Burdastyle asymmetric jacket

Hi! I've been completely immersed in organising a fundraising event at my kids' school for the past few weeks and though I thought of this little space often, it's been totally neglected... along with the just about everything else! I'm glad to be back :-)



OK, Burdastyle Asymmetric Jacket. Now firstly I should apologise for the extremely ahh lived in look of this jacket. All those wrinkles and creases are from all the wear it's had since I made it a couple of months ago (and have been meaning to blog ever since), which shows that I'm getting a lot of use from this garment, which has got to be a measure of success!



I like the challenge of sewing something reasonably complicated now and then, and this one had a few challenges for me, but I've got to say that I don't think Burdastyle patterns (or least this one) are the patterns to learn from as the instructions are so brief. A certain amount of knowledge is presumed, and this one's difficulty rating is 'Intermediate', which I'd consider myself to be, but when you come across a technique you haven't tried before, like the sleeve openings, you get no help at all to explain it - no drawings or detailed explanantions. I know lengthy descriptions of each step annoy some sewers, but for me I'd rather have that and be able to skip it rather than not have it at all. Anyway, it all turned out OK but I just fudged my way through those sleeves in the end.



The other thing I'm not fond of with Burdastyle is the lack of seam allowance on the patterns. I'm just not used to it and find it hard work. But I did get through it, needless to say I was pretty happy when the pattern printing/cutting/sticking/tracing stage was over! The base calls for a magnetic snap, which my kids laugh at each time it sticks to the car ;-). This makes the front hem sit well. I didn't add the button to the top inside flap as called for in the pattern but it seems to sit OK without it. I also haven't added buttons to the sleeves as I couldn't find what I wanted... hopefully one day! Another thing I clearly didn't understand properly was the lining pleat in the back seam, which seemed hopelessly small, as it's split! So some maintenence is required!

Having had my whinge I now want to say though how much I love this jacket :-) The style is lovely with all its little darts and shaping. I love the asymmetric opening, and like wearing it open, closed and half open. It's extremely versatile, warm but lightweight and just very wearable (hence all those wrinkles ;-)



I used a mid weight deep blue linen bought at The Fabric Store which I'd stashed away waiting for the perfect project, and lined it with an ordinary lining fabric (also from the stash - yay, stash busting!). And I found a heavy weight metal zip, which I think adds weight and a nice touch to the softness of the linen. I'm almost wishing I'd interfaced the lapels/front sections as the linen is sluming a bit as it relaxes and softens, but I think that's part of the beauty of linen.



Also I deviated from the pattern by adding pockets to the front seams. I had almost finished the outer jacket when the niggle in my mind got too loud "you'll want pockets!!" and I had to listen to it! I wanted them to be reasonably hidden and flush with the front so as not to add bulk, and they work pretty well, and are certainly used well.

So, apart from a few things that annoyed me with the pattern, a great jacket! And a great addition to my wardrobe. Have you tried Burdastyle patterns? Love the style but don't love the pattern details? Or is it just me!