Making The Hot Patterns Breton T

It’s time for some spring sewing! I wanted to focus on making the Hot Patterns Breton T (officially the Mr & Mrs Weekender Breton T) because it’s such a classic spring top. And when I made this, it was cold and there was still snow on the ground.

The Fabric

Breton Tees are known for their stripes. They are most often (at least traditionally) blue and white stripes or black and white stripes. So when I bought this fabric locally at G Street Fabrics, I knew it would be perfect for some kind of t-shirt. I used a blue and white striped knit that I had in my fabric stash.

This is a medium weight knit that washes and dries great. It’s not a see through fabric and it’s very comfortable in cool and warm weather.

The Pattern

This is considered a “Beginner” sewing pattern. It is easy to put together. I usually make mine with a long sleeve, although the pattern is more of a 3/4 (or longer) sleeve. I’ve also made many variations before. While mine may look like a boatneck shirt, the pattern is described as a cross between a boatneck and round neck.

woman wearing blue & white striped Breton T

Back view of woman wearing Hot Patterns Breton T

The only issue with constructing this top involves assembling the neckline. While it seems like it would be very simple, the instructions aren’t very clear and require a lot of thought. I was able to find a good write-up on the Pattern Review website that explains things really well. But, when done correctly, you end up with a clean finish on the inside of the neckband (all raw edges are enclosed).

The only alteration made to the pattern was to lengthen the sleeves. I think that I’ll make another slleve pattern piece that just for the longer length like I prefer, especially if it’s still a little cool outside.

Conclusion

Making the Hot Patterns Breton T is one of my favorite patterns. It’s great when I need to get my sew-jo back. There are so many ways this can be styled particularly when made in a solid. Sewing our own wardrobe pieces can really give us the unique style and fit that we all want for ourselves. And best of all, it doesn’t always have to be a time consuming process.

Here’s the YouTube video I made on making the top:

Making Butterick 6948

Making Butterick 6948 is what I did for one of my latest Minerva Fabrics projects. This is one of those wardrobe patterns where you can make several garments from one pattern. For this project. I only focused on the jacket.

The Fabric

This Minerva Exclusive Organic Cotton Twill is a stunning print. It’s called Parading Palms and the more technical name of the fabric is tencel lyocell twill in medium weight. There’s no stretch in the fabric.

Minerva Exclusive Organic Cotton Twill Parading Palms

This fabric is soft and has great drape. It would be perfect for something like palazzo pants, skirts, or jackets. I’m a Minerva Brand Ambassador so this was gifted to me.

The Pattern

I chose to use Butterick 6948 because I like the trench-style jacket look for this print. Also, because the design of the pattern is relatively simple, it’s perfect for a bold, large print.

I chose to make View A, which is the shorter jacket with sleeves. It’s described as an unlined jacket with matching belt carriers button epaulettes and side seam pockets. I did not add the button epaulettes since I didn’t have the type of buttons I wanted for them. But with this print, they really aren’t missed.

One thing I found interesting about this pattern is that it instructs you to interface the entire front facing. That’s quite a lot. I did it only because with the drape of this material, it probably wouldn’t hold it’s shape without it. But, if I were to make this pattern again from a stiffer fabric (one with less drape), most likely the wholly interfaced front facing would not be necessary.

No alterations were needed to the pattern in regards to the fit.

The Fabric For Making Butterick 6948

This lyocell twill washes and dries great! Something I always do is wash my fabrics before I use them. That way I’m assured that once the garment is made, it’s clean AND I won’t have to worry about it shrinking.

Conclusion

Overall, the pattern is easy to make. I only made this one item from the pattern, but this was certainly not difficult. I do love taking a straightforward designed patten and using it to make something stunning and/or unexpected. That’s an easy way to elevate your wardrobe and a sewing pattern.

The Cashmerette Glover Jeans Jacket

The Cashmerette Glover jeans jacket is a new pattern that is included in the Cashmerette Club. For those who may not know, Cashmerette is a pattern company that makes patterns for women with full busts that can be hard to fit. They have a wide range of patterns for women of all sizes.

The Pattern

The pattern is described as a classic jeans jacket with welt pockets, chest pockets and a high hip length. The sewing level is Intermediate.

Woman wearing the Cashmerette Glover jean jacket

Fabric and Changes I Made

This Glover is a size 14. I recommend checking the size chart and going with what best matches your measurements. Because I know how I wanted the jacket to fit, most attention was paid to the finished garment measurements as well as the actual body measurements. I don’t think the results would have been as good had I gone down to a size 12. One thing that I always pay attention to for jackets is will I be comfortable getting it off and on. When I considered that, I knew I wanted to go with the larger (14) size.

Front view of woman wearing Glover jean jacket

To really be sure of the fit, I did make sure to do a muslin before cutting into my fashion fabric.

woman wearing muslin of jeans jacket — *Trying on the Glover muslin*

The fabric I used is a black linen blend (medium weight) that I had in my fabric stash. There’s no stretch in the fabric.

As far as the fit and alterations, I didn’t make any changes for the fit. There’s a pocket tab that I didn’t include. Also, the jacket has side tabs that attach with buttons. Those weren’t included either.

Topstitching

As far as the topstitching is concerned, I use regular thread and not actual topstitching thread.
What I do, and this applies to when I make jeans or a jean jacket, is use the triple stitch on my sewing machine. If you have another machine, you can set that up with your topstitching thread. This will make things easier and faster since you won’t have to keep changing out the thread.

Conclusion

This is a terrific pattern for a classic jeans jacket. It’s not difficult to sew although you may find the welt pockets a bit challenging. The instructions are well written and can be understood easily. There is a sew along online that should give you step-by-step help as well.

Let me know if you have any questions or comments about my experience sewing this pattern!

*As a Cashmerette Club collaborator, I received a year of All Access membership in return for sewing up this pattern.