Sewing a Women's Oversized Bomber Jacket in Leather or Technical Fabric

A classic bomber has a short body that ends at the hip, gathered into a ribbed waistband. The sleeves are usually long and full, finished with ribbed cuffs, and the neckline has either a rib knit collar or a small stand collar. The front closes with a separating zip, and the pockets are typically welt pockets or angled zip pockets on the front, sometimes with a utility pocket on the sleeve.

Sleeves are either set-in or raglan. A raglan sleeve runs diagonally from the underarm to the neckline, which gives a softer, sporty shoulder and plenty of room for movement. A set-in sleeve with a dropped shoulder is the other common option for an oversized look.

An oversized bomber is not simply a larger size. Wearing a size up makes the shoulders, sleeve length and neckline too big as well, so the jacket looks borrowed rather than designed. A properly drafted oversized bomber keeps the neck fitting your neck, extends the shoulder line beyond the natural shoulder, widens the body and sleeve, and lengthens the sleeve so the cuff still lands at the wrist when the shoulder drops.

The ribbed hem is what gives a bomber its shape. The body blouses above it, so the rib must be cut considerably shorter than the jacket hem it is attached to. The more volume in the body, the more pronounced the blouson effect. If you are modifying a fitted bomber, add width through the body with a slash-and-spread from hem to shoulder, and lower and widen the armhole together with the sleeve so they still match.

Ready-made rib knit comes as tubular rib, flat trim with a finished edge, or as yardage. For a bomber you need a firm rib with good recovery, typically a cotton or wool blend with some elastane. Soft, loose rib loses its shape quickly and ripples at the hem.

Cut rib shorter than the opening it finishes. As a starting point, cuffs are often about 75 to 85 percent of the sleeve opening and the waistband slightly shorter than the hip measurement, but rib varies so much that the only reliable method is to test: wrap the rib around your wrist or hips with gentle stretch and mark where it feels comfortable. Fold the rib in half lengthwise, divide it and the opening into quarters, match the marks and stretch the rib as you sew.

• Sew rib with a narrow zigzag or an overlocker so the seam stretches with it.
• For leather, attach the rib with a straight stitch but stretch it fully while sewing.
• Match rib color to the jacket or choose a contrast stripe for a varsity look.
• Leave rib unpressed or steam it lightly; heavy pressing flattens the ridges.

The front needs a separating zip, sized to reach from the top of the collar or neckline to the bottom of the rib hem. Metal zips suit leather and heavier fabrics; molded plastic zips are lighter and suit technical fabrics. For technical fabrics, a water-resistant coil zip with a coated tape gives a sporty finish.

Install the zip between the shell and the facing or lining, with the teeth sitting just inside the front edge. Topstitching close to the zip keeps the fabric away from the teeth, which matters especially with slippery technical fabrics that tend to catch.

Welt pockets in leather do not fray, so they can be cut as simple slots with a facing behind them. In technical fabric, sew a standard welt pocket and use a pocket bag in a lighter lining fabric to reduce bulk.

Leather does not forgive mistakes: every needle hole is permanent, so pins and unpicking are not options. Use clips or tape to hold layers, mark on the wrong side and test the stitch on scraps. Choose a leather needle and a longer stitch, about 3 to 4 mm, because short stitches perforate the hide and weaken the seam.

A Teflon or roller foot, or tape on the base of a standard foot, prevents the leather sticking. Seams cannot be pressed with steam; finger-press them open, then glue the seam allowances flat with leather cement or topstitch them. Thin garment leather or lambskin, about 0.6 to 0.9 mm thick, works best for a bomber because the jacket has gathers and rib to be attached.

Cut leather in a single layer, with the pattern laid on the wrong side, checking each hide for flaws. Remember that pieces need to be mirrored for left and right.

Lightweight technical fabrics include nylon and polyester taffetas, ripstop, coated shell fabrics and softshell. Most are slippery, many are damaged by heat, and holes in coated fabrics remain visible, so treat them with some of the same care as leather.

Use a fine, sharp microtex needle, polyester thread and a slightly longer stitch. Test the iron on scraps at a low setting; many synthetic fabrics pucker or shine under heat. Instead of pressing, topstitch seams flat or use flat-felled seams, which suit the sporty look of a bomber. For a coated or water-resistant fabric, seam tape applied to the inside keeps the seams from letting water through, but a lining usually hides that inside finish anyway.

A bomber is normally fully lined. A smooth lining such as acetate, cupro, satin or a nylon taffeta makes it easy to slide on over knitwear. A quilted lining or a lightweight padding adds warmth for autumn; leave room for its thickness by checking that the pattern has enough ease, especially at the armholes.

The lining is attached to the zip edges and the rib, then bagged out through an opening in a sleeve lining seam. Allow a little extra length in the sleeve lining and a pleat at the center back of the body lining so the jacket can move without the lining pulling.

An oversized silhouette depends on the right relationship between the parts that stay close and those that are deliberately large. A pattern drafted to your measurements keeps the neckline and sleeve length suited to you while the volume is designed in, instead of simply being a larger size.

Minerva Patterns drafts each pattern in garment-industry CAD to the measurements you enter or to standard sizes, with no blending between sizes needed. You choose the format: PDF for A4, US Letter, A0 or one long sheet, a projector file, PLT for a plotter, or DXF AAMA for pattern software, with or without seam allowances. Patterns without allowances are useful for leather, where many sewists prefer to add allowances of their own.