Made By A Fabricista: Sporty But Make It Fashion

Do you have any patterns in your stash that you’ve been wanting to make for years and just haven’t gotten around to doing it? I suppose, if you’re anything like me and catch all the pattern sales, then you must have a ton of patterns that fall into this category. I purchased McCall’s 7100 a while ago and even cut it out, but I never made it. It’s been so long that, unfortunately, it’s out of print.

McCall’s 7100 is a great jacket to add to your wardrobe during this season because it’s an unlined bomber jacket. I needed a new jacket so I was so excited to make this. Based on my measurements I made a Large and I made view D with the side pocket option. I decided to color block the sleeves and used the reverse side of my fabric. I did not make any modifications to the pattern and just followed the pattern instructions.

While I was gathering my notions before I started sewing, I realized that the pattern called for a 20” separating zipper and I only had a 22” separating zipper. I remembered watching a tutorial on how to shorten a zipper and decided to give it a try. This is how to shorten a separating zipper.

1. Measure from the bottom of the zipper to your desired length and mark the zipper.

2. Remove the zipper stoppers from the top of the zipper so that you can reuse then when you shorten the zipper.

3. Using pliers, remove zipper teeth.

4. Trim down zipper if the fabric frayed.

5. Burn frayed zipper fabric. This is optional.

Matching Shorts

Now, I couldn’t just make a jacket without making something else to match! I decided on Simplicity 9338 by Mimi G. Now I know, Norris is on the cover, but I decided to make these for me! I originally purchased this pattern because I wanted to sew more for my son, but I also love the waistband detail. This pattern can be made as shorts or as cargo pants and I made the shorts with side pockets. I made a size Large although I could have sized down to a Medium. I’ll try that next time. I didn’t make any alterations to the pattern at all. Now, you’ll notice that you cannot see the drawstring. Well, I sewed on the waistband wrong so my buttonholes for the drawstring are in the inside instead of on the outside. I still love my shorts and the drawstring is still functional.

Fabric Choice

Let’s talk about this amazing Fabric Mart fabric that I used to make my outfit! This is a Lapis Blue/Muted Midnight Navy Polyester/Lycra Twill Double Faced Knit. (Currently sold out) My most favorite part of this fabric is that it’s double sided!! I used the Lapis side for most of my outfit and used the Midnight Navy side for the sleeves of my jacket. This is the perfect fabric for my jacket because it’s light weight.

Originally I was going to style this outfit with sneakers, but I decided to throw on some heels instead. I love making versatile pieces that I am able to dress up or down.

Well, I hope you all love my bomber jacket and shorts as much as I do. Don’t forget to be sporty, but make it fashion!

Until next time!

JOHANNA | @soveryjo

Unfortunately Fabric Mart Fabrics sell out quickly!
You can find similar fabrics by shopping the following category: KNITS.