We’re almost finished the Minoru Sew-Along! Today’s the last post of sewing instructions.
Today we’ll hem the jacket to finish it off. After the sewing is complete it’s a good idea to check for loose threads and trim them off, and give our garment a final press if the fabric requires. Then, hang it in your closet and wear it proudly!
Want to catch up on previous Sew-Along posts? Click the links below to read more:
- Minoru Sew-Along #1: Let’s Get Started!
- Minoru Sew-Along #2: Sewing Sleeves and Topstitching Tips
- Minoru Sew-Along #3: Gathering!
- Minoru Sew-Along #4: Sewing the Hood
- Minoru Sew-Along #5: The Secret Hood Zipper
- Minoru Sew-Along #6Sewing the Hood to the Collar (Quick Post!)
- Minoru Sew-Along #7: We Finally Get to Pull the Gathers!
- Adding Pockets to the Minoru Jacket: Amy’s Awesome Tutorial
- Minoru Sew-Along #8: Front Plackets, Front Zipper
- Minoru Sew-Along #9: All About Cuffs
- Minoru Sew-Along #10: Little Hidden Pockets
- Minoru Sew-Along #11: A Useful Hanging Loop
- Minoru Sew-Along #12: Sewing the Lining
- Minoru Sew-Along #13: Putting It All Together
- Minoru Sew-Along #14: An Alternative to Slipstitching Cuffs
- Minoru Sew-Along #15: Stitching in the Ditch
- Minoru Sew-Along #16: The Waistline
Now, our jackets will naturally fold at the right spot for the hemline. We’ve sewn the placket along the bottom edge, and when we turned it, this started a fold that will also be the fold of the whole jacket hem.
Press the hem up, following the natural fold between the plackets, and checking to make sure it measures 2 5/8″ (7cm) as you press.
Press under the seam allowance on the raw edge of the hem, 5/8″ (1.5cm). My top finger is pointing to the hem fold line, my thumb is pointing to the turned-under raw edge.
Next, we’ll tuck the lining down into the hem fold.
Pin the hem in place.
Now, we’ll stitch the hem twice. I like to stitch the first row with the lining side up, so I can edgestitch close to the fold, and then stitch the second row with the jacket side up. If you’re using special topstitching thread in the top of your machine only, you’ll want to stitch from the right side of the jacket both times.
Then turn over the jacket, and stitch the second row from the right side. I’m using the edge of my presser foot as a guide, and stitching below the first row.
Stop when you reach the placket and backstitch.
We’re done! Hurrah! Oh wait, we’re not. We need to slipstitch the little opening on the inside of the placket.
See the little opening on the inside of the placket, about 10cm above the hem? Slipstitch that closed.
And then we’re done!
Your jacket is really pretty, Tasia. I like the idea of a lighter-weight, pretty summer take on this jacket. British summers, you know… They involve a lot of rain! Congratulations on a stupendous sew-along.
Our summers are full of rain too! In fact it’s even been snowing this week. I always think our weather is similar to yours – lots of rain, lots of grey days, short summers.. Glad you enjoyed the sew-along!
I just finished mine, slipstitch and all! That was a great sewalong. It was helpful to see all the steps laid out so easily with some tips and tricks to learn along the way. Thanks, Tasia! Can’t wait to wear my new Minoru out in this spring weather in Ottawa!
Awesome! I’m so glad you enjoyed the sewalong. Looking forward to seeing your finished jacket!
ps. just peeked on your blog to see if you’d posted any, and admired your Quince yarn. I love Quince! Sucks that you got hit with customs charges though. I’ve ordered from them three times and never had any, luckily. It’s hit or miss I suppose! And then I got distracted and read your bit on why you knit sweaters – my thoughts exactly. Making things gives us such a sense of pride – and it’s unlikely anyone else will walk by wearing the exact same sweater!
Congratulations! It’s such a pretty colour and looks great with your scarf. Mine is all done but I’ll bore you with links and such in the post where you actually need that information – I loved the pattern and even though I jumped ahead of the sewalong I had no problems at all. I’d love to make a silver linen one for the summer…
Ooooh, I love the idea of silver linen. I have this gold-ish linen fabric I’m about to use for a secret new project and it’s lovely! Summery with a hint of shine. That would be awesome and you definitely have to tell us if you make it!
Post for links is coming tomorrow, I can’t wait to see yours! (And then it occured to me that you might have posted it already and I LOVE it!! Reflective zips! It’s so awesome. What a great jacket!)
