Wool+Wax Wool Felt Tote

I received fabric in exchange for this review. All opinions are my own.  No affiliate links have been used. Thank you OCP!

A few months back, a friend tipped me off to the most beautiful tote bag I'd ever seen...this knitting bag from twig&horn. I LOVED the dark grey wool outer, the mixed media with the leather straps, and the large size to accommodate knitting projects. What I did not love was the $180 price tag. So when Organic Cotton Plus contacted me about a review, I had a vague notion of trying to copy the twig&horn bag. That notion became a reality when I saw their 100% wool felt. Available in small sheets, by the yard, or even in ribbon, I couldn't wait to nab some yardage and make my own tote bag.

I selected Charcoal and the color is perfect. The lining is 100% cotton broadcloth in Pumice, which is a sort of pinky-lilac color. I don't believe I've ever worked with broadcloth before. It reminded me of a high quality muslin, although a bit sheer. Perfect for a contrast bag lining and very easy to sew. For straps, I went with black hemp webbing in a width of 1.5".

I spent a lot of time searching for a pattern that would get me close to my inspiration bag. Being primarily a garment sewist, the only bag designer I knew offhand was Noodlehead (Range Backpack, I'm coming for you someday!). I checked out her website and found the Wool+Wax Tote pattern, which looked pretty darn close. I happened to run across her booklet, Everyday Essentials, when I was ordering some fabric from another shop, and added that to my cart. The Everyday Essentials booklet contains the Wool+Wax Tote pattern, and two additional ones, although you can purchase all the patterns separately as PDFs.

The pattern was very easy to follow. I think I spent as much time cutting and interfacing as I did sewing! I used a universal 80/12 needle and a walking foot. The wool felt has no spandex or stretch but I did find the walking foot fed the layers much better than a regular foot. I used pink thread for a subtle contrast with the topstitching. The only change I made was to add a magnetic closure, and also to add some ultra firm stabilizer (left over from this project) to the bottom.

This project should have been super quick and easy, but I ran into one snag that definitely needs discussed. I chose not to prewash the felt. Here is the description from the website:

Dry clean only - if washed, the wool will have a boiled wool look. It can also shrink depending on how hot the temperature of water is - the hotter it is the more it will shrink.

Based on this info, I thought it would be better not to prewash. I knew I was making a bag and that I could spot-clean it as needed. I have a lot of experience with wool, and when washed they all behave differently. I thought it would be better not to risk it.

My thought process would have been fine EXCEPT that I forgot about interfacing. When I began fusing my outer bag pieces to my interfacing, it shrank (wool+heat+water=shrinkage). It wasn't a lot, but it was enough for me to notice the first piece looked different and to compare it to its identical counterpart.

At that point, I had already cut all my pieces, so I had a decision to make. Prewash my remaining yardage and recut (if possible!), or continue with what I had and trim the lining pieces to match my wool as it shrank. I went with option #2, because the thought of wasting all that fabric really bothered me.

As it turned out, it wasn't a big deal. I interfaced the pieces that required it, and trimmed down the ones that didn't shrink. Since this wasn't a complicated pattern it was easy to know how and when to trim. My finished bag is probably a little smaller than drafted but it works just fine for holding my knitting. 

In conclusion, if you want to work with this wool felt (which you should, because it is awesome!) consider whether or not it will ever be hot/wet/washed DURING the project AND after. 

One other item to note: the hemp webbing felt fairly stiff when it arrived, and the black color is VERY black. I was concerned about it bleeding dye when getting wet even incidentally, like in the rain. I prewashed it by hand in my sink with Synthrapol. Synthrapol is a detergent meant to pull out excess dye from fabric. I've used it with my own dye projects to help reduce bleeding color. I was glad I took this precaution because there was dye bleed, although less than I expected. A bonus side effect was that the webbing came out super soft afterward.

I am such a huge natural fibers junky, and working with the items at Organic Cotton Plus is always a treat. I've never been disappointed with the fabrics I've gotten, and their shipping is crazy fast. Check out all their beautiful fabrics here!

Wool Peacoat with Organic Cotton Plus

It seems I'm on a coat-making kick when it comes to using fabrics from Organic Cotton Plus. My previous review was a Kelly Anorak with their fabulous pink cotton twill. I knew that this time around I wanted to make my oldest daughter a winter coat, and I couldn't be happier with how it turned out!

This is the Olivia and Oliver Peacoat from Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop. I made this coat once before for my daughter, when she was just a baby (sob!). I've always wanted to make it again, and I'm so glad I did!

For my outer fabric, I chose this navy wool (it comes in 11 colors!). Aside from being the classic peacoat color, it also matches my daughter's school colors. I wasn't quite sure about the fabric and whether it'd be suitable for a coat, but I looked through the older posts from other OCP bloggers and found a coat made from the same fabric. Double-checking the weight (13 oz/sq yard) led me to believe that it would be a bit lighter than wool melton, and I was right.

