Ideas and Threads
We are back from Universal Florida. After a trip to Disneyworld in 2016 and one to New York City in 2018, 2019 saw us back to Florida. We do love American theme parks and the feeling of exhilaration they entail. Sharing family moments is the…
When Kennis first asked for testers for the Envigado, I had so much to do I passed…and I was really sad! So when I was co-opted for the blogtour I knew what pattern I would use as my main piece. This is the perfect outfit…
Oh it’s starting to get a bit cold in the mornings so what’s better than sewing a nice denim jacket named Atenas? This is Itch to Stitch‘s latest pattern and trust me, it has everything of RTW denim jackets of a well-known brand with the red tag!!! Kennis has wonderful jackets patterns: the Hvar I tested is in permanent rotation throughout fall and the La Paz knit blazer is the perfct add-on for a more casual look .
Be prepared though for lengthy, but rewarding, hours of sewing. The Atenas is so worth it. Moreover, with Kennis’ detailed instructions, you will get a proper jacket.
Meant for denim or any other woven with some weight in it, the Atenas offers breast pocket (functional or not) and welt pockets too. I passed the welt pockets because I had no time to sew them. Kennis has added a very detailed tutorial on her blog to walk you through all the steps and get a nice result.
The princess seams at front and back nicely shape the silhouette.
The topstitching makes the beauty of that jacket. I know it’s time-consuming, but look how nice it is.
The peacock green gabardine, buttons, and interfacing come from Ma Petite Mercerie. This cotton gabardine was a dream to sew. I envision lots of gabardine projects in the near future. Gobi culottes could be one of them, in that wonderful purple grey gabardine.
I made a size 8 bust blended to a size 10 for waist and hips. No other alterations. The shoulders are a bit dropped so it’s great if you want to wear a lighweight sweater underneath.
My advice is to sew a muslin. Mine was spot-on, but I was prepared to alter length and shoulders. No need to that time, which was great! For the fun, the fabric I used for my muslin was bleeding: I’ve had blue fingers for 2 days afterwards!!! Good thing it was just muslining fabric and not the real one otherwise it would have spent a lot of time soaking in vinegar to fix the dye.
The pattern calls for 14 buttons if you have the tabs at the back (which I did).
I couldn’t do the flat-felled seams because my sewing machine hates thick layers. Instead I did faux flat-felled seams and it is visually pleasing.
Behind the scene: a cute photobomber seeking attention!
If I paired my Atenas with my beloved Bonn shirt, it can also easily be paired with numerous Itch to Stitch designs (click on the image to get to the pattern page):
This article may contain affiliate links.