SEWN: THE HOMETOWN JACKET

I love my hometown, I really do.

I've travelled near and far and there are many beautiful places in this world. But Sydney, oh Sydney, you give them a run for their money.

When Tessuti Fabrics released their Sydney Jacket pattern a few weeks back, I unexpectedly fell in love with it. I had downloaded my pattern within minutes. I had the perfect fabric languishing in my stash... a fire engine red boiled wool knit.

I had a slight hiccup when I realised I had less than the recommended yardage. Not by much, but at first it looked like my plans would be scuppered.

Then I saw a few being made up (Kirsty, Helen) and quickly realised that perhaps I'd be able to get away with the petite size with the XS length (only 1cm longer) which might juuuuuuuuust squeeze onto my fabric. It did. Huzzah!

For the record I am almost 168cm tall and the measurements for the XS more closely matched my body measurements. Let me tell you though, this is plenty big enough. Any bigger and I'd be totally swamped. It seems to run a bit large, so be warned.

It's a quick make, if not a bit fiddly with those lapped seams. I wasn't sure I'd like the effect, but I really do! The cut out darts were a bit tricky and I'm pretty sure you could do a regular dart, just wish I'd tried that first.

Sydney has perfectly low slung pockets, cropped sleeves and a beautiful drape. It's fabulously drafted and everything came together like a perfectly formed jigsaw puzzle.

Cropped sleeves on a coat confuse me. In fact they've always been a complete turn off. I don't get it... if I have need for a coat, surely I'm going to want some sleeves. But this style is unexpectedly perfect for Sydney autumn/winter where temps below 15 degrees happen infrequently and the sun actually has a significant warmth to it.

That's something my poor brain could never adjust to when I lived in Canada. It would be a gorgeously bright and sunny winter's day and my brain would expect to be able to bask in the warmth of the sun. But it's total inability to take the edge off the literally frigid conditions always came as a surprise no matter how long I'd been there.

Back to the coat. Originally this was a definite ho-hum make for me. I could not make it work for me stylistically, it just felt like an ultra bright lab coat. Seriously, it really did.

Then I took a step away for a week or two and tried again. And somehow I made it work. I think it needs layers, accessories, a beanie. It just doesn't work for me slung over a long-sleeved tee and jeans. I love it with my over-the-top red boots, my precious pure silk scarf (gift from hubby) and my me-knit beanie. Oh and a good slash of red lipstick never goes astray.

And if you hadn't guessed by the sheer volume of photos I'm sharing, this has become a decided WOOHOO! Thank goodness Sydney didn't let me down. Not that she ever could...