For the lining, I settled on a beautiful golden poplin from Cloud9 fabrics (doesn't say the maker online but it was on the selvedge). It is a little "sticky" in that it doesn't glide over clothing like a silkier fabric would, but I wasn't interested in purchasing polyester just to make dressing easier (have you ever dressed a Kindergartner? It's not easy, no matter what they're wearing!).

Both of these fabrics were absolutely wonderful. The wool, in particular, was a great surprise. I've worked with heavy wool in the past and when you start adding layers, it becomes very difficult to sew. Then when the coat is finished it weighs a million pounds. My daughter is still in a five point harness carseat, and I needed her coat to be slim but warm so that she can be buckled properly on her way to school.

The pattern is surprisingly simple. No collar stand, no pieced facing/lining (only the back panel and sleeves are the lining fabric). Minimal topstitching. But the impact is strong. I opted for only a single row of functional buttons. Extra buttons usually end up confusing my kids. After a quick muslin of a size 6 (my daughter will be 6 in a few months) I realized it was a little too small for wearing over a cardigan, and I wanted it a bit wider. I slashed and spread the front and back pieces from the shoulder to the hem. I spread them 2" at the hem on the front (4" total with two pieces), and 1" on the back (piece was cut on fold so 2" total added). I also added in-seam pockets, and I rounded the collar for more of a Peter Pan style.

My daughter goes around school telling everyone that her mom made her coat, and I kind of want to cry over how sweet she is! The changes I made resulted in a bigger coat that will hopefully fit the entire season, and dare I hope for next season as well? We'll see.  At the very least, her two younger sisters will have a high-quality garment to wear when they're older.

If you want to nab some of your own beautiful, all natural fabrics, make sure to follow Organic Cotton Plus on Facebook or Instagram. They will be having a big Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale next week. There have been a few teasers of new products and they look amazing! You can also sign up for emails on their website. Thank you so much to Organic Cotton Plus for sending me the fabric for this review!

Fabric for this review was sent to me for free. I purchased the pattern and notions. This post contains affiliate links. All opinions are my own.

Pink Twill Kelly Anorak

If you follow me on Instagram you may be wondering what happened to this jacket, if I had set it on fire the way I had threatened many times. I did not destroy it, despite many problems during construction I did finish it, just before I went on vacation.

I had hoped to take some stunning photos with it at Niagara Falls (you can see it was a part of my capsule wardrobe) but...it was too hot! I had expected at least one day of rainy weather, but we were blessed with sunshine and warm temps the whole time. But this past week we were finally hit with some rain at home, so I was able to give it a proper test run.

In case you didn't know, this is the Kelly Anorak by Closet Case Patterns. It is an unlined jacket featuring bellows patch pockets, snap and zipper closure, cuffs with snaps, and an optional hood. Waistline elastic with a drawstring is also optional. I went with the hood, and added elastic only on the back of the jacket. I hate drawstrings so I left that off.

Sizing is from 0-20. I always get intimidated by jacket patterns that include such a wide range. Often, shopping for RTW jackets is as "simple" as choosing Small, Medium, or Large, so to me, it feels weird to break the sizing down into such narrow increments. My whole life, I've been a small, but my measurements (34-29-38) put me at a 6-10-10 (clearly a medium, right?). After a (delusional) muslin of a straight 6, I ended up cutting a 6 for the sleeves, bust, and length, but grading out to a 10 in the hips. Sizing is pretty spot on, if you follow the chart and get over any hang ups about what the numbers "mean".

The fabric I chose is cotton twill from Organic Cotton Plus (sent to me for free in exchange for a review, affiliate link). I used another color way previously to make a Victoria Blazer, so I knew the quality would be amazing. I was not disappointed, of all the issues I had the fabric was never a problem. It behaved beautifully. I've even used the scraps from before to line my Portside Duffle. This is a versatile fabric that would also work great for pants. The pink is a bit see-through, in that I can see my dark clothing through it, but it's not like I'd use twill for a shirt anyway! Just keep that in mind if it's something that might bother you.

So what were the problems you ask?

• The yardage requirement for the interfacing is incorrect (too little)
• There was also no width given for the interfacing requirements
• The cut diagram for the interfacing is incorrect
• The zipper facings are drafted super wide and flap around when completed
• In the directions and online tutorial for the zipper, the pull is on the right-hand size of the zipper (when looking at it while it is facing up). My zipper, purchased from a supplier on Amazon, has the zipper pull on the opposite side. I'm not the first blogger to say she had trouble with this step, and in my case it meant I ended up completely unpicking topstitching and the facing on one side of my zipper because I put it in backwards.
• The placket piece was drafted too short and did not match the bodice
• The amount of snaps needed is incorrect (pattern says 12, the jackets on the models have 14, I used 13)

Aside from all these problems with the pattern itself, stupid little things kept happening. I waited two weeks for a zipper from Pacific Trimming, which ended up being out of stock, yet nobody called to tell me so. I had to contact the store, was treated very poorly, and left with no option other than canceling the order. I ordered a new zipper from ZipperStop via Amazon and was sent the wrong size (they, however, responded quickly to my issue and sent me a new one ASAP). I started off with Coats & Clark thread because it saved me a trip to Jo-Ann's, but the thread sucked and caused me to need to recut a piece. My denim needle didn't work well and I ended up needing a topstitching one for all construction. I didn't have enough interfacing (see above) and used some older stuff I had on hand, which wasn't ideal. I finished my first bellows pocket and immediately got black ink on it.

