Lexi Made Peplum Jacket

I got it in my head that I would make my daughter a jacket. “Oh, it can’t be that hard.” So after I saw the jacket that Lexi made during Project Run and Play, I knew I wanted little missy to have one. I printed the pattern and rummaged through my stash to make her a peplum jacket.

A lot of thought went into this jacket. It’s inspired by Eiko Ishioka, my favorite costume designer. I was sad last year when I heard she had passed on, I’ve been following her work for over a decade. I’m drawn to the movies she worked on. Bold colors, vibrant pops and capturing emotions just in the items she designed. This is my little homage to her and her wonderful work which has inspired me and shaped me as a designer.

That wonderful red, wide wale corduroy begged to be used. I’ve been holding on to it forever. It was a project for my textile class. We made a design, cut it out of a lino block and used our stamp to print on a yard of fabric. Super nerd alert. My design was based on Darth Malak from Knights of the Old Republic. But the fabric is so unique that I’ve waited for the perfect project to make with it.

I don’t know, it makes me giggle seeing my daughter running around in a Star Wars jacket that looks so feminine. Hahahaha, that’s right.

No wallflowers for this jacket, so it needed a bright bold floral inside. And this is when I spot my Yoko fabric from Alexander Henry. Reminds me of Eiko.

I finished the jacket with glitter felt patches on the elbows and solid metal buttons on the front.

I used my Juki and serger for the project, although I only serged the lining since the corduroy is so thick. I’ve learned from my mistakes not to serge that kind of fabric. And since my Juki only has a straight stitch, I also made buttonholes on it. That’s right, no zig zag here.

Let’s see, I also hand sewed the lining into the jacket, hand finished the buttonholes and used a different technique for the collar. Something I learned in a very late night Tailoring class in college. We learned Couture Sewing Techniques and how to hand tailor jackets and such. That was a fun class. Anyways, a lot of techniques are burned into my memory and I so I just use them without thinking. That happened a lot while I was making this.

I lost the directions how to make this jacket. I didn’t have them at all. All I had was the printed pattern and a picture to look at, so I improvised a lot. I know I changed the collar to twice the size and changed the ruffles a little. It was fun making it. A real good challenge. There is so much hand work that went into it…I really had fun.

I got one little picture of her wearing it before all of our noses turned red and the kids fell into the snow. Hah, I’ll take it. 😉

I just need to finish a few more things and the kids will be ready for their holiday picture. Thanksgiving is my deadline. Wish me luck!