Blue Suit

 

I used some heavy rayon mix twill from deep stash to make a simple little suit..

The jacket is New Look 6481 with the hem levelled out and patch pockets added.

The trousers are New Look 6438 with an elasticated waist and front slash pockets added.

Black New Look Jacket

I made another black jacket. This one uses the scraps leftover from making a jacket and skirt for my friend C.

To fit the pattern onto the scraps I played a little with the orientation on the front. I also drafted and added some 5 sided patch pockets, as the pattern doesn't include pockets.

The pattern is New Look 6481

Here's the jacket and skirt I made for C

Black Ponte Metra Blazer

 

Black is not in my 'Sophisticated' palette but is useful for choir events and traditional funerals, so I dug out some black fabrics from the stash and have started making a few cardigans and jackets for such occasions.

The first one is a Metra blazer from a black ponte remnant.

Sadly I found a fault on the back when I was part way through construction.

So added a stitched down half belt detail to cover that area.

Prima Pattern February 2025 Quilted Jacket

 

I used the pattern from Prima magazine Feb 2025 to make myself a quilted jacket. They suggested using quilted yardage, but I didn't like the colourways of those available locally, so instead cut up a green bedspread with a quilted effect.

I made the longer view with pockets (view A) but added buttons and buttonholes. I made my own bias trim (1.5 inches wide) from a pretty floral remnant from Auntie J's stash and some buttons from my drawer.

The jacket is quite oversized, but I found the sleeves to be only just long enough. I made a size 18 UK.

Clef Jacket from Love Notions

I decided to test out the Clef jacket from Love Notions patterns. 

I used some fabric I find a bit itchy and some buttons which are a bit orange as I plan to donate the end result.

The overall fit was fine though I shortened the sleeves .

For my next version I'm going to rotate the pockets 90 degrees so they are deeper. Add a high round back alteration, and straighten the ends of the sleeves for easier hemming.

I'm hoping this will be a good way to make a fleece jacket when I can't easily get a matching zip but have matching buttons!

This has used another 2m of fabric so

Fabric sewn so far in 2025 - 13m, fabric purchased zero!

• 3m of teal jersey
• 2m of print/brown sweater knit
• 3m of animal print jersey
• 3m of brown poly knit
• 2m of itchy brown fabric

Woodrose Pink Jacket

 

This is my wood rose (dusty pink) jacket in faux silk dupioni fabric (possibly intended for home dec) made from Butterick B4610 View B. I added a little bit of extra width in the sleeves 

For a pattern rated as 'Easy' I didn't find that it was really, though a lot of my issues were to do with the very stiff and fraying fabric I used. I love the colour and slubbed texture so persevered.

I found a suitable button in my button drawers. Hopefully this will work over the purple skirt and top.

Here's the pink jacket over the purple two piece.

I'm planning on making some other Woodrose pieces as I have lots of the fabric. Next up some wide leg trousers, then maybe a waistcoat and skirt or dress.....

Skirt from a dress pattern

 

This was a very quick make. A skirt for my friend to match the jacket I made for her previously.

I used the skirt portion of her favourite dress pattern (S9473) and added a casing with elastic.

Another jacket

Here's another jacket for my friend C. It is from Simplicity 9473 again but this time I made the lining front panel from self fabric so the front neckline can flip open like lapels. The rest of the lining is a beautiful liquid satin which was really tricky to sew, but feels luxurious.

She can wear these jackets to work with her RTW dresses.

Oldest UFO finished - Sophisticated Safari Jacket

That's UFO as in Un Finished Object.

So the story goes something like this. 

Back in 2008 (that's 15 years ago!) I had the idea for a 'Sophisticated Safari' type collection and cut out a jacket from OOP Simplicity 4231.

Here's my May 2008 blog post about my ideas

Sew Ruthie Style: Sophisticated Safari (ruthieksews1.blogspot.com)

By June 2008 I had sewed up the other pieces in the collection and posted about those, but the jacket was too hard and was packed away in a clear zip lock bag.

Sew Ruthie Style: Sophisticated Safari so far (ruthieksews1.blogspot.com)

I then went through a lot of change in my life (moving 3 times in 2 years and getting divorced. 

