Happy Valentine's Day! This week's post is about my experience using Schnittchen's Coatigan Silvia pattern. Although I encountered a few problems while working on this coat, it was a fairly simple and quick project. Read on to find out more!
Let's get right into it!
THE PATTERN
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| Pattern available from The Foldine |
I recently discovered Schnittchen Patterns after seeing this pattern pop up on The Foldline's website. After some looking around, I realized this pattern (the Silvia Coatigan) has been pretty popular for the last few years. The Silvia Coatigan is a short coat with oversized shoulders and an open front. It includes a shawl collar front pockets in a seam across the front.
Like many other bloggers have noted, the instructions are quite sparse, and there are no included diagrams or illustrations of any kind included with the pattern. I was able to track down Schnittchen's accompanying photographs online here. However, after about step 13, the pictures are out of order and are captioned incorrectly (at least that's how it loaded on my computer). For this reason, I would not really recommend this pattern for someone who has never bagged a lining or sewn a jacket before.
All of that being said, I do genuinely like this pattern! The pieces are well drafted with thorough markings and clearly indicated sizes. I also found the fit to be near perfect. I traced a size 42 (closest to my measurements) and felt it had the perfect amount of ease. It wasn't too oversized or too small.
Like many other bloggers have noted, the instructions are quite sparse, and there are no included diagrams or illustrations of any kind included with the pattern. I was able to track down Schnittchen's accompanying photographs online here. However, after about step 13, the pictures are out of order and are captioned incorrectly (at least that's how it loaded on my computer). For this reason, I would not really recommend this pattern for someone who has never bagged a lining or sewn a jacket before.
All of that being said, I do genuinely like this pattern! The pieces are well drafted with thorough markings and clearly indicated sizes. I also found the fit to be near perfect. I traced a size 42 (closest to my measurements) and felt it had the perfect amount of ease. It wasn't too oversized or too small.
FABRIC
During Black Friday 2018, I found this super cute heart fabric at JoAnn Fabrics. It was an impulse buy, but I was determined to make some sort of jacket out of it! It's 40% polyester, 36% wool, and 24% acrylic. Although the bolt said dry clean only, I was able to wash and dry it (carefully, of course) with no signs of shrinkage or alteration. This fabric is quite expensive, so I recommend waiting for a good sale or coupon to come along before buying it. It's rare to find such a unique fabric at JoAnn's though!
For the lining fabric, I used a generic synthetic lining fabric I found in my stash. I normally don't really like the fabrics found in the "lining" section, but I figured it was better to use what I have rather than buy something new. If I make this jacket again, I'll probably choose a better lining fabric.
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| Fabric available here |
During Black Friday 2018, I found this super cute heart fabric at JoAnn Fabrics. It was an impulse buy, but I was determined to make some sort of jacket out of it! It's 40% polyester, 36% wool, and 24% acrylic. Although the bolt said dry clean only, I was able to wash and dry it (carefully, of course) with no signs of shrinkage or alteration. This fabric is quite expensive, so I recommend waiting for a good sale or coupon to come along before buying it. It's rare to find such a unique fabric at JoAnn's though!
For the lining fabric, I used a generic synthetic lining fabric I found in my stash. I normally don't really like the fabrics found in the "lining" section, but I figured it was better to use what I have rather than buy something new. If I make this jacket again, I'll probably choose a better lining fabric.
PROBLEMS
Now let's discuss the problems I encountered on this sewing journey!
In the end, none of the problems were too serious, but there are a few things I would do differently next time. For starters, I should have cut the thick heart fabric in one layer. I've done this in the past with faux fur, but for some reason I forgot to this time around. There were no serious problems, but a few pieces ended up being slightly different in size. Also, the hearts on the print are very puffy, and in the future I might trim them down in the seam allowances.
I really should have used a different lining, especially considering I don't really like typical "lining" fabrics. This fabric was a little slippery and tough to sew. Once I changed my needle to a sharp needle, it became much easier to work with (my fault for not doing this sooner), but it's still a slightly see through fabric.
On a less serious note, if I make this pattern a second time around and use another thick fabric, I might alter the pattern ever so slightly to make the under collar a little smaller, so it lays under the outer collar a bit more. I might also add topstitching in a few spots to keep the facing from being visible from the outside.
