This is probably the hardest and coolest thing I have sewn to date – a moto jacket, in wool melton (from Fabric.com), using the Style Arc Ziggi pattern.
I’ve been hearing good things about this indie pattern company for a while, and when Stacy Sews and Sew Maris announced their jacket sew-along, I knew it was time to take the plunge.
The jacket was going to be difficult construction-wise, so I decided to not stress over tweaking the fit. There were a number of sew-alongers messing with raising the armhole and the like. Eek! I am so not there yet. Knowing myself, I would have ever gotten past the muslin if I went in search of fit perfection. I bought a size 18 (based on my bust), lengthened the sleeves and inch and let out the hips 2 inches in the side seams. Those two tweaks alone set this jacket miles above anything I could find in the store.
When stretching your skill set, make sure you have a clear goal in mind. Are you learning construction? New fabrics? Fit? Keep that goal in focus and let the other things go. We can’t be experts in everything overnight.
The wool was lovely to sew, very forgiving, substantial. Perhaps, it was just a tad too thin for this project, but good enough. For the lining, I used a gorgeous anti-static from Jo Ann’s.
As far as the pattern goes, the pattern itself is lovely, but the directions might as well have been in Latin. Stacy and Maris’ posts are awesome though and following those will keep you on the straight and narrow. The zipper lengths for the sleeves and pockets indicated in the materials were longer than the lengths marked on the pattern. It wasn’t a big deal to work around it though. The only part that I got really tripped up was that my lower back lining was 3/4″ shorter than it needed. I checked and rechecked my pieces, so I am sure it is a pattern problem and not a construction/cutting error. Style Arc patterns are one-size, so maybe it is just for the size 18? I’ll write them and ask.
Here are some of the super helpful construction tutorials that got me through this project
- A List of All Sew-along Posts
- Collar Construction (awesome tips on “turn of cloth”)
- Near-seam Exposed Zipper Pockets
- Exposed Zipper Sleeve Opening (I left off the gusset.)
- How To “Bag” A Jacket Lining
Stylistically, there are lots of things to love about this pattern. The inverted triangle shape of the front panel with the asymmetrical zip looks way better than most jacket openings over my mom-pooch. The mini-peplum butt-flare thing curves around my back and butt in the just the right places. Again, it is super flattering in a hard-to-flatter area. And the zippers, oh, the zippers! They were a pain in the boo-tay to install but I la-la-la-love them. I have mine custom cut at Zipperstop and they are of amazing quality. I’m glad I splurged there.
I would have never had the courage to begin, or the knowledge to finish this jacket, if it hadn’t been for the encouraging hand-holding of the Ziggi Sew-along leaders Stacy Sews and Sew Maris. Thank you, ladies! You are wonderful teachers. It was an honor to learn under you.
You are the bomb.com
How awesome is that jacket?
Jodi that Jacket looks great on you! You go girl!
ps you look like a model
Thank you. It helps that my husband knows his way around a camera.
Great job! I love the jacket and it’s very flattering on you!
You look great! And the jacket looks great! And the jacket looks great on you! Thanks for the reminder that sometimes it’s not actually worth it to spend absolutely forever trying for the absolute perfect fit. Even with fairly advanced fitting skills, sometimes I spend so long tweaking the pattern but really I probably would have been happy had I just made basic alterations (like you did) because a couple small alterations does take it miles ahead of any RTW!
This turned out so beautifully! All you hard work paid off!
The jacket is awesome! Fits you great too!
Gorgeous!!!! You and the jacket!!
That is a brilliant jacket! I’m so impressed, way beyond my current sewing skills, but it’s exciting that in a few years I might be able to do make a coat!! I hope you get lots of wear out of it, it looks great on you!
Don’t give up! You will definitely get here! 🙂
It’s gorgeous! And those photos are great!
That last photo just blows me away… You are gorgeous in all your sewing mommyness! I want to be you when I grow up 🙂 this jacket looks so good, and I am excited to learn of you zipper secret 🙂 thank you for making and sharing!
Oh Jodi, you did a BEAU-ti-ful job on your Ziggi, and it looks AMAZING on you! You were such a great participant in our sew-along – I totally loved getting to know you better. And girl, no apologizing for your skills. You did just great. Wear that Ziggi with pride!
That jacket is fantastic! And I love your comment about not being an expert overnight. I think that is a very good way to look at sewing- to focus on one aspect and not expect total perfection right away. Although from where I am sitting, that jacket looks pretty darn close to perfect!
I agree Liza Jane – “perfection” is not the goal – but improving our skills and challenging ourselves to stretch and grow should be the goal. And look what Jodi got out of that effort – a GREAT jacket!
Stephanie – you can sew Style Arc patterns. In a way they are better because the cryptic instructions force you to really think through the construction process on your own rather than just blinding following pattern instructions. Which BTW, how often has THAT gotten us all into trouble? 😉
I find their patterns incredibly intimidating – let alone this jacket! It looks absolutely amazing. I hope you tell everyone within eyesight that you made it yourself!
That is amazing! I love the wool you chose, especially with that lining, and your sewing is incredible! Well done. =)
Gorgeous! It’s so well tailored…you’ve done an amazing job!
It was fun following this on IG and I love the finished result. Nicely done!
Love the Moto jacket. It looks fantastic. Well done!
Looks Great on you! very impressive.
Thanks for the good writeup, too…
Fabulous!!! You look so great in this jacket!
This jacket is AMAZING!
Your jacket is so pretty Jodi and you give me hope to make this jacket. I opened the pattern ,saw the directions and was like, “oh crap!”
Thanks, Justine! I hope you make one!