Made by a Fabricista: Fall Wardrobe Planning

I knew I wanted a lightweight material for the outer, and something I could potentially apply a water repellency coating to for some weather proofing for rainy afternoons. I started looking in the Coating/Jacketing section of the Fabric Mart website and came across the jackpot: this olive tan Poly/Rayon with a water repellency property! It also happened to be on sale, so I picked up my needed yardage for about $21. Knowing I was also doing a lining, I looked around for a coordinating color that cost me about $15. This jacket pattern can also be found in Fabric Mart’s pattern section!

The drawstring waist on this piece is so flattering whether zipped or unzipped. It is such an easy, lightweight piece to bring with you if you’re unsure of the weather and want to have a layer just in case. This jacket can take on many different personalities depending on your fabric choice. It can be utility chic in a neutral canvas like I made or a fun statement piece with pop of pattern or color. You could do a fun lining or bright buttons as well. I chose a neutral color myself since I know I am typically wearing colors and/or a pattern!

I chose to line my jacket, which is an additional add-on pattern Closet Core offers. This gives it such a well-constructed and ready-to-wear feel, so I highly recommend grabbing both. The pattern recommends a flat felled seam for a clean finish inside, but if you’re doing a lining you could do what I did, which is just finish the seams with a serged edge to keep them from fraying since everything will be hidden by the lining.

It’s important to note though that if you do go with the lining, you will print the jacket outer pieces from the jacket pattern, the lining pieces from the lining pattern – but you will use the full instructions for jacket construction from the lining pattern. I tried to work between the two (oops!) and it was really confusing, so learn from my mistake! I highly recommend using the Sewalongs on their blog for this jacket as well, they have great clear photos to walk you through the steps.



Make sure you press your seams and always take care when topstitching! I mean, is there anything better than a sharply turned and pressed corner or a satisfying line of topstitching? Both of those tasks are two of my least favorite while sewing, but I think with this jacket it makes ALL the difference in the world. I also think having matching hardware for the jacket makes it look so well put together! I purchased a hardware kit from Closet Core for this jacket and it came with everything needed –drawstring and stops, snaps and the correct length zipper. Not having to source my own bits & pieces for this jacket was one less stress, and when it came time for finishing touches, it was so easy!



Another great tip (that I wish I would have done!) is that if your material is prone to fraying, serge or zigzag the edges or apply some fray check along the edges to prevent the pieces from getting too messy. I did not do this and not only was it time consuming to have to keep stopping to cut off all the stray fibers, but I also jammed my sewing machine up with all the extra fibers getting stuck between the needle & bobbin case!

I can definitely see myself wearing this jacket nonstop this fall when the temperatures start cooling off! This material was so easy to work with (minus the fraying, but that’s user error!) and I think this came together so well! This piece was time consuming and detail oriented, but it was so worth it for a piece I can wear for many seasons to come!

Thanks for coming along for my August post! What is your must make for a fall wardrobe?