Linen Separates from McCalls 7368

Did you know that "separate" is the most commonly misspelled word in the English language? At least according to The Telegraph.  I am not surprised, as I had to look it up to write this post about separates!   I could have just written "Linen Jacket, Pants, and Top", but then I wouldn't have found out that interesting bit of trivia.

I bought McCalls 7368 specifically for the jacket, but then decided that the whole pattern was pretty darn nice, and decided to try some of the other pieces as well.  This is a Khaliah Ali pattern which are designed to be flattering on larger sizes, so I usually feel confident that they will be a good bet for my figure.   I love seeing her as the model too.  I think she is so pretty, and how nice it is to see a real curvy woman on the cover! 

 I had three pieces of the new designer linen from Fabric Mart, and my vision for them was something Eileen Fisher-esque.  I admire  Eileen Fisher styles for that effortless sophistication that somehow eludes me in my fashion efforts. Here is my first try at the jacket made from a linen/cotton patchwork blend.

When I opened the pattern and looked at the pieces, I had second thoughts about the jacket.  The underlap side is snapped to the inside at the shoulder.  I wasn't really sure I was coordinated enough to manage that!  And also, I thought it might look a little strange if it was worn open.  But I did like the asymmetrical concept, and thought if I could just figure out how to get it to tie at the waist, then I might be able to dress myself.  So, I redrew the left front (which is the underlapping side), so that it would tie at the waist, as you can see here. If you look to the dart area, you can see that I also lowered the dart.
 

Since I had lowered the dart, that also meant that the placement for the tie would need to be lowered as well, since it hits just below the dart. So, I cut out the section that has the tie attached and moved it lower and to the left.

There were also facing pieces that would go along the right front and the neckline.  Since I was changing the neckline to a straight line, I decided to skip the facings all together, and use a narrow hem.  The only curve that I was particular concerned with was the back neck, so I fused a strip of interfacing there to stabilize it.  This sounds like a lot of changes, but really they simplified the construction so much that I'm sure I came out ahead time wise.   So, here is the jacket closed with my changes:

And this is what it looks like when you are tying it.  This is my final version made from solid black.   I substituted twill tape for the ties on the black version, so they are thinner than the first versions ties.

 And if you don't want it tied shut, you can just tie the ties at the side and let it open like a cardigan!

The top is very simple. I also lowered the dart on it, and added side slits  so that I could reach into the pants pockets without having to lift up the top.    If you are wondering what shades of linen these are on the Fabric Mart website, the pants are the brown-olive, and the top is from the natural. 

 Here's a close-up of the finishing on the armhole- I used single fold bias tape, which behaved beautifully.

I don't mind the wrinkles in linen, and really love how comfortable they are.  I hope I get a lot of use out of these!  I think the pattern is a good investment, and would recommend it.

Happy Sewing!
Ann