Sewing a Quilted Jacket + a Quick Sew House Seven Merlo Field Tee

It is cold in Texas!! I was rifling through my scrap bin this weekend before the snow arrived and came across an unfinished jacket I had started in the fall. With freezing temps and lots of snow in the forecast, I thought it was the perfect time to dust it off, give it a hem and ties and wear it!

I had gotten so far along in the process when I first worked on this that I am baffled now as to why I gave up!! When I initially tried it on last fall, I thought it was too thick for our weather to wear around the house, and I also felt the sleeves were a little tight with the extra padding that the quilting gave it.

I think the problem actually was that I tried it on when it was over 70 degrees outside and felt hot. I am so glad I found this and finished it!!

Rolling black outs started in Texas on Valentine’s night, and at points when we had no power, it was single digits outside! Needless to say, when I woke up Monday morning, it was cold in my house. I was doing everything I could to wear layers and stay warm. I am so beyond thankful that we did not lose power all together like so many in our state did. We still got power here and there. Never for more than an hour at a time. It was really random, though, and I had to fight the fear that it would never come back when it was out.

I am ok with cold weather. I lived in Rhode Island for a year in my early twenties, and I absolutely loved it there. I knew about the art of layering. The difference here was that I did not have an indoor place to go and keep warm, and even if I did, the roads in Texas are terrifying when they are icy!

So, we waited to really play in the snow, take photos of it, and admire its beauty until our heat came back on, which took 3 days. Also, notice, in Texas we do not keep snow appropriate gear around. It is just so out of the ordinary to be this cold here. Since I do not have snow boots, I wore my rain boots to at least keep my feet dry, but even with three pairs of socks on, my toes were freezing once I came in!

Let’s get into what I sewed now!

Pattern Details – The Quilted Wrap Jacket

The pattern I used is the Taktsang by Itch to Stitch. This pattern is part of her book – Sew Beautiful, which released late last year. I sewed 2 garments from it when it initially released – the Palermo and the Orosi.

The Taktsang is a dolman wrap style jacket that is drafted for woven fabric and stable knits. It finishes at the high hip and has cropped sleeves.

I wanted my sleeve to be a bit longer, so instead of hemming, I added a cuff that finishes at one inch.

The fabric I used for my main is flannel. To do the quilting, I basted batting to the wrong side of the flannel main and basted quilting cotton to the other side of that, making a quilt sandwich. To baste, I use quilters glue so that it is essentially glued together until I wash. I then quilted each piece by drawing one inch lines going vertically with the grainline.

Since there is no shoulder seam and the arms are cut out along with the body, the quilting on the arms is more diagonal. I love the look! If I REALLY had some patience and free time, I would have been really extra and used thicker thread and hand quilted it.

The neckline of the jacket is finished with a facing. I tacked my facing down at multiple points by sewing back over my quilting.

I also started off strong and bound and topstitched my seams so they would be pretty. I did the back seam and shoulders, but then gave up on that idea for the side seams.

Sometimes done and being worn to keep warm is better than perfect.

I also made another adjustment to the pattern. Instead of doing a sash or belt to keep it wrapped, I chose to use ties. To make the ties, I cut a strip of scraps that was 1.5 inches wide and sewed it right sides together with a narrow seam allowance (a little less than 1/4 inch). Then, I turned them right side out and put one in the seam allowance of the front that wraps around and put the other in the side seam. I just eyeballed where I wanted them when trying on.

I think if I take the plunge to make another quilted jacket I will start with a pattern intended for it. I did have to take a smaller seam allowance through the arms to accommodate the thicker fabric. 

The Sew Beautiful book can be purchased as an Ebook (which includes pdf patterns) or as a physical book (which includes paper patterns). If you buy the physical book, you do not get the pdf patterns. The e-book is a pretty great deal for those (like me!) who prefer to sew with pdf patterns over paper patterns. 

Pattern Details – The Merlo Field Tee 

I have a few pattern companies that every time I sew one of their patterns, I immediately want to buy all of them because they fit me so well without adjustments. One of those companies is Sew House Seven. I have made their Toaster sweaters many years ago and then last year made their Free Range Slacks. I have worn my Free Range Slacks so many times and love them so much! So, this past Black Friday, I made a point to purchase a few more of their patterns that I did not yet own. The first one I got to sew up is the Merlo Field Tee. 

This dolman style top is drafted for knits with nice drape and has a fun stripe at the top of the sleeve. The pattern includes short, 3/4, and long sleeved options as well as a boat or crew neckline.

I chose to do a long sleeved crew neck top for my first version.

The only adjustment I made was to take 1 inch out of my sleeves. It is typical for sleeves to be a little long on me. I did not adjust anything else!

This pattern came together really quickly and makes a great t shirt, especially for scraps. I plan to make several more if I get the chance. 

I initially wondered when I got the pattern if it would be nice for a more structured knit like cotton lycra, and I am glad I paid attention to the description that said to use drapy knits. It has a lot of ease in the body. So, I think it is gorgeous in a knit with a soft hand. This one is one I got in a local destash so I am not entirely sure of its content. It feels like a t shirt jersey and has either polyester and spandex and maybe a small percentage of rayon.  If you prefer natural fabrics, I would look for bamboo and/or hemp spandex. 

I hope I have inspired you in today’s post!  I would love to stay connected with you. You can find me on Instagram. You can subscribe to my YouTube channel HERE. If you want to take a look into the things that inspire me, you can follow me on Pinterest. You may also follow my blog with Bloglovin.

Resources

• Itch to Stitch Sew Beautiful Book
• Mustard Flannel – Moda Primitive Gatherings Brushed Cotton in Honey
• Sew House Seven Merlo Field Tee

Disclosures

This post does not include affiliate links. I do not profit if you purchase anything from the links in this post. I did receive the Sew Beautiful book for free last fall but am under no obligation to promote it past sewing one pattern in it. I just fell in love with it and keep making them! 

Of course, I got some pics of the kids enjoying the snow!