I made a hoodie…

Vogue 8854 hoodie – for a ‘nice’ girl

I can’t be a bad-ass cos it’s a Vogue hoodie. Yes the hoodie for ‘nice’ girls… from the latest season release from Vogue.

I used a Marc Jacobs knit that I picked up in Sydney’s Surrey Hills The Fabric Store last month. It’s divine. Soft and cuddly. Navy on one side and royal blue on the other. And a screaming bargain at just $8 a metre. Yes, yes I know you are really jealous now… I only needed 1.6m for this top!  I got the pattern for about $7 (including postage in a major indulgence haul from BMV).

Vogue 8854 hoodie – neck closed with toggle

Rachel of MyMessings in Twitter suggested making it fully reversible with flat fell seams… completely awesome idea… I eventually came to the conclusion the fabric would be a little thick (the fabric! not me thank you very much!). Good decision. I snapped two needles making this hoodie (or maybe it’s more of a bad ass hoodie than I thought).

My biggest dilemma was whether navy should be on the outside or inside. I know! Decisions!! I nearly put navy on the outside. However I have quite a few dark jeans and felt the royal blue was more versatile… and sometimes a huge chunk of shapeless navy or black just looks… well… shapeless.

This is absolutely nothing fancy (except the dead posh fabric of course) about this. I love the contrast colour that you see inside the lower back hem, hood and neck facing.

Vogue 8854 hoodie – back view

I found the hem went a little wavy/wonky but I’m not too concerned. I think it will settle down with some wash & wear. Again I think the weight of the fabric is an issue here… but it’s so snuggly all is forgiven. Despite being quite thick fabric, it’s very soft and drapey.

It’s extremely comfortable, easy to wear and I think will be a casual winter favourite. It’s not fancy wear but hey, everyone needs a little ‘slouch’ in their life right?

Vogue 8854 – hood up

• I turned under the inside edges of the neck facings. They just looked untidy unfinished or overlocked.
• I flipped over the fabric to get a contrast on my neck facing when the toggle is undone. I thought from the look of the pattern only one facing would be revealed. Doh! Not true (although I could be a little neater in my styling – this was a slap on the nearest jeans/footwear and run into the backyard photo shoot). I don’t mind it so much as I figure it’s going to be done up most of the time. Note to self: stop trying to be tricky.
  

  Vogue hoodie – all the guts – no glory. Still need to tidy up the end of the neck/hood seam. It was tough to sew through the thickness of the fabric neatly.

• I used a wooden toggle instead of a button – a suggestion from ELH.
• I omitted the snaps which are to hold the flap down more firmly. I just think they would look messy with the neck open.
• I used a twin needle on the hem and cuffs. Yeah I know, dead fancy for a hoodie right?
• I set the sleeves in flat because… well it’s just so much easier! There is no gathering in the sleeves. I attached the sleeves and then sewed up the sleeve and side seams in one go. Why make life hard for yourself?
• I love this fabric and I like the cuffs turned back so the contrast inner shows. I haven’t stitched these back as I want the length for the colder winter days. Yes, tragically I live somewhere where winter isn’t really that cold and this will probably be quite snug most days…
  

  Vogue hoodie – neck open.

• I hand-stitched the outside bottom of the neck opening down, rather than edge stitching along the bottom edge as the pattern says. I found the edge stitching was very obvious due to the thickness of the fabric. It created a giant puffy indentation. Not so fancy. I also stitched a little further up the bottom of the opening as I did not want to put little press studs to close the opening. I just thought it would look messy when the toggle was undone.

I figure if I get sick of the ‘bum flap’ as I have nicknamed it, I can always shorten it a little.

Next time I am fortunate enough to make it to The Fabric Store, I am going to pick up some lightweight Metalicus wool fabric, or NZ merino knit. I think this would make a gorgeous t-shirt weight top. Almost like a tunic… I suspect this is the sort of fabric Vogue have used in their top.

Good news? I’ve got the same fabric coming my way at Christmas courtesy of my mother-in-law. 🙂 this time it’s soft pink and fawn… not sure if it’s another hoodie or a jacket… I’ll have to wait ’til it talks to me…

Random interesting facts about hoodies: Madalynne recently posted about hoodies and a little about their origins.

IN OTHER SEWBUSY NEWS…

Whole Wheat Progress, the back

I’m knitting a cardigan… I think… I had a major brain explosion and couldn’t nut out the pattern. When I woke up one morning this week and went ‘Doh! You IDIOT’ (and that was being nice to myself – I can knit I’m just not very good at it – and of course I’ve chosen a pattern with lace and cables… see My Messings… I’ve been in love with this pattern ever September she posted it as a consideration in her knitting adventures… she went on to knit Miette.. and has now started Whole Wheat by Alexandra Charlotte Dafoe (you can pick up the pattern for $7 on Ravelry – where I am SewBusyLizzy if you wanna be friends) … I decided I could not live without it anymore either.Now I have figured out the pattern I don’t know what my problem was…. other than being ridiculously tired of course…

Funny… I can sew a dress with boning, lining and underlining but knitting is hard!

Final picture – taken by Miss 9 at bedtime on the iPhone…

Hoodie shot by Miss 9

Now I have to go and cut out a corporate jacket for Miss 9 who is starring as the corporate b*&^% who tries to outsource the elves work at Santa’s workshop. Cheery Christmas stuff…