My Vogue vintage 1950 jacket

Hi, can you believe it’s December already? This year went by super fast. At the end of November, I finished this cropped jacket from a Vogue vintage reissue pattern (V2934), which was originally released in 1950. (This version is now out of print. I got it on sale at Joann’s a few years ago.)

I really like cropped jackets. I have a RTW black cropped jacket made from a double-knit that I’ve worn so much it’s starting to look a little shabby. So I thought this pattern could be a nice replacement but I wanted a jacket that could be easily dressed up or down. So rather than make it out of the suggested fabrics, such as satin, velvet, tweed, ottoman – I decided to make mine out of black sweatshirt fabric. I didn’t make a mock-up because this isn’t a fitted jacket and I wasn’t using expensive fabric. 😉

This jacket has 3/4 dolman sleeves, a flared back, and deep cuffs – very 1950s. It also has a lining and calls for hair canvas interfacing.  I made version A, which has a single button and bound buttonhole. I cut size L (16-18) as is, except for the following changes:

• Added 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) to sleeve length
• No lining
• No interfacing except for a small piece of black fusible knit to the bound buttonhole area
• Finished the raw facing edges and seams with bias tape

I decided I didn’t need any interfacing because sweatshirt fabric is a bit heavier than the recommended fabrics. I didn’t line it because I wanted to be able to feel the soft, fuzzy side of the sweatshirt fabric. (Note on the fabric: I machine washed and dried the fabric twice – per Sandra Betzina’s advice in her book More Fabric Savvy. She said sweatshirt fabric shrinks a lot so wash/dry it twice before sewing.)

There is a facing for this jacket. The lining would have covered all the raw edges but I didn’t line it so I finished most of my raw edges with bias tape. I made this bias tape for a jacket I made in 2011. It’s a very lightweight wool with a tiny hounds-tooth pattern. It has a nice drape to it. I had just enough to bind the center back seams, front and back facings, and the front hems. I finished the hem of the back with store-bought black bias tape from my stash.

Here’s the inside of the front right side of the jacket. I had just enough bias tape to finish the edges of the front hem, which I slip stitched by hand.

I finished with cuffs with black bias tape and hand sewed it to the sleeve. Here’s a close-up view of the inside of the cuff.

The pre-made bias tape is a little stiff so I thought it would be good for the flared back. Here’s another view of the back …

… and another shot that shows that flare. (I think I was looking back at the camera to see if the timer went off. )

In case you were wondering, a dolman sleeve is when the sleeve is cut in one piece along with the body of the garment. In other words the sleeve isn’t a separate piece. Here’s what the sleeves look like:

One thing I didn’t take into consideration is how much this flared style affects what you wear with it. This jacket looks best with something fitted, which means I can’t wear my Chardon skirts with it. Darn. The pleats pouf out around the hem of the jacket – not very flattering.

In these photos, I’m wearing my A-Frame Skirt, a Blueprints for Sewing pattern, which I blogged about here, and a vintage beret I bought from All Things Vintage in Oakland. This boutique in Oakland has a lovely selection of vintage clothes and hats.

I covered the button with the sweatshirt fabric. I just stretched it over the button and snapped the back on. Here’s a close-up shot of the collar and button. I didn’t realize that I put the buttonhole on the wrong side until after I made it. Oops.

This was a fairly simple jacket to make – just six pattern pieces if you don’t line it (front, back, buttonhole, front facing, back facing, and cuff). I made it a little more complicated because I had to think about how I would finish the seams.

In case you’re wondering, here’s my list of materials:

• 2  yards of sweatshirt fabric (60 wide)
• bias tape
• covered button
• fusible knit interfacing for bound buttonhole
• thread

I got the fabric on sale at Discount Fabrics in San Francisco. I probably got it for less than $10. I made most of the bias tape and the other materials were already in my stash. So this was a very inexpensive jacket to make.

I think I’ll get a lot of wear from this jacket (even if I can’t wear it with a Chardon skirt). I can pair it with jeans or dress it up with an A-line skirt. I like that it’s made from humble sweatshirt fabric. 😉

Do you ever pick unlikely fabrics for clothes you’ve made?

Happy Sewing!