The only section of the pattern that confused me a little bit was a note on the front facing that said, "Attach lining to here." At first, I wasn't sure if this meant to sew the facing to that point and leave extra hanging, or if the instructions intended for me to pin the end of the facing to that point and ease the rest in. This sounds silly in retrospect, but after placing the pattern pieces on top of each other, I could see that the lining should be sewn to that point with the extra hanging off. There actually was a picture on Schnittchen's website for this step, but it wasn't clear about this part.
Some of these problems could have been prevented if I had made a mockup beforehand. So, I guess this project serves as a reminder to always make a mockup! I should know this by now. But, lately I've been having fun diving straight into projects. And the jacket fits fine, so what does it matter.
For anyone looking for a tutorial to help them bag the lining of their jacket, I found this tutorial helpful as a refresher. I would have found this jacket difficult to sew as a beginner sewist.
OUTFIT DETAILS
The white boots are from Payless (the collab line with Christian Siriano). I paired one outfit with white heart tights, white tennis skirt, and a white crop top. I liked the idea of all white, but I don't think this looks very cohesive. So, I changed the top and skirt for a dark grey dress in the second look. I wish the hemline for the dress was a bit longer!
I had a bit of trouble deciding what to wear with this jacket. My first thought was to pair it with neutrals, something I don't currently have a lot of in my wardrobe. I'm not super pleased with the outfits I paired it with in the photos here, but that's okay! I think in the future I'll try an all black outfit.
CONCLUSION AND MORE PHOTOS
Ultimately, I'm happy with how this coatigan turned out! It's comfy and cozy and can easily be thrown on. A part of me feels like it looks a bit like a bathrobe, but I think that depends on how you wear it.
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| As usual, here's Ambrose helping with this project. |
Now let's discuss the problems I encountered on this sewing journey!
In the end, none of the problems were too serious, but there are a few things I would do differently next time. For starters, I should have cut the thick heart fabric in one layer. I've done this in the past with faux fur, but for some reason I forgot to this time around. There were no serious problems, but a few pieces ended up being slightly different in size. Also, the hearts on the print are very puffy, and in the future I might trim them down in the seam allowances.
I really should have used a different lining, especially considering I don't really like typical "lining" fabrics. This fabric was a little slippery and tough to sew. Once I changed my needle to a sharp needle, it became much easier to work with (my fault for not doing this sooner), but it's still a slightly see through fabric.
On a less serious note, if I make this pattern a second time around and use another thick fabric, I might alter the pattern ever so slightly to make the under collar a little smaller, so it lays under the outer collar a bit more. I might also add topstitching in a few spots to keep the facing from being visible from the outside.
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| A quick view of the lining! |
The only section of the pattern that confused me a little bit was a note on the front facing that said, "Attach lining to here." At first, I wasn't sure if this meant to sew the facing to that point and leave extra hanging, or if the instructions intended for me to pin the end of the facing to that point and ease the rest in. This sounds silly in retrospect, but after placing the pattern pieces on top of each other, I could see that the lining should be sewn to that point with the extra hanging off. There actually was a picture on Schnittchen's website for this step, but it wasn't clear about this part.
Some of these problems could have been prevented if I had made a mockup beforehand. So, I guess this project serves as a reminder to always make a mockup! I should know this by now. But, lately I've been having fun diving straight into projects. And the jacket fits fine, so what does it matter.
For anyone looking for a tutorial to help them bag the lining of their jacket, I found this tutorial helpful as a refresher. I would have found this jacket difficult to sew as a beginner sewist.
OUTFIT DETAILS
The white boots are from Payless (the collab line with Christian Siriano). I paired one outfit with white heart tights, white tennis skirt, and a white crop top. I liked the idea of all white, but I don't think this looks very cohesive. So, I changed the top and skirt for a dark grey dress in the second look. I wish the hemline for the dress was a bit longer!
I had a bit of trouble deciding what to wear with this jacket. My first thought was to pair it with neutrals, something I don't currently have a lot of in my wardrobe. I'm not super pleased with the outfits I paired it with in the photos here, but that's okay! I think in the future I'll try an all black outfit.
CONCLUSION AND MORE PHOTOS
Ultimately, I'm happy with how this coatigan turned out! It's comfy and cozy and can easily be thrown on. A part of me feels like it looks a bit like a bathrobe, but I think that depends on how you wear it.
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| Maybe I'll sew a closure on the front at some point, but I'm okay with it as is right now! |
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See you next week!
See you next week!
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