The jacket is made in pleather. I fell in love with the floral pleather from Fabric Godmother
https://www.fabricgodmother.co.uk/winter-rose-faux-leather-black/ It's still available and it is gorgeous. Love the blush coloured roses. I paired it with some plain black.
The jacket pattern is fairly straightforward but it is made much more difficult if you sew it in pleather. I used a leather needle and invested in a Teflon foot
https://www.sewingmachinesales.co.uk/sewingmachineparts/feet/pfaff-teflon-foot.htm. I also used clips and not pins. You can't make holes in this fabric as they will show.
As you can't really press pleather I top-stitiched all the seams and the collar etc.
I'm also wearing the trousers/leggings from the pattern, and I love these. I made them from ponte and they have a two inch wide elastic in the waist. I added 1" to the crotch length and also an inch to the leg length (even though I'm only 5'4"). I just find these trousers so useful and will make them again and again. The seams are top-stiched and this gives a much better finish. I made a size 12, but have lost a bit of weight since then and they could do with being a little tighter.
Also wearing a sweater I've just knitted. This is Wool and the Gang's Relax Knit through It Sweater
https://www.woolandthegang.com/en/products/relax-knit-through-it-sweater?taxon_id=673. Now this is a great beginners sweater. It's basically four squares. I knitted the smallest size, and strangely has a whole ball of wool left.
I decided not to sew the neck right up to the top, preferring to create an asymmetric collar.
If you can do basic stocking stitch, you should be able to knit this one. Love the blush colour.
It's been a long time since my last post and there is a reason for this. About a month ago I was made redundant after working for my College for 23 years, it was a real shock and threw me so I didn't feel a lot like sewing or blogging. I also lost quite a bit of weight, which does mean most of my clothes are a bit on the loose size.. It's been a time of reflecting and thinking about how I approach this and what to do next. I'm unlikely to get a similar job at my age. I am thinking positively though; after 43 years of working at an incredible pace and in my last job with a lot of pressure, it is something of a release and having more time, which eventually will mean more sewing is great!
Beautiful garments, thanks for sharing them. Sorry to hear about the shock of redundancy. Hopefully this will be a new chapter in your life full of exciting things. I have found mindfulness helpful as well as seeing the GP.
ReplyDeletefantastic outfit, both are lovely.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great outfit. The jacket is spectacular. So sorry to hear about your redundancy; that must be very difficult. All good wishes for the future.
ReplyDeleteLove that sweater and the blush colour. I have also discovered blush this year and was really surprised that I could wear it. Now I have several pieces to make.
ReplyDeleteMy husband was made redundant in 2000 from his FE college at the age of 55 due to ‘restructuring’. His tier was totally removed from the structure to save them lots of money. He was shell shocked, although he had said that nobody was safe from the chop, it was still a great blow to his confidence and made him very sad after all his years of hard work. He decided to go right back to basics and become a ‘normal’ class lecturer which meant revising his subject before teaching it after many years of senior management. We moved away from our son’s childhood home (along with 2 elderly relatives) but it was to the beautiful New Forest and he loved being in the classroom again. It all worked out well in the end although it was many years before he managed to put away the grief of rejection. I wish you well and hope that you manage to find something else which you can enjoy, maybe a complete change of direction is in the offing. Good luck.
I love this outfit. That jacket is so chic! Thank you for the information about the sweater, I actually would have assumed it would be too hard for me, but it sounds approachable after reading your description. It is so difficult in the moments when life makes big changes. I have noticed that the difficulties can become positive changes. I wish the best for you. Sewing really does help, doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing Mags - I always love seeing what you make (and you always wear everything you make so well!). I'm sorry to hear about your redundancy... but love your attitude. Those in my inner circle who have gone through similar circumstances have always found it to be an opportunity to mould a new beginning for themselves, and I hope the same will be so for you x
ReplyDeleteHi!I just happened upon your blog from ruthieksews1. lovely sewing here!
ReplyDeleteI am 58 and finally decided to leave a career that was just a poor fit for me. a little sooner that I had planned but there was a bit of a push behind me...
anyway, I don't what my next steps are, exactly, but will need employment in the future. just want to take a little time to breathe! it sounds like your new job is exactly what you needed!