Dover Jacket Sew-Along #1 - 8 Things Every Sewer Should Know

Welcome to the Blue Dot Patterns Dover Jacket Sew-Along!  Today is part #1 of a 4 part series.  Today we will be talking about selecting fabrics, gathering supplies and choosing pattern size

Fabrics:

Well, for me this is usually the best part!  The Dover Jacket is pretty versatile therefore you are able to use a myriad of different fabrics (maybe even something from your stash, which is always a good thing!)  The recommended fabrics include: ponte knit (my fabric of choice for the sew along), raw silk, linen, lightweight wool, quilting weight cotton, and light to medium weight denim.  Check out my Dover Sew-Along Pinterest board for lots of other options.  For View B you will need 2 1/3 yards of 45" fabric OR 1 5/8 yards of 60" fabric.

Solid or almost solid fabrics would work really well if you want to focus on the topstitching.  Here's a dot denim and an ivory ponte knit from Finch Fabrics that would be great for topstitching:

These linens from Fabrics Store would be perfect for spring paired with some really great buttons:

Fabricworm quilting cottons would sew up well for a fun jacket.  And aren't we always looking for a reason to use these print fabrics?

Notions:
 We will be making The Dover Jacket View B so we will need: 

1 yard of fusible interfacing
Three 1" buttons
Thread to match or contrast (depending on if you do a contrast topstitch)

The interfacing will be used on the jacket facing and the hem.  Iron-on or fusible interfacing works well.  I typically choose a knit interfacing because it adds stability while keeping the drape of the fabric.  Pellon type interfacings work on stable wovens but be sure to keep them lighter weight than the fabric itself.

On my jacket I used 1" denim covered buttons from my stash.  There are only 2 because that's all I had and they looked so great (and I've been dying to use them) I couldn't resist.  It's my sewing party so I can can make some changes, right?   This is the perfect time to use those funky buttons you love but can't seem to find a project for.

The back of the pattern lists both body measurements and finished garment measurements.  To choose the correct size for you, measure your bust at it's fullest point and compare it to the body measurements chart.  This is the size you should choose.  If you are in between sizes, size up.  When you compare the body measurements to the finished garment measurements you can see there's 2" of ease built into the bust 9" of ease at the waist.  If you prefer more space in the bust be sure to size up.  After all, this is your jacket.

Okay, collect your PDF pattern, fabric and notions and let's get ready to go!  

Day #2 of the Sew-Along is February 16th and we will begin prepping to sew.  

See you soon!