Butterick 5533 in pink fleece – love

So many variations, I love this pattern. And this early winter I wanted something pink!

The line art:

For this one, I used the body and just let myself go.

Before I go further, this is based on View B neckline, View A yoke, and the basic body of the jacket. More below.

I was after a zip-front with a stand-up collar, mostly because I was using fleece. Kind of a quasi-athletic jacket with lots of ease and so on. And lots of detail and fun stuff.

A challenge? yes, but I did decide that I was willing to sacrifice this fabric if nothing worked 🙂

Sewing notes:

• As noted, my starting point was Butterick 5533, which I’ve made in many fabrics with a bunch of fun twists.
• I sewed the View B collar, which is pretty straight forward. The pattern uses the same front and back for either collar selection.
• The back is loosely based on View A, but I removed a lot of the width and just gathered the skirt fabric under the yoke.

• The pockets, well, I rounded the bottom edge. Not a big change, but more interesting. I keep a folder of pockets, cowls, bowties, and so on, so this shape was borrowed. I also lined them, as I don’t want to stuff in my hands and distort the fabric – this is fleece!

• The biggest change: I decided to put in a separating zipper, instead of using a button front. So I drafted a new front with a 5/8 seam allowance at the center front. And I did the same to the front facing. This is an easy change, do not be afraid to do this, on any pattern! I ran the zipper about 1″ into the collar to provide stabilization and continuity to the entire vision I had. This is a #10 30″ zipper from Wawak.

Basting prep for defining the inserted zipper.

• I used lots of topstitching. Fleece loves topstitching definition, and the additional threads add stability to the lines of the fabric and garment. Here is the beautiful cuff design (on the pattern), with lots of detail.

Thoughts on sewing fleece:

• I just put this jacket in the dryer for a lint-catching tumble. And I vacumned and dusted my entire house. Everything I wore while making this is in the wash, pink lint everywhere, little tiny pieces, aarrgh. Almost sneezing. Lesson, just relax and go with it, when sewing fleece or fur (I cut out fur outside in my carport!!)
• Fleece has a lot of mechanical stretch in all directions and on the bias. Here’s how I pinned the seams – but I also staystiched the neckline, front edge, etc., etc., to combat distortion. I used a long stitch and actually increased the upper thread tension to ensure that the stitches and fabric sides had an even tension. The best approach, of course, is to experiment with your fabric, across the bias, horizontal, vertical, on both your sewing machine and your serger. Seems like a lot, but it’s a bespoke and custom garment, right? One of a kind…

I really love this jacket, even though I’m done with pink and fleece 🙂

Ciao, Coco