My Minoru:)

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion, and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ."

2 Corinthians 1:3-5

Hello all! It's nice to be back to sewing and blogging! If you recall, my last project was a maternity dress back in April!:) Since then, my husband and I have welcomed our first baby, Isaac, into the world:) Here he is:

    Isn't he cute?:) I took this photo in the midst of my latest sewing project, the very popular Minoru jacket of Sewaholic Patterns! Just Google "Minoru jacket" and tons of versions come up. There are 50 plus versions reviewed on PR alone (including mine;).

     I purchased this pattern on my birthday, back in March. I was 7 months pregnant at the time, so I knew I would be holding off til at least June before I tackled it. My mom was up for the first little while after Isaac was born, and on the day she was ready to leave I noticed that PatternReview.com was having an "Outerwear" contest. It was just the motivation I needed to start on my jacket! It was challenging, to say the least, taking on my first jacket pattern while caring for a newborn, but I'm glad I did. It's very rewarding to have sewn a project like this, and it's definitely been a boost to my confidence:) My review on P.R.

     I followed the Sew-Along on the Sewaholic website, found here. Tasia, creator of Sewaholic Patterns, does an amazing job walking through each step of construction. Without the Sew-Along, I probably wouldn't have purchased the pattern (at least not at my current skill level). She makes the process very do-able:)

     I'm not including many photos of the process, since I think the Sew-Along is pretty thorough, but I wanted to add a few things that may be of help to anyone making their own jacket.
 I think I read every single blog post regarding the Minoru jacket (some numerous times!).

      The fabric is a Berry-coloured water-resistant cotton/polyester blend from Fabricville. I needed a rain jacket in the worst way! I had my heart set on yellow, but couldn't find any fabric suitable, so berry it was!

      It was helpful to read about other's experiences and get valuable tips. One thing I did, was line the hood, and make it 3 piece, by adding a panel  down the centre for more shaping. Here is a great post to show you how it's done:). I also cut the hood in a size 0, since the hood is pretty large. Also, I reduced the collar by 1" and graded to a size 0 in the hips (8 on top), according to the measurement chart (I'm not pear-shaped and Sewaholic is geared toward pear-shapes). I also reduced the placket accordingly. I also raised the waist elastic 1" and extended the elastic 1 & 1/2" on both sides for more shaping.

      I used Wash-A-Way Wonder tape when installing the zipper into the collar and marked the zipper to help line up the window (and on the plackets). I ended up not using any pins, far easier with the Wonder tape!:) I used it on the placket as well.

     The completed lining before sewing it to the main jacket. I used a cotton/polyester blend in a floral print to line the body of the jacket, and bemberg for sleeves.

So, my jacket almost got ruined near the end. My iron did this:

*Sigh* My iron got all nasty on me (I had it on the same temperature the whole time but it scorched  the inside hem!), that iron is now in the dumpster! I guess it was near its death. I had to go out and buy a new iron last night, but was careful to use a press-cloth. Thankfully the scorch mark is on the inside hem, but it did damage the fabric, and it shows a bit on the other side (though not very noticeable unless you look close:( I shed a few tears last night! At least its still wearable, but it was rather heartbreaking, spending so much time on something, almost finishing, then it gets damaged:(

         My hem is a little wonky, but well, it'll have to do! Hopefully most people don't look too close! Here are some more photos. Til next time!:)

The hood:)