Fitted Single-Breasted Blazer
A women's fitted hip-length blazer with princess seams from the armholes, a notched collar, a five-button front and framed pockets with flaps set at the ends of the front princess seams. Two-piece sleeves with buttoned vents; fully lined.
When To Wear
- With trousers or a pencil skirt for office wear.
- Over a blouse or fine knit in autumn and spring.
Key Design Features
Silhouette: Fitted, shaped by princess seams on the front and back.
Length: Hip length, with rounded front corners at the hem.
Collar: Notched collar; the under collar has a centre seam, the upper collar is cut on the fold.
Closure: Single-breasted, five buttons, buttonholes on the right front.
Sleeves: Two-piece set-in sleeves with vents in the elbow seam, buttons on the vents.
Pockets: Framed (double-welt) pockets with flaps. The front princess seams end at the pocket openings, so each pocket sits across the seam.
Back: Centre back seam and princess seams.
Finishing: Flaps edgestitched; the drawing shows topstitching along the collar, lapels, front edges and hem. Shoulder pads.
Lining: Full lining, back cut on the fold, with darts on the back and front lining.
Level Of Difficulty
Advanced. Framed flap pockets worked into the ends of the princess seams, a notched collar, sleeve vents, and detailed interfacing of hems, back shoulder area and sleeve caps.
Fabric Recommendations
Medium-weight woven fabrics with body: wool suiting, gabardine, tweed, wool blends.
Additional Supplies
- Lining fabric (also for the pocket bags)
- Fusible interfacing (fronts, side fronts, front facings, back neckline facing, collar, flaps, pocket facings, back shoulder area, side back reinforcement, back and sleeve hem allowances, sleeve caps)
- 5 buttons for the front
- Small buttons for the sleeve vents
- Shoulder pads
Cutter's Must
- Flap - 4 pieces
- Pocket Underlay Piece - 2 pieces
- Pocket Facing - 4 pieces
- Collar (under collar) - 2 pieces
- Collar (upper collar) - 1 piece on fold
- Center Back - 2 pieces
- Side Back - 2 pieces
- Back Neckline Facing - 1 piece on fold
- Side Front - 2 pieces
- Front - 2 pieces
- Center Front Facing - 2 pieces
- Upper Sleeve - 2 pieces
- Lower Sleeve - 2 pieces
Lining
- Pocket Bag - 4 pieces (lining only)
- Back lining - 1 piece on fold
- Front lining - 2 pieces
- Upper Sleeve lining - 2 pieces
- Lower Sleeve lining - 2 pieces
Fusible Interfacing
- Flap - 2 pieces
- Pocket Underlay Piece - 2 pieces
- Pocket Facing - 4 pieces
- Collar (under collar) - 2 pieces
- Collar (upper collar) - 1 piece on fold
- Back shoulder area - 2 pieces
- Side back reinforcement - 2 pieces
- Back Neckline Facing - 1 piece on fold
- Back hem allowance - 2 pieces
- Side back hem allowance - 2 pieces
- Side Front - 2 pieces
- Front - 2 pieces
- Center Front Facing - 2 pieces
- Upper sleeve hem allowance - 2 pieces
- Lower sleeve hem allowance - 2 pieces
- Sleeve cap reinforcement - 2 pieces
Sewing Instructions
- Fronts: sew the front panel seams up to the corners at the pocket openings. On the fronts and side fronts, trim the seam allowances along the crosswise edges (pocket openings), clipping the front seam allowances exactly to the last stitch. Press the panel seam allowances open. Baste the openings closed with cross-stitches, matching the edges precisely.
- Make the double-welt pockets with flaps on the fronts: place one interfaced and one non-interfaced flap right sides together, stitch along the sides and lower edge, turn out and edgestitch. On the wrong side of the front, press a strip of interfacing about 4 cm wide over the pocket marking. Place two pocket facings on the front right sides together, pin along the pocket marking and stitch, making sure the long edges of the facings meet at the center line of the pocket marking. Cut the front between the stitching lines, and diagonally into the corners at the ends, taking care not to cut the facings. Press the cut edges away from the opening. Turn the facings through the opening to the wrong side to form a neat frame and baste, with the folded edges of the facings meeting in the middle of the opening. Stitch in the ditch of the facing seams. Fold the small triangles at the ends of the opening to the wrong side and stitch them to the facings, exactly from the ