Finally! The completed "Missoni" jacket

Wow, this has taken forever! Not the making...waiting for a chance to get outside and snap some pictures of the finished product.

Finally, it stopped raining, I wasn't working and the sun came out. I grabbed my tripod and took advantage of our unseasonably warm, almost spring-like weather. So here it is....

 

This may not be every man's cup of tea, but I'm totally loving it.

 

 

It "works" both buttoned and unbuttoned. I'm very glad that I increased the width of the front facings. Nothing "falls out".

 

 

Like the Missoni model, it has rounded patch pockets and soft shoulders. I like to think of it as a jazzed up cardigan sweater.

 

 

The texture of the knit really shows in this back view. (Please excuse the wrinkle... my stylist had the day off)

What I feared was going to be a very difficult fabric to sew, turned out to be incredibly easy to work with.

I have this fabric in a green color-way, and will no doubt be making another one of these "Phoney Missoni" sweater / blazers in the future. I love it that much.

 

 

I've already worn this several times, and always to rave reviews. It looks great with jeans and also with my velvet Jeds as shown here. All in all, a very satisfying project, and a garment that I can dress up or down depending on the occasion.

 

Just to recap since it's been so long....

Fabric -- "Chase Crush" from Vogue Fabrics. (I think no longer available)

Lining -- Bamboo terry knit, Eggplant from Vogue Fabrics

Pattern -- Simplicity 9293 (1979)

 

Wishing you all a Happy New Year filled with sewing adventures.

 

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Constructing my Faux Missoni

The "Chase Crush" Missoni-esque knit that I've chosen for this project is pretty light weight and VERY stretchy. It just doesn't feel substantial enough for a jacket. I had also ordered a dark purple bamboo knit from Vogue Fabrics, thinking that I would use it for Thread Theory's new Finlayson Sweater, but it also feels too light. My solution is to combine the two fabrics. Interlining with the bamboo will give me the heft I need. It's also incredibly soft. I wish you could feel this fabric. Soft as any cashmere sweater.

So here we go!

 

I'm a "baste-a-holic" so none of this bothered me. The pattern pieces were cut and then sandwiched together to act as a single layer of fabric. This process went quickly using cotton basting thread. It's amazing how having the right thread can make all the difference. This type of thread is virtually tangle proof, so you just zip along. Highly recommended. I threw in some extra vertical and horizontal lines of basting to keep everything in place.

 

 

I learned from making my muslin that knits want to roll up after they've been cut. My Missoni-esque fabric is no exception. It's also quite loosely knit and I was worried about its stability. (Probably totally unfounded, but I'm new to knits and they unnerve me!). As extra insurance I applied a fusible knit interfacing to the hem of the jacket. This is Pro-Tricot Deluxe Fusible interfacing from Fashion Sewing Supply. This is a whisper weight stretch fusible, and was SO easy to work with. It fused effortlessly with very slight pressure on a wool steam setting. All my rolling and stabilization issues solved! Maybe I can work with knits after all.

 

 

The patch pockets were stabilized with interfacing, and then lined with some leftover acetate from my stash of scraps. The pattern doesn't include this step, but then again it's a "quick and easy" pattern. I figure if you can make something better, why not take the time. It can sometimes make the difference between a garment you really love to wear, and one that just sits in the closet.

 

All the seams were both basted and pinned before stitching. I'm happy to report that I had absolutely no difficulty sewing this on my Singer 301(a no frills straight-stitch).

 

 

I wanted the sleeves to be lined so that there would be no raw edges to be finished. I used the technique from Roberto Cabrera's book on men's tailoring, (minus all the handstitching!). The inside out lining is place on top of the inside out sleeve with the seams aligned. I then zigzagged the seam allowances together so there would be some stretch. (Here you can also see the interfacing appplied to the cuff hem.) After zigzagging the seam allowances, I reach down through the lining and pull the sleeve up through it. Bam! A perfectly lined sleeve.

 

 

The two layers are then basted together at the top to keep the fabric acting as a single layer.

 

 

 

While I had my little Brother zigzag machine out, I added parallel rows of stitching along the roll line of the under collar toward the neckline as suggested in the pattern directions. This helps make a more substantial and stable collar.

 

Things are moving along, and I'm thrilled with my results so far. Next up is figuring out how to make a buttonhole in this kind of fabric.

 

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Laying the Groundwork for my Next Project

This project has me really excited. It's all about having the clothes that I'd love to wear, but could never afford. It's also a new challenge because it involves knits, something I've never tried.

First, my inspiration....

The Missoni sweater / blazer.

 

I LOVE this look. There's something about Missoni that I find very approachable. It always looks so put together, but in a very relaxed way. I guess I'd call it "friendly fashion". It's soft, relatively unstructured, and most importantly....colorful! Unfortunately, I don't have a spare $1800 hanging around right now! Plus it would be so much more fun to try to make something like this.

 

The artistry here just blows me away!

 

Armani does this sweater / jacket look too, but somehow it just seems a little severe and off putting. (Inspite of the raglan sleeves). Could you be friends with this guy?

 

 

Or you have to be Adonis with it stretched across your gym toned pecs!

But I digress!

 

With a vision in my head I went on the search for colorful sweater knits via Google and ended up at Vogue Fabrics. They had several "Missoni-esque" knits which really got my wheels spinning. I'm glad to report that I'm getting smarter about buying fabric online. No more fabric disappointments for this guy. I still haven't quite recovered from the "cheap stretch velvet" incident! Vogue Fabrics offers a swatch service for $1/ swatch. I ordered 4 and had them within a week. Best $4 I've spent in awhile.

 

 

Not huge swatches ( about 2" square), but enough to get the general idea. All four were really winners, but I limited myself to ordering just three. Again, I had my fabric within a week for a mere $6 shipping charge. Score!

 

Next I turned to Etsy in search of a pattern, and came up with two choices.

 

From 1979, this Simplicity unlined blazer specifically for stretch knits. Check out the shoulders on the green version!

 

 

Also this Butterick, which promises a time saving shortcut!

 

 

The Butterick is different for a man's blazer, in that it has a back yoke and one piece sleeves. It's very straight "boxy" through the torso. Appealing, but just not right for this project. I think this would make a great linen Spring jacket, so I've filed it away for the future.

 

 

The Simplicity has a two piece sleeve and is more fitted. It also has the requisite patch pockets. There are only 2 vertical seams opposed to the 3 seams of the Butterick. Simpler is better in this case. Especially since I've never sewn a knit before. So the Simplicity wins!

 

I'm off to buy ball point needles (the only thing I really know about sewing knits), and then I'll get started on a muslin.

 

And since some have asked.....

I'm facing new challenges with the boat as well! One step at a time

 

Happy sewing!

 

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