattern and I have seen so many beautiful versions on Instagram that I will definitely make another one. I will just be sure to make better choices about my fabrics and the size I cut next time!
I think we are our own worst judge sometimes. While you may feel like the jacket doesn’t fit correctly it looks like a perfect fit to me. A quilted jacket in general feels stiff until it’s worn in just like a quilt. I love your fabric choices and I think you look amazing!
Thank you Maureen – you are absolutely right! I’m sure the jacket will wear-in nicely and be well-loved in the end. 😊 The fabric really is beautiful – the buyers at Merchant and Mills have an exceptionally good eye! ❤️
Gosh isn’t it amazing how personal these things are, I looked at your jacket and thought WOW re everything about it – fabric, pattern choice, lining, pattern matching, sizing…. But it’s your jacket and you need to love it. I’ve had a few makes lately that others love and I just don’t. Well done and you’ll be really happy with your next one! Donna
Thanks so much, Donna – we are definitely our worst critics! I’m hopeful it will grow on me and if it doesn’t, I’ll be much happier with my next version! 😊
Oh bless you irs so hard when something you have in your head doesnt quite come out the same. give it a while though…it’ll soften to you and hopefully you to it …. Worst case you could take sleeves off ?
I definitely think wearing it and washing it will make a big difference, so that’s the plan! It’s not the end of the world and it’ll keep me very warm, even if I only wear it at home. 😊
Honestly it doesn’t look bulky. It looks as a quilt coat should be. I love that fabric from MM. Great choice!
Thanks so much, Bay! A very good point. 😊 The fabric really is brilliant – I’m so glad I bought some!
How do you feel about your coat two years later? I think it looks great btw! I’m here because I’m about to embark on my first hovea and your blog post is super helpful.
Hi Carly! I’m so pleased you have found my blog post helpful. I will be honest – this doesn’t get worn a lot, and I very rarely wear it out of the house, which is such a shame! But it’s just a bit too bulky, and I have never felt very comfortable in it. I hope you make better fabric and size choices than I did, and end up with a jacket you really love!