We are welcoming spring in here in the UK, albeit with the arrival of snow, heavy rain and hail! and it's time for me to start thinking about clothes for the oncoming wedding season, I think we currently have 3 invitations and of course I need a different outfit for each one so this pretty high-low hemmed blazer was certainly appealing when it popped up as a tester call. Pattern DetailsThis is the Dakota Blazer from Laela-Jeyne Patterns*, it can have a high-low hem or a standard straight back for a more classic look. You are able to choose to add 1 or 2 buttons for closure and short, 3-quarter or full length petal shaped sleeves. The recommended fabrics for the main outer (2 yards of 60" wide) are medium weight wovens although sturdy knits such as Ponte Roma with minimal stretch could also work, it also requires a lightweight lining fabric (1 3/8 yards), optional interfacing and buttons. It is a PDF pattern for sizes XS-XXL (US dress size 0-22) and claims to be suitable as Maternity wear! I haven't personally seen any Maternity photos but with the single button just below the bust, I can see this should work well. The pattern pages have layers to help save ink, siply turn off the size(s) you don't need. Each pattern size has a different style dashed line and although the colours are different they are all very dark so practically impossible to see any difference when printed, the layers feature makes this unimportant though. This blazer pattern has been in testing for a whole month going through 5 different pattern versions to make sure fit was good for everyone testing and more testers were brought in to double check the final version as well. The instructions include a mixture of photographs and illustrations and a lot of thought has now gone into making sure both those and the written instructions are as clear as possible. My VersionI chose to use a white linen for the outer as I was planning for this to go over some of my Summer dresses to take the evening chill off, with a lot of those currently having either white backgrounds or white detailing I thought it would be most versatile! This was possibly a bad choice as as soon as I washed the fabric to pre-shrink it, it lost all of it's structure and stability. Not a bad look for over summer dresses but not the easiest to sew with! For the lining, I used a machine washable polyester lining fabric, perfect for sliding on over anything. I originally planned a 1.5" button but frantically raided my boys button tub for a suitable 1" button when I realised my buttonhole foot couldn't sew a big enough button hole, so be sure to check yours if yours can too! I made an XS (US size 0-2) with long sleeves and no other modifications. It was a relatively quick sew taking around 2.5 hours for me. I found the fabric requirements on the generous side for the XS, I bought 1.5 metres (approx 1 2/3 yard) of each main and lining and had plenty spare at the end. How does it Fit?Overall, I think it is a generous fit, I usually wear much more tailored blazers however for a relaxed less formal occasion this works well. You may also notice the wrinkles and drag lines around my elbows, these are partially due to the linen fabric creases crazy easy and partially that the sleeves were just a little too tight at the elbow on this version, this has been amended for the final pattern. I like the length of the sleeves but would possibly take a little out of the back length another time. Project CostFull Price Pattern - (£6.30) $9 (I received this pattern for free in return for testing the pattern) Main Fabric - £9 ($13) Lining Fabric - £2.50 ($3.50) Notions - £1.50 ($2.13) Total - £19.30 ($27.63) The pattern is on sale for $6.50 through to midnight (EST) 14th March and psst....if you sign up for the newsletter, you'll get an extra little surprise one time use discount code to use off your basket total! My Verdict!I will be re doing the sleeves on this one, using the new sleeve template and I'm sure I will get lots of wear out of it this year. I really like the design of this blazer but I would like to slim the body up a bit more for my personal preferences. I am not yet sure if I'll be sewing up another just yet although I think I'd like to try one in a patterned fabric to jazz up some of my plainer summer dresses so you never know! Blazer pattern - Dakota Blazer (affiliate link*)
Dress Pattern - Simplicity 6799 (I made this for a friends wedding this Autumn but didn't blog about it! I've added a little about it now though if you click through the link!) Fabric - Linen from Anglia Fashion Fabrics *This blog post does contain a few affiliate links, meaning I get a small percentage of the sale total back if you buy through my link at no extra cost to you. Please don't feel you have to use it but if you feel this post has inspired you and you'd like to, I'd really appreciate it, thank you!
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AuthorHi! I'm Sarah and I live with my 2 boys and my Husband in East Anglia, UK. I enjoy sewing for my family and it is my aim to have a completely MeMade wardrobe for us all! Archives
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