Giraffic Park the Sequel

The Safari theme is making quite an impact in clothing and accessories this spring.


Karen Millen belted shirtedress for $255.
















A jersey dress with batwing sleeves by Mango
















Another Karen Millen dress, but for $160.
















A Paul Smith Black label shirt in a leopard print for $175 from julesb.co.uk.

















A giraffe print purse by Metro Style (formerly Lerner's) for $24.99


















A Betty Barclay jacket for $150.
















Neiman Marcus' Giraffe-Print jacket for $895.








Oversized jersey knit with a giraffe at asos.com for $37
















A shirt by Peoples' Market for $48 at the asosoutlet or asos.com















From LTX Sportwear, a jacket for $39.99.
















For a precious fashionista, a Haute Baby jacket with booties for $56.












Kenneth Jay Lane earrings for $65 at zappos.com
















An Anthony David purse in Swavorvksi crystals fro $450
















4-inch heels in neon patent by BCBGirls
















Moschino Cheap and Chic fro $605 from Bluebee.com. This is the only designer cropped jacket in giraffe print that I found. Cropped jackets and cropped sweaters were very "in" two-three years ago.

















Amy Winehouse "Re-habit"-ilitated by Burda? Sewing is a healthier addiction.


Burda's Pattern Description
"Choose me! What a good choice! This cropped, waist-length jacket is fastened with hooks and eyes and contrasts straight with bias-cut fabric to create a saucy look."

It seemed that this jacket was meant to be left open unless the wearer has time to actually hook all those eyes...


Pattern Sizing:
Burda petite sizes 17-21. I sewed a "21" (which correlates to bust size of 37" ) at the bust and waist and a "19" at the shoulders. Since this is my first experience with a "petite" Burda pattern, I decided to make a "test" version.

Some pieces such as the front bodice, the side backs, and the front and back pieces of the sleeve also belong to styles 108 (boucle jacket), 109 (denim jacket). Since style 110 is cut on the bias , I included all the grain lines. I decided to trace and cut the full-length pieces just in case I would sew those styles in the future. I marked the cut lines for style 110 on my pattern pieces.


Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
Somewhat because I made a "simpler" version of this jacket.

Favorite Features
*Stand-up collar
*Waistband paired up with the cropped jacket style
*Vertical bust darts
*Not very difficult to sew

Not-so Favorite Features
*Vague directions, especially for attaching the waistband and the lower pieces of the sleeves

*As usual, the extra ease in the sleeve caps

*I like the looks of the hooks and eyes along the front, but let's face it, I think I would spend more time attaching these than sewing the entire jacket.

*I wish I had interfaced the collar and waistband to minimize "floppiness".

*Roomy upper back. Since this a "petite" Burda pattern, I assumed that did not need to perform my usual adjustment of shortening the upper back. Now I know what to expect next time.

* It was tricky to topstitch a tricky fabric that was cut on the bias. The front of the bodice came out somewhat wonky.



Fabric Used:
For my muslin, I used a medium weight cotton from Fabric.com, "Premier Prints Giraffe Brown/French Blue", which is more suitable for home decor and tote bags.

Were the instructions easy to follow?
Again, they can be unclear for its lack of words and still unclear with its verbosity. If I were to sew the welt pockets, I would have consulted page 89 of my Kenneth King's Cool Couture book as I did for Heather's Burda jacket from last year. Otherwise I would have been lost in Burda's directions due to the lack of illustrations.

I did not have difficulty in familiar steps such as stitching the center back seam, front vertical bust darts, side seams, shoulder seams, and stand-up collar. If I were sewing a stand-up collar for the first time based on these Burda directions, I would have been confused with the "lay this" and "lay that" wording. Since I created a similar stand-up collar from a previous jacket, I am already very familiar with this process. After stitching the lower and side edges of the collar pieces, right sides together, and turning the formed collar inside out, I sewed the visible or outer portion of the collar directly to the jacket's neckline and the not visible portion to the front self-facing and back facing.

I recalled that last year, I sewed a 9/2008 jacket (with fabric that I admit with embarrassment, won by another PR member's creation for use in the hideous fabric contest) where I figured out what do with the collar band (had no collar) with respect to the neckline and facing.

Back facing and tab collar of unlined version of jacket from Burda jacket #102 from 9/2008 issue.

Because I was not clear on Burda's lack of specifics in attaching the bottom sleeve piece and the waistband, I used "intuitive" sewing or in another words, I did things my way.

No hooks, lining or sinkers...
Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
*I skipped the hooks and eyes for the front edge. If I have the time and patience, I will include these on a future version.

*I omitted the shoulder pads and welt pockets.

*I topstitched the collar and front edges of the jacket.

*Instead of just "attaching" the wide under sleeve piece (has a slight flare) to the sleeves, I folded each sleeve piece and half, right sides together, sewed the side seams and turned it inside out. Then I sewed each "cuff" to the lower edges of the sleeves from their wrong sides so that I could turn the cuffs to the outside. Where the ends slightly overlapped is what I called the "V" of my cuff. I had to make sure that the "V" portion of the sleeves face "outward". I made the mistake of being too eager to do something outside of the written directions, that I had to remove and re-attach the cuffs, because the "V" faced my sides. Next time, I plan to redraft the sleeve cuff to make it more "rectangular".

*I omitted the lining for my muslin.

* Here's my quick method for the waistband. After sewing the side and lower edges of the waistband, right sides together, I basted the top edge and sewed it to the lower edge of the jacket, making sure that the front pressed edge aligns with the end of the waistband. I finished the edges with a wide zig zag stitch. The topstitching secures the seam from being "visible". It may not be the "sleekest" method, but it works for this wearable and unlined first version.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
Yes in a stretch corduroy. The changes I would include are to slightly lengthen the bodice, shorten the upper back, add the welt pockets, and line the bodice and upper sleeves.

I definitely recommend this pattern because of its simplicity and versatility. Just by adding deccorative trim to the front would take this jacket to another dimension. To be on the safe side, I recommend making a muslin or a "test" version.

Conclusion

I cannot wait to try this pattern again!

Enjoying a sunny Sunday afternoon.