The next time I dug out the jacket was in October 2016

Sew Ruthie Style: Simplicity 4231 Green Tropical Wool Safari Jacket (ruthieksews1.blogspot.com)

I worked on it a bit and posted about it again in November 2016

Sew Ruthie Style: Simplicity 4231 Green Tropical Wool Safari Jacket (ruthieksews1.blogspot.com)

I next came back to the project in Jan 2021 as part of the UFO sew along on TSP

"I have a UFO started quite a few years ago now. It is an olive green wool jacket in a sort of Safari style, with lots of pockets and a belt. I decided I needed to line it, which meant working out what to do to draft the lining which at the time seemed too hard. I could probably manage to do it now. However its a size too small so not entirely sure what I'd do with it once finished. Hmm maybe a bit of try on would be a good idea, I have got some scraps left so could add panels....."

Then in August 2022 I wrote on my TSP diary thread

"I've fished Doris (the Dressmakers Dummy) out of the corner, and found she's still wearing the half made jacket which is my oldest UFO.So I think I might sew a few seams on the UFO jacket (it uses the same thread colour as the trenchcoat) to get it to a point where it could sit on a jacket hanger and free Doris up for the trenchcoat as I assemble that. I am seriously out of love with the jacket but hey ho."

Yesterday I put the sleeves in the jacket and tried to attach the facing bits that were not yet sewn. Something isn't quite right as I have a tiny gap where the collar and revere come together. This is the problem with taking many years to work on a garment in bits, you've forgotten what you did last time. Anyway it was enough together that I could pop it on a hanger and free up Doris for the trenchcoat.

And on another thread at the end of August

I should finish the pesky UFO jacket of doom as the thread from my last project matches it (I am wondering about undoing parts of it and using a slightly different construction method, even though I hate unpicking).

And then it'd make sense to sew something which co-ordinates with it, like some trousers. I have some striped stretch woven fabric in darkish hues.

Then maybe a soft jersey poloneck (turtleneck) to go under the jacket, something in a cheerful colour to cheer up all that darkness.

After all this the jacket went away again still unfinished. In all those attempts though I had drafted a lining, sewn and then unpicked the collar, added a panel to make the sleeve wider and inserted the sleeves.

Finally a few days ago I pulled the pieces out of the bag, popped them on the dummy and had a think about finishing the jacket.

Having recently finished C's jacket, I was in a fairly jacket like mode, so decided to use my common sense (and acquired knowledge on jackets) to sew the bits up the best I could without looking at the instructions which had caused me problems with the collar.

I gave things a press, assembled the lining and set the lining sleeves in. Then put the collar on, and added the lining. Bagged the lining. Front buttonhole and sewed the buttons on.

This I did over multiple sessions over several days and its finally finished!

Its only taken 15 years!

Patchwork Denim jacket

I was gifted some denim rectangles, and used some of them with some dark denim offcuts of my own to sew an unlined Patchwork Denim jacket. All the denim was stretch denim, though the percentage stretch varied a bit.

The jacket is based on the cardigan jacket from New Look 6082.

I made 8 sections of patchwork slightly larger than the corresponding pattern piece, sewing long columns of the denim rectangles first, and then overlocking those seams. Once the columns were complete I then sewed them together to create the patchwork piece, and overlocked those seams. Once each panel was completed I pressed it, before cutting out the garment piece. Remember to flip the pattern piece over to get a left and right!

I widened the centre front panel so the bands would overlap rather than being edge to edge. I interfaced the front section of the neckband so it would support buttonholes and buttons.

I also added patch pockets with a flap and button.

I've now got a little red and blue capsule

Lined wool jacket - McCall's 4394

 

This is the lined wool jacket made from McCall's 4394. It is the length of the jacket on the pattern envelope. I also shortened the sleeves a little.

The lining is a lovely floral print satin in shades of pink and green which picks out the threads in the wool. I've shown it by turning back one of the sleeves a little.

It has inseam pockets cut from a plain charcoal fabric.

The fabric has a black and dark grey weave as the base, shot with contrast threads in red, pink, coral, ivory, pale aqua and small amounts of others. 

I find this type of fabric works works in harmony with me now I'm greying. My hair is still fairly dark overall but with light hairs as well now.