A super cute and quick South African inspired Christmas decoration which can be used as a tree ornament or a gift tag.

A “rondavel” (from Afrikaans) is a circular hut often with conical thatched roof.

The pattern was designed to be sewn by hand for our quilt guild meeting but using a sewing machine would make this project even quicker. Use the longest stitch length on your machine for basting the roof fabric to the hut fabric.

Enjoy!

Quilted jackets are very on-trend now. Fashion houses all around the world have included patchwork and quilted garments in their collections. But garment making can be quite daunting, not only does the style and fabric need to withstand trends so that it can be enjoyed and worn for many years, but most importantly, after all the work we want a jacket that fits us well.

THE PATTERN

I used the Paola Jacket pattern (free download) https://fabrics-store.com/sewing-patterns/paola-paola-workwear-jacket-pattern as a base. The Paola Jacket is hip length, unlined, and unquilted. Making it into a quilted jacket adds bulk and therefore alters the way it fits. Nevertheless, this pattern had the essential (uncomplicated) elements that I was looking for in a pattern.

This digital pattern is a “layered” pattern that has multiple sizes in one document. You can turn on or off each size. I would suggest printing only the size(s) that apply to you. If you are not sure which size you want to make, select one or two sizes around your measurements.

SIZES AND ALTERATIONS

Firstly, regarding sizes: the most important advice is not to look at the sizes but rather look at the measurements of the finished garment. For a jacket, the most important measurement is the bust or chest measurement. It does not matter what size you are. As long as you fit into that garment, size is irrelevant.

If you are using the Paola Jacket pattern: print out the pattern, join all the pages, cut out the individual pieces, and measure the front bustline – underarm to centre front (excluding the seam allowance and the overlap area where the buttons/buttonholes are located.) Remember that this pattern includes the seam allowance (some patterns do not).

How do you know if it will fit? I suggest you find a jacket or similar garment that fits you well and has the same style as the garment you want to make. I found a jacket in my wardrobe I liked and used the corresponding measurements to select the size from the Paola Jacket pattern. For me, it was the 20/22 size for an oversized, comfortable look (blue jacket) and for my daughter’s red jacket I used 16/18.

I only used the front, back, sleeve and collar pieces. Discarding the facings, under collar, and pockets from the pattern (I drafted my own larger pocket, detailed below).

You may need to extend or shorten the sleeves and length of the jacket to correspond with your measurements/preferences. Again, refer to a jacket you own for these lengths. For the sleeves on the Paola Jacket please note that the hem allowance must be removed before you lengthen or shorten the sleeve. If you want a turned cuff you will need to add extra length to the sleeve. Mark all these alterations directly on the paper patterns: sleeve adjustments on the sleeve pattern and body length adjustments on the front and back patterns.

BATTING

Be mindful of the batting (the thinner the better) and backing fabric (don’t use a heavy fabric). It is very important to use the thinnest batting you can find. I used Heirloom Organic 100% Cotton Batting which is a very thin batting. Hobbs also makes a silk blend batting for garments.

Instead of using batting you can use fleece and eliminate the backing fabric. Likewise, for a light jacket, you can eliminate the batting altogether and quilt the top patchwork fabric to the backing. I made a patchwork skirt without batting and it worked very well.

PRESSING

Press your quilt blocks and “patchwork fabric” regularly. It is important to have all your work laying flat and without puckers.

Furthermore, pressing is very important in garment sewing to obtain a beautiful, well-constructed jacket. When ironing please consider the fibre content of your batting… polyester batting or fleece may melt if your iron is too hot.

THE PATCHWORK FABRIC

Once you have your paper pattern pieces you can plan your “patchwork fabric”. I did not want to quilt an entire “quilt top” as one piece, so I sewed my blocks in sections. I cut the “quilt top” in generous sections which corresponded to the paper pattern pieces before creating the quilt sandwich. I layered (top, batting, backing) for each pattern piece individually as it was much easier to quilt.

The Back piece: this pattern piece is usually placed on the fabric fold but as we are working with a thick quilted fabric you can draw around the pattern and flip and trace for the other side.

Two Front pieces: Make sure you flip one front pattern (so the writing is facing down) because the pattern pieces need to be mirrored.

Two Sleeves: Like the front pattern, make sure you flip one sleeve pattern so the writing is facing down. You need a mirror image for the second sleeve as the sleeve cap does not have a symmetrical curve.

One collar, and two pockets.

Remember, as with all sewing patterns, keep the straight-of-grain true. This is easy when you have the quilt blocks seam lines to follow.

How much patchwork fabric do you need? It is dependent on the size of your paper pattern pieces. For my jackets, I made 25 12½” blocks. Which is a 60”x60” piece of “patchwork fabric”, not assembled into one piece but used according to the pattern pieces. Be mindful of directional blocks, like the “Cake-stand Block” in the red jacket.

Depending on the size of your blocks and the size of your paper pattern pieces you need to be aware that some blocks will be cut off either at the shoulder/neckline of the jacket or at the bottom/hem of the jacket. This is something to consider when planning the size of your blocks and the placement of the pattern pieces on your “patchwork fabric”.

Another thing to consider when placing the paper pattern on your “patchwork fabric” is where bulky seams intersect on your quilt blocks. Avoid placing multiple seam intersections in your quilt block on the seam line of your jacket. The seams of the jacket are already bulky with three layers (top, batting and backing) you do not want to add extra bulk with, say, six seams of a quilt block also in the seam. This is particularly important for the sleeve caps and the collar seam.

