I originally wrote up my review of this pattern here. For this review, I wanted to talk about how I converted it into a men's pattern.
Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
For a men's coat, I redrafted the sleeves from gathered to seamed in order to eliminate the girly gathers. Then, for the back, I added darts traced from a cape pattern to replace the gathers.
I added length to the sleeves and the hem to size it up for a man, and ended up cutting a size 16 instead of 12 just to make sure he had enough room.
I had also noticed on my last version that the hood didn't quite fit into the zipper, and so I bought a longer zipper and made the opening a tad bit bigger.
Finally, I narrowed the collar to make it less wide and girly.
To finish it off, I added zippered in-seam pockets and put in zipper pulls for all the tiny zippers.
The fit:
While this jacket fits great when I made it in a size 4 for myself, the fit has been a little off for him. I made so many pattern changes to give an honest assessment of the pattern, but I do wonder if the grading was a little off. The collar/neck opening is a little too wide, and the hood is definitely too big. I am going to re-size the hood back down to the size 4, and it should fit much better.
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
This is the second time I'm making this up, the first time, once for me and this second one for my man. I already plan on making another for me, perhaps with some more structural modifications for a different look. Love it!
Conclusion:
Converting a women's pattern to a men's pattern was definitely a challenge, but quite an adventure! You can see the version I made for myself here.
Were the instructions easy to follow?
Unlike other sewists I have not had problem following these directions.
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
With my modifications, it looks much more manly (I hope!).
Pattern Description:
The Minoru Jacket is a women's zip-front weekend jacket with a secret hood hidden inside the wide collar! If you prefer, skip the hood and let the dramatic collar be the focus. Flattering raglan sleeves are comfortable and easy-to-sew, and the elastic waistline creates a slim, curve-hugging silhouette.
No need to choose between having a hood OR a cute collar. The hood is tucked away in the wide, roomy collar, ready for when you need it, but stays hidden when you don’t! The collar looks great done up or left open. The jacket is fully lined, with interior patch pockets to stash your cards and keys safely and out of sight.
Pattern Sizing:
Sizes: 0-16 (all sizes are included in one pattern!) |
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Great jacket. I would never have thought of using a woman's pattern for a man' garment but this works wonderfully. I especially like the alteration you made to the sleeves to make them fit male shoulders - very clever.
1/23/13 11:17 AM
What a great write up and a brilliant effort on your part! He's a lucky fella...
1/23/13 11:45 AM
I so enjoyed reading your blog entry. What a special and wonderful gift. You did a great job.
1/23/13 9:53 PM
How clever to adapt the pattern to fit a man!
1/24/13 9:29 AM
What a wonderful job you did! I want to sew one for my husband and a matching one for me, as you did. Maybe Tasia will draft a man's version :)
1/24/13 12:40 PM