Better Late Than Never?! Right?!

A long, long time ago Melissa, Kat and Juliet – the lovely women who coordinate The Monthly Stitch announced their first theme – Capes. This was perfect for me – I had a cape crying out to be finished. I began sewing it way back when Adam ways in shorts … At least 18 months ago. I finished it in the nick of time – the night before I hopped on the plane to the UK. It’s taken me an embarrassingly long amount of time to get round to post this! Here we are:

From the top picture you can see me demonstrating, in a 1970s catalogue sort of way, the armholes and the pockets. These were by far the hardest parts for me to sew. I began sewing these when I was still using my grandmothers WWII-esque Elna Grasshopper. Whilst this machine looks like a tank it struggled to get through the four layers of felted wool required to make those seams lay flat. Many needles were broken. Much colourful language was used.

This pattern is a nice combination of fitted and loose. The front is fitted in the bust when the dome is fastened whilst the rest if the cape has plenty of easy to move about in. I didn’t get around to sewing all the domes on, just the one at the bust so I could demonstrate the shape.

This is Vogue 8776, surely out of print by now. I’ve probably said it before but I was inspired by Erica Bunker’s camel cape from a few years ago – so sassy and classy – typically Erica. I’m a pretty big fan girl! The fabric is (looks down in shame) from the (coughs) remnants basket at The Fabric Store, Newton. I was super lucky and found two bundles of this off white felted wool. Enough to make this cape and some left over.

I’ll be the first I admit that I wasn’t sure how much I’d actually wear this garment. Capes can certainly seem costume-y. It I’ve seen tonnes in the shops here in London (like this one and this one) so I reckon they’re gonna be a big thing in the next New Zealand winter.