I finally finished my new Minoru jacket. I made several improvements over my old Minoru jacket, including adding a quilted lining in Liberty Tana Lawn.

Materials

• Nylon Supplex (in True Blue from Rockywoods)
• Liberty Tana Lawn (Mauverina B)
• Polyester batting
• Lining Fabric (unknown fibre - possibly acetate)
• Zippers
• 2" elastic
• Interfacing
• Thread

I really liked the Supplex for this project. I would put the difficulty level for using Supplex at moderate. It is easier than the Ultrex I used for the winter jackets I made. Unlike the Ultrex, it gathers easily and you can undo stitching (this leaves holes in the Ultrex). It is not as wind or water proof as the Ultrex, but it still repels water and is good for a spring jacket. It is slightly challenging to work with in that it can be slippery. I would recommend using a walking foot.

Pattern 

Sewaholic Minoru


This is a stylish outdoor jacket that is easy to personalize.

Alterations

I made a size 8 going down to a size 6 in the hips. I shortened the jacket by 1.75". I only wanted to shorten it by 1", but another 0.75" was lost when attaching the plackets - the plackets and jacket fronts were not fed evenly (even with a walking foot), causing the plackets to turn out shorter than intended.

I did a swayback alteration by scooping out the back neckline 0.5". I increased the sleeve width (I basically just used the size 10 sleeve, with some changes to get it to fit the bodice seams). I should have probably increased it a bit more, as it is a bit tight when wearing a thicker sweater underneath. I shortened the sleeves by 2", which is perfect.

I also added a zipper facing to the main zipper. This will help block some of the wind.

Another one of the changes I made was to add zipper pockets in the front. I added them with a slight slant, since I like to stick my hands in my pockets when it is chilly.


I made quite a few changes to the hood and collar. Many other sewers have complained that the hood is too large. I altered the hood by pivoting my Swedish tracing paper copy on top of the original pattern piece and removing about 1" in height. You can see the new lower line on the pattern piece below.


I also came up with the idea of adding another lining piece to the collar to hide the ugly seams when the hood is out. I attached a second lining piece to the collar after adding the first lining piece, the zipper, and the hood.


I then basted around the outside edge being careful not to catch my hood. You can see in the picture below that I can hide away my hood and I haven't sewed the inside jacket to the outside yet.


Now, when my hood is open, there are no ugly seam allowances sticking out. (You might also notice that I used a french seam to finish the center hood seam allowance - this was really quick way to end up without any bulky seam).


Here's what my first jacket is like. The seam allowances show when the hood is open and it is getting messier with time.


The hood fits well with my changes. I also shortened the collar by about 1", since it was too big (it's still big, just not that big).


Another fun alteration was to put only one inner pocket and to pattern match it. I also adjusted the size to better fit my phone. It's now a little secret compartment for my phone.


I love the blue of my jacket. I think this is the best jacket I've made yet.


I would have been finished a bit sooner, but there was a little thing getting in the way.


The little thing is my newest family member, a chihuahua/mini-pincher/some-other-terrior mix. He loves my Liberty lining, too!


This little guy is only 6 months old and is quite the handful. So, it took me awhile to finish the jacket, but I'm glad it's done. Soon, it will be too warm to wear it.