Given all of the above, this was a super tough sew for me. Sewing is supposed to be fun. I'm not saying it has to be easy, but when you pay $20+ for a pattern you expect that it will not waste your time. Honestly, I can't recommend this pattern, and I'm pretty put off from anything else from Closet Case Patterns. I previously had a rough go of it with the Bombshell Swimsuit and I just don't feel like dealing with these designs any longer.

PHEW. With that off my chest...here are the rest of the details. I finished as many seams as possible with flat-felled seams. In some places, I used bias tape to finish instead, and I used the same finish on the hem.

I love the way the bright pink pops along the hood seams. I also added a bias tape loop for hanging.

The snaps are 12mm "spring button snaps" in silver, to match the zipper. To set the snaps, I also ordered a snap setter kit. CCP has a tutorial on her blog. I've worked with a large variety of snaps, and different methods for setting, and these were by far some of the easiest. I still needed to be precise and careful, and setting 13 pairs of snaps was very time-consuming, but I'd rather work with these again over, say, sewing them in by hand! The one thing that would have made it easier is a fabric punch. I had to use an awl and it wasn't making large enough holes for inserting the snap prongs.

My husband poked fun at me for making a jacket in May/June rather than earlier in the spring, but it was actually a good thing. I finished it, set it aside, and tried to forget all our troubles together. I don't have any jackets like this in my closet and I know I'll wear it a lot. It worked well in the rain and the hood was nice and roomy. There is a small chance I would make another one, but let's be honest, "oh pretty!" will strike at some point with another pattern.

One last note...I did purchase some Otter Wax to use with this jacket, but it will be getting its own post later!

Sleeveless Victoria Blazer

We've all done it. Made a pattern that we loved, plotted 50 more versions, then instantly moved on to "ooooo shiny!" and neglected the tried and true. I made my first Victoria Blazer almost exactly two years ago...eep! I LOVE that blazer, it's one of my favorite things I've ever made. For all that time, I've been wanting to make a second (and third...) and I finally did!

The Victoria Blazer pattern, from By Hand London, has three views. This is View 3, a long sleeveless blazer. This is also, apparently, the least-popular view, because I couldn't find any photos of it made up when I did a search. Probably because a sleeveless blazer doesn't have a ton of utility. But I'm pregnant, and my internal body temperature is cray-cray and all over the place, so a sleeveless blazer will get use around here!

The amazing fabric I used is from Organic Cotton Plus. It was sent to me for free in exchange for this review. This is the first time I've done a review for them and made something for myself! (See previous items here and here.) Originally, I wanted some of their yummy linen to make an even slouchier blazer, but it sold out, so I went with this grey twill that had a bit more body. The lining is a pink batiste. Both of these fabrics are SO NICE. Lately I've been sewing less frequently, but with higher quality fabrics, and it really makes a difference. I could easily finger-press both of these, they didn't fray after cutting as much as a poor quality fabric, and they washed up like a dream.

This is the smallest size, US2, and as you can see it's oversized on purpose. I made no alterations to the pattern, though I did construct it in a different order so as not to switch thread so many times. Additionally, I clean-finished the armholes using the Colette method that I recently used on a sleeveless dress. The tutorial is for a knit dress, but I can attest that it works just as well on a woven jacket. It's fiddly, as I said before, but you can't beat the effect.

The jacket lining was finished by hand at center-back. Somehow I found the time for that with two kids running around. And I tell you what, sewing a jacket completely from woven fabrics was much easier than the ponte and stretch silk charmeuse I used before!

The more I look at these photos, the more I like this blazer. When you're pregnant, you tend to feel like a lumpy baby factory, without much shape (even more so in my case since I've been pregnant the last 16 out of 20 months). This unstructured blazer doesn't have any shape, either, but it LOOKS classy. Which means I feel classy.

The last blazer I made had issues with the lapels and collar flapping around. After a good press, it's not so much of a problem. I attribute that to a fabric with less bulk. The ponte from the previous blazer was pretty thick. You COULD topstitch those lapels, or hand-tack them, but I think they're fine.

This is another area where you COULD topstitch to keep everything in place, but I don't think it's really necessary. This pink batiste is so soft, I can't wait to use my scraps for pocket bags. And maybe the twill for some sort of baby jacket?

I love this version as much as my last one, and I know I'll be reaching for it as much as I can. The grey and pink fit into my wardrobe, and it's just fun to wear high quality fabrics. Thanks so much to Organic Cotton Plus for providing the fabric and giving me the push to sew this pattern again!