Well technically, the sewing starts next week, but let's start off by going over some of the details, shall we? First there's an exclusive coupon for 15% off of the Mackinaw Coat pattern through UpCraft Club (*affiliate link). The coupon code is MACK15 and is only good through the 29th of February so don't hesitate! You don't need to be a member of UpCraft Club to purchase the pattern, but for only $8.95 a month you get $10 worth of credit each month to purchase any of the patterns and courses curated there. Along with that you get 20% off any additional purchases and qualify to join the JoAnn Fabrics VIP club (10% off purchases at JoAnn). I'm an affiliate for UpCraft Club, but I firmly believe this is by far the best "monthly club" deal out there.
Now that you have your pattern, it's time to talk about fabric selection. The pattern calls for three fabrics: one for the main outer coat, one for the lining of the coat, and one for the facing of the coat which will also be the folded over part of the collar. The diagrams above should help to understand which fabrics are used in which part of the coat. Remember that the facing and main can use the same fabric if you aren't interested in a contrast collar, but the facing is great place to feature a favorite fabric.
Imagine Gnats shop is a sponsor of this sew-a-long (and spoiler alert: part of the giveaway!) so the following links are affiliate links to her shop, but for those of you outside her shipping area I hope you'll be able to use these as a guide to fabrics you can purchase locally. As a warm winter coat, the outer fabric is meant to use wool coating, corduroy, denim, canvas, as well as some home dec fabrics. However, as we're approaching some warmer days (though it'll still be frigid here in Maryland for another month at least) you could certainly use something a little more light-weight like a twill, flannel, chambray, or pretty much any bottom-weight fabric. Be sure to allow extra fabric for matching stripes, plaids, or other directional fabrics.
The lining fabric should be something a bit lighter-weight than whatever you use for the main coat. Apparel lining, flannel, and quilting cotton are excellent choices, but I'm leaning toward double gauze for this transitional season as it holds some warmth, but still breathes very well.
Now the facing is where we can go a little wild with the fabrics. Think faux fur, shearling, sherpa, fleece, and flannel. Since the facing doesn't use up a ton of fabric, you can even splurge a bit on something special. For the sew-a-long you'll see a used this gorgeous brightly colored woven silk fabric (which I found at a local shop for an amazing black Friday deal back in November) for the facing and I'm completely in love with it. Again, with the transitional weather a cotton or double gauze is another a great option here. The Mackinaw collar is traditionally used for warmth against the neck and to keep out the weather, but it also serves as a great accent piece so have fun with it! Just keep in mind that directional fabrics are not a great option as the facing is cut on the fold and wraps around the neck.
So now that we've covered the fabrics, you may be worried about what's left, but HAVE NO FEAR. We'll cover all the important bits and even some of the optional parts of the pattern. See below for the full schedule of the Mackinaw Coat sew-a-long. You can share your progress using the hashtag #dbcaMackSAL on Instagram and as always you can use the #designsbycallajaire and #themackinawcoat hashtags to see what everyone else is making. Share any finished coats in the Designs by Call Ajaire facebook group as I know we'd all love the inspiration!
February 24th - Fabric Selections
March 3rd - Sew the (optional) Bound Buttonholes
March 4th - Sew the Outer Coat
March 5th - Sew the Coat Together and Bag the Lining
March 6th - Final Touches and Sharing
And of course let's not forget a fun giveaway! Enter the Rafflecopter below for the chance to win the following:
The Mackinaw Coat PDF Pattern
$25 gift certificate to the Imagine Gnats shop (*affiliate link)
$50 Amazon.com gift certificate to purchase relevant sewing tools (*affiliate link)
The giveaway is only open until midnight EST on the 26th, so don't delay! This will give the winner time to gather their supplies before the end of the sew-a-long.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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