TACK YOUR SEAMS DO NOT JUST PIN

When working with quilted fabric and garment seams there is a lot of added bulk. To ensure all your work lies flat and notches and seams join as they should, it is very important to tack or baste your seams instead of relying only on pinning.

BINDING INTERNAL SEAMS AND THE EDGES

After I cut the fabric pieces I bound the internal seams: shoulder seams, sleeve caps and underarm seams, front and back side seams. I used a binding tool (Bernina #88 32mm binding attachment) and cut the 1¼” binding on the bais. There was a learning curve, but I was very happy with the results.

I followed the seam allowance suggestions in within the pattern. All internal seams were pressed open.

I bound the sleeve and front/back edges with binding. 1¾” bias cut (red jacket), 2” straight cut (blue jacket), single fold binding. I attached them the regular way by machine then top stitched by machine from the front catching the binding on the back. I basted the binding to make sure it was aligned.

COLLAR

I cut the collar pattern “as is” for the corresponding size and even though it is intended as a two-layer piece (stitched to the undercollar piece and turned inside out) it worked fine for me with the bound edges.

Before attaching the collar you must bind the outer edge. I used 1¾” straight cut binding around the edge of the collar attached in the usual way (note that the angles in the corners are not 90°.) The pointy corners are tricky but doable: fold the binding in the corner until it looks neat, then I tacked the folded over section so that I could machine both front and back together with an edge stitch foot on my sewing machine.

I stitched on the finished collar as normal. Then on the inside collar edge, I stitched a strip of bias tape (cut on bias 1¾”) over the same line of stitching. Pressed all the fabrics towards the body. If the seam is very bulky you can unpick some of the quilting stitches (up to the seam) and cut away some of the batting. I did this for the red jacket but not the blue jacket. Fold the binding over the collar/body seam encasing the seam. Then I tacked this down by hand to make sure everything is positioned well, and nothing would shift when I stitched it in place along the edge of the binding using an edge stitch foot. Note: there is a lot of bulk, so sew slowly.

POCKETS

I drafted a larger patch pocket H 8¾” x W 8¼” (including seam allowance) with rounded bottom edges.

I used the following technique for quilting the pocket and not having extra bulk when turning under the edges: Trace the pocket shape onto the patchwork fabric. Attach the batting only and stitch with the longest stitch length ½” inside the drawn line. Trim the batting to the stitched line.

Add the backing and quilt all the way to the fabric edge. Trim the pocket to the drawn line. Binding the top edge with 1½” straight cut. Attach binding to the top edge of pocket the usual way. Pin and baste the other pocket edges, turning under the seam allowance to the sewn line. Press. The finished size of the pocket is 8¼” x 7¼”. Stitch the pocket to the coat front. I used the Bernina #10 Edge Stitch Foot.

FRONT FASTENING

Consider professionally fitted snap fasteners. My local haberdashery store provides this service, money well spent for a super finish!

Hope you have found this information useful; I look forward to seeing your creations!

Here is the Foundation Paper Piecing (FPP) Pattern for my Hyperbolic Paraboloid Quilt. I have included two sizes:
– original 24″ block makes a 26″ x 26″ quilt with a 1″ border*, and
– small 12″ block makes a 13″ x 13″ mini-quilt with a 1/2″ border.

Tape the pattern sheets together to assemble the pattern (12 sheets for the 24″ pattern, 4 sheets for the 12″ pattern). The FPP pattern is ready to use, ie. it is a mirror image of the diagram above. All seams are straight – the illusion produces a curve.

This pattern assumes Foundation Paper Piecing knowledge. The photos below are not a complete tutorial, they highlight various tips and information about how I sewed the block.

I made my 12″ sample block using regular FPP method which worked very well. However after it was sewn together I was concerned about the bulk along the A/B seam. Subsequently, I also tested the Freezer Paper Method – no tearing away of paper and I can press the seams open.

For the Freezer Paper Method, after you print the pattern and tape it together, copy the pattern pieces onto freezer paper. For me the main advantage of using the Freezer Paper Method is that after you sew a seam you can release the freezer paper next to the seam and re-iron that seam open. This significantly reduces the bulk between sections “A” and “B”. Check throughout the sewing process that the fabric is well attached to the freezer paper – you do not want the fabric to shift and create puckered or distorted units.

FPP and large pieces of fabric – Working with FPP and a large piece of fabric may be a challenge. My suggestion is to machine tack (use the longest stitch length on your sewing machine) the large A1 and B1 pieces of fabric to the paper foundation. If you are using the Freezer Paper Method, iron the fabric onto the pattern, make sure it is flat with no distortion, creases or puckers.

Section C1 – I used C1 as a template, cutting out the fabric and sewing this section without the paper.

Sewing sections together, seam directions – I pressed the A/B seam towards section “A”, and the AB/C seam towards section “C”. If using the Freezer Paper Method, press all seams open. But it’s your quilt – so press in the direction that works best for you.

Press well and often! Pressing is very important to ensure all the fabric lays as flat as possible.

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*Finished size 26″ x 26″
Borders: Cut (2) 1.5″ x 24.5″ strips, and (2) 1.5″ x 26.5″ strips

*Unfortunately, a couple of deadlines are fast approaching so no time for me to test the large pattern – apologies for that. I think you can use FPP or Freezer Paper FPP for the 24″ block.

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Finished size 13″ x 13″
Borders: Cut (2) 1″ x 12.5″ strips, and (2) 1″ x 13.5″ strips

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Happy to answer your questions, leave a comment below and I will get right on it.

(Copyright Diana Vandeyar. For personal use only)