This jacket is like a hug. I purchased the fabric back in June on my first trip to Stonemountain Fabric, where I spent an hour just wandering in awe of their overwhelming selection. I had no idea how to pick fabric but I walked out with this combo--kudos, Past Lauren. While sewing it I encountered a few "make it work" moments, particularly with the collar, but the imperfections are a nice reminder that I've progressed far enough to improvise when things go sideways, and that there's still more to master.
Pattern: Wiksten Jacket in size XL made in 100% cotton ikat (exterior) and 100% mariners cloth (lining). Didn't add exterior pockets, but might make one on the inside.
New skills: Sewing/attaching a lining, experimenting with cutting fabric across the grain (specifically the lining), pattern matching
Lessons: The pattern calls for interfacing, and I'm here to warn you: tread lightly! Using 2 layers of featherweight in the collar made it very crispy and the bottom of the collar stuck out aggressively; I ended up detaching the collar and removing both layers, but the collar piece got stretched out and had to be shortened.
Iron-on interfacing doesn't stick very well to textured fabric like mariners cloth.
A sharp seam ripper is a happy seam ripper, but it's easy to snag your fabric. I fixed the rip by sewing a very short zig zag stitch over the damaged area.
Use serger thread that matches your fabric so that if a serged seam accidentally shows it blends in.
What I'd do differently: Add a running stitch around the raw edge of the collar and neck to prevent it from stretching. Iron the fabric before cutting pattern pieces - I thought it was pretty wrinkle free and a took a shortcut, but there was a single crease that caused one of the front panels to be too long. I think I'd add a running stitch along the bottom hem too, because as the mariners cloth relaxes, the lining is starting to show below the hem.
Care: Hand wash, lay flat to dry.
A note on name: This pattern is officially named the Wiksten Haori but I feel weird calling it that (many thanks to Emi Ito for this educational piece), so I like to call it the Wiksten Jacket or the Summer Bear Jacket in honor of the song by Kishi Bashi.