Yours is so pretty in that lovely pastel peach color. And the scarf! perfection. I have been wearing my rust colored cord Minoru out and about…and getting lots of compliments. How nice, huh? I am almost ready to plan and make another one, maybe in a floral or a graphic print. I love this pattern-thanks so much for all the posts on the sewalong.
Love it! That’s the best when you get compliments on your sewing projects. A graphic print would be great! I’ve seen some awesome ones in bright prints or graphic prints. And I still have that navy and white polka-dot Minoru on my mind too…
ooohhh. I love the color.
And I have to say, I’m pretty happy how my jacket turned out too! Great job on greating such a lovely design.
I’m so glad you’re happy with your jacket! Especially since you compared it to giving birth.. I’m not sure whether that’s a good thing or not :) I love the colour you used!
Beautiful jacket and sewing tips Tasia. I like the idea of a lighter jacket for spring and those chilly summer evenings….My fabric is cut out and waiting for me to start! I am just finishing up some Renfrew shirts and then I will get started.
Oh fun! You’ll have a bunch of tee shirts all ready to layer under your Minoru jacket when it’s done! And of course, all of these sew-along posts for reference. :)
why not just continue the row of stitching on the placket?.. since the lining is already in place
Personal preference, I guess! I like the long vertical lines that the plackets create, and didn’t want to cross them with more stitching. You could totally stitch all the way across the plackets if you wanted to.
Tasia, that is gorgeous! I’ve been reading every sew-along post religiously, and I’m so impressed with your writing and photos. Everything is incredibly clear.
I got my Minoru in the mail the other day, and I’m looking forward to making it. I need a good spring bike coat (although now that it’s March it seems like winter is finally hitting the northwest!).
Are you planning on making any other cycling-inspired patterns?
That’s a good question! On one hand, plenty of people are taking up cycling and commute to work by bike, and want to look good out there. On the other hand, the number of pear-shaped cyclists that sew can’t be that high. :) Because I love cycling, there’s a good chance that many of my designs will be able to be worn on a bike – of course, that depends on your bike and how long your commute is. Like the Renfrew, it’s not cycling-specific, but it totally works for layering on a bike ride!
Winter is hitting us here in Vancouver, too! Snow and such this week. At least the days are longer, yay!
Thanks for the feedback on the sew-along posts. I like details, and because I’m usually writing at the same time as I’m sewing, it’s easy to remember to note everything that comes into my mind.
Your jacket looks lovely Tasia. I love the big collar on this jacket. I can’t wait to see your finished photos. Thank you so much for the detailed sew a long. They will be so helpful when I come to make this up.
Thank you! I’m hoping to post finished photos next week. I love the big collar too!
Done!!! lovely. Can’t wait to show it off… I chose fabric that does not suit the jacket at all but am still completely proud of it.
Great! I’m so glad you’re happy with the results!
Curious what kind of fabric you used, too.. too heavy? too thin? What about it doesn’t suit the jacket?
Mine’s done, and it’s the first thing I’ve made in 20 years that ABSOLUTELY does not look ‘homemade.’ Lots of compliments, and two ‘make me one’ requests!
Yay!! That’s the best news ever. I love that it doesn’t look homemade and all your friends want one! (Are you going to make jackets for the people who requested?)
Thank you again for the fantastic sew-along. I finished early (couldn’t help myself ;-) but found your tips really useful. I’m looking forward to making another in a lighter weight fabric next time, but for now will enjoy wearing my denim one.
Oh! I just saw your denim one this morning in the Flickr group, it’s fantastic. I love how it turned out!
I’ve finally started my jacket and find all your sewalong tips very helpful. Thank you so much for all the information. I can’t wait to see all the different versions.
Me too! I’m so excited to post all the finished jackets and show off everyone’s hard work. And show how different they all are too. Happy sewing!
Thank you so much for this sew-along. While I did not participate in the sew-along in realtime, the sew-along posts were a very valuable resource when I was sewing my jacket. Thank you! You did a wonderful job with this pattern.
Thanks Tasia for a wonderful sew-along which I also didn’t participate in in realtime but I thoroughly enjoyed following each step during the month of May (when I received my pattern in the mail… Perth, Western Australia). I love my jacket and will try to take photos tomorrow to post along side the others. I love seeing the variations around the world! So much fun!! So what’s next? :)
Such a lovely jacket Tasia! The sew-along was great too. Thanks for all the effort you’ve put into this pattern, its a winner!!