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Jul 19, 2012

Mens Linen Blazer: The Farewell Tour



Readers, this is it: my final linen blazer post.   So much to say.  Where to begin?

I did indeed wear my linen blazer out to dinner last night.  We had a major thunderstorm yesterday that cooled things off considerably, and by evening there was a refreshing breeze that continues this morning.

Here's what I wore: the pink shirt is the one I made a few weeks ago, the old white linen pants are from H&M.



Here are the buttons on the jacket.  Yes, they are plastic, but I think they're perfect.  And unlike wood, you don't have to dust them.





Did you know that I made an inside double-welt breast pocket?  It's my first inside pocket and while it's not perfect, it's decent, and works perfectly.



I made it the usual way: tracing the stitch lines, stitching (with pocketing on top of fashion fabric), cutting through the layers, pulling the pocketing through the slit, stitching up the bag, and topstitching along the welts from the right side.  (I marked with either white chalk or colored pencil, depending on the location.)













The jacket lining was painstaking to insert around those vents, but overall it went in easily and hangs well.  It's the perfect weight: a Bemberg rayon-type lining I picked up at Paron's on 39th St.





If there's one area I need to fiddle with, it's to press/steam the collar so that it folds more crisply.  Perhaps I should have used a lighter interfacing on the overcollar, or none at all.  It's ever so slightly thick at the fold.  A sewing friend advised me to steam/press it around a ham (using a press cloth) and let it sit overnight.  If you have any other ideas, I'd love to hear them.



The collar fold is a bit bulky.

One last thing! To make the jacket, I used Simplicity 8368, a vintage pattern from 1969.  Other than narrowing the side and center back seams roughly 1/4" to give myself a little more chest room (This was a 34" chest and I normally wear a 36"), I made no cosmetic changes to the pattern whatsoever.  Of course, it's much closer to the earlier "ivy style" patterns of the Sixties than to the groovier wide-lapel patterns that would soon appear.



If you're interested in making a men's blazer, Simplicity 8368 is a good choice, and it includes separate front pattern pieces for the two or three-button version (I made the two-button).

Readers, I have nearly 240 construction photos posted on Picasa, so if things are boring at work or you're just interested in reviewing how I put this garment together (or both) you can view them all here.   Of course, the short photo shoot can be seen here.

Thank you so much for accompanying me on this blazer-making journey.  If you have any questions about what I did or how I did it, just ask.

Have a great day, everybody!

25 comments:

  1. Fantastic job, Peter. I will be looking at the rest of the photos if things get slow while I'm at work today!!! Thanks for sharing.

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  2. Looks wonderful. You did a great job!

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  3. So smart, well done. I've enjoyed reading your linen blazer posts, very inspiring. Thank you

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  4. Men in linen always make me think of Gatsby (ahem, the novel, DeCaprio not a candle). I think there's a Fitzgerald line about him being in a "pink rag of a suit" which conveys the rumpled confidence and savoir faire of dressing up despite wilting heat. You look dapper and well welted. I'm on a linen men pants mission . . . wish me luck. I might even do a blog post. (perish the thought).

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  5. Blazer looks great! Congratulations on a wonderful sewn garment.

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  6. Looks really good Peter. Specially like it with that shirt.
    Terry

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  7. Gosh, this turned out beautifully! I love this! Your style is so sharp-- you look great!

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  8. I really love your linen jacket Peter. You look very nice.
    I would take your friend's advise. Place the collar around a ham, use a press cloth, steam the collar into shape and let it sit overnight until it is dry.

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  9. Congrats on finishing! I've loved following along and I enjoy all your photos of the inner-workings of the jacket. Maybe one day I'll tackle something like this.

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  10. You had to look spectacular in that blazer on a cool summer's evening in the city.

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  11. I'm NOT showing this to my older son because he'll nag me mercilessly to make him one!

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  12. I pin my under collar before I sew it on, to my ham and steam it to set the roll line. No reason you can't do it now. I also add another layer of interfacing to the under collar stand cut on the straight grain and I cut the under collar interfacing on the bias with a seam at cb. I also cut my under collar on the bais with a center seam. It rolls better.

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    1. as always Nancy, you are a fountain of useful information.

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  13. Oh, you did such a great job on the blazer!

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  14. Thanks particularly for the photos of the lining process. The hand stitching round the vents looks fine to me and the lining hem is great. I think I'll always opt for the more down-market approach of a bagged lining with my (non-tailored) jackets but, even without the details like vents and shoulder pads, lined linen has an elegantly casual air whether freshly pressed or rumpled from wear hasn't it?.

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  15. What a fantastic finished product!

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  16. Amazing...I just looked through all 240 photos. What a great job!

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  17. It looks great. I'm always amazed at the quality of the things you sew.

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  18. dude, you don't even have my blog on your blogroll? Are you just not that into me, or what? jeez.

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    1. I don't know HOW that happened, Robin, I swear! I have corrected the error and beg your forgiveness.

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  19. oh, I think your jacket looks fantastic.

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  20. What an amazing jacket! I haven’t been commenting because work has been all-consuming and it’s all I could do to sneak in a read. BUT, I have been following with great joy.

    The jacket was a lot of work, but boy is the end product worth it. You can be very proud in the various ensembles that you’ve shown us.

    Thanks for providing so many contruction details.

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  21. Sweet jacket. I am very jealous.

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  22. I noticed when trimming the seam allowance in your collar you used straight notches. Using V-shaped notches you can really reduce bulk on curved seams such as your collar. Unfortunately that probably means partially removing your lining.

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