Thursday, February 16, 2017

Quilted Halifax Hoodie

Edited to add: I forgot to mention that I altered the neckline on this version. It was cut along the line for a size small instead of medium. The funnel neck was shortened slightly to match.

This was supposed to be a post with two amazing Halifax Hoodies, but the first one ended up buried in the trunk of my van with all my other good intentions. So enjoy this one all alone! It's worth its own post anyway, I think.


The Halifax Hoodie pattern from Hey June is probably the only hoodie pattern you ever need. Tons of options for a wardrobe staple. What makes simple patterns special is often the fabric, and that's why this one is so awesome.


Ignore my "makeup" and "hairstyle" as I'm going on day two of baby M coughing all night long and puking on me from coughing too hard. And then she decides she should be awake for an hour or two. Fun times. What was I talking about? More coffee?


This is View E of the Halifax, a slanted side seam version with a funnel neck. I made a medium, but I should have made a small (I was between sizes with my bust measurement). The pattern is drafted to be outerwear, I should have just made a small and been done with it. I did end up taking in the "side seams" a little to snug it up a bit. Any future versions will definitely be a small.


The bodice is made from a quilted knit that is so soft and squishy! It's from Mood, and it's been in my stash for maybe two years? To. Die. For.


The slanted side seam looks a little wonky with the quilted lines, but it doesn't bother me enough to regret making this view. I already had the pattern cut out, so...there ya go.


The rest of the hoodie is made from navy French terry, I believe it's from Raspberry Creek Fabrics on Etsy. I used the "wrong" side or loop side as the outer fabric. Since the bodice has textured I wanted the rest of it to have texture as well. I don't think I have to say it, but this thing is so freaking cozy! Since it's technically outerwear and not a shirt, I can wear it every day, right? And it's so much more put-together than a sloppy, traditional sweatshirt.


I do have one major issue with this pattern, however. The instructions are bad. Possibly the worst I've ever seen. Frankly, I was shocked. I've sewn other Hey June patterns, it's a popular company, I couldn't believe how messy these were. I read a few blog posts and nobody said a word about it (although I found one person on Pattern Review who agreed with me, and I think we all know that PR speaks the truth). As I said, there are a lot of different views in the pattern, so the instructions attempt to skip around and lead you to the correct instructions for your view. But there are a ton of errors, steps missing, numbers incorrect, etc. Is all the info there? Maybe. I read enough to figure out it was messed up and then assembled the garment without the directions. Since my view is straightforward, this was fine, but I'm not sure about the views with the zipper or the placket. If you're not as familiar with knits as I am, you'll probably be lost. I expect you'll someday see an update to this pattern. But if you're confident with your abilities then you'll be fine, and the drafting is excellent even if the directions are not.

I don't know how many more chilly days we're going to have, since it's going to hit almost 70 this weekend (!!) but until then, I will be rotating back and forth between this Halifax and my wool one (to be blogged...whenever it gets clean!).

Update July 2017: This post contains affiliate links. Text of the original post remains the same!

2 comments:

  1. Funny how close those two seams come together. Looks like cozy fabric! About the pattern directions. Write her a letter. A good pattern maker should be totally open to improving their patterns and directions. Sometimes I think they fail to recognize that a majority of sewers aren't experts or maybe learned their sewing in a different matter than they use. IMPO, all directions should be written such that a person who knows how to turn a machine on and make it go forward can make the item even if everything is new to them. Especially something like a sweat shirt! We have a sewing Revival started and they should be helping it along! Don't you think? Cheers.

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  2. I remember that fabric - perfect garment for it!

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