In the time since my last post we have been away for a weeks break on the north east coast of England. In between I have been desperately trying to push on with the house renovation project that I am currently overseeing. So in short, it has taken me some time to finish this project. It is probably the most time consuming project I have done to date, even though the pattern is relatively simple. All that Hong Kong finishing did take quite a bit of effort. But I have to say that I think it was worth it, and this is probably the best finished garment I have produced in the 13 months or so that I have been dress making.


The outer material was a wool/ silk mix tweed I bought from ebay for a very good price. It was quite forgiving I would say! I guess perhaps you could even call this a wearable muslin, as I would really love to sew this jacket again in a good quality tweed with a silk lining.



I mentioned the fact I used the Hong Kong finish on all the seams….well, with hindsight (and if I was making this jacket again) I would use organza or chiffon as all the couture sewing technique books suggest you do. The cotton binding I used was a tad too bulky, but hey, I am learning as I go!
I added a hanging chain. I found a great tutorial via Sewaholics blog http://sewaholic.net/how-to-make-a-chain-hanging-loop/, which references a tutorial on Sophia sews, but when I went to Sophia sews blog, the blog has disappeared! Which I am gutted about because I didn’t print it or anything. I could perhaps consider posting the tutorial myself if I can remember all the steps (it wasn’t that hard!) in the future.

On another note, I am totally self taught and blindly finding my way around the world of dress making as I go, so I am excited to say I have enrolled on a beginners dress making course starting in about 4 weeks time! Yeah! Looking forward to learning how to do things properly and hopefully making some beautiful things. I will keep you posted….

Very impressed you made this, fabric, stitch, style and quality all fantastic
Thanks Saiqa and thanks for looking at my blog. x
Wow that looks amazing Manju – it looks so well-made (I imagine you throwing your sewing projects round the room, shouting at them – but you obviously have oodles of patience!). That colour really suits you too.
Thanks Ami. I don’t know why you think I would throw my projects around, haha. Sewing is something that teaches you patience! Thanks for stopping by to look at my blog. x
congratulations on finishing your jacket! I know how much work it is, as mine took me a whole month to finish and that included working on it most days of the week. I think enrolling on a course is a really good idea (I have got loads of experience and knowledge out of mine) and am impressed at how much you have achieved so far if you are self taught.
Hi Rosie. Yes I am totally self taught (the internets a great teacher!) but looking forward to learning the proper way from tomorrow. Congrats on finishing your jacket. I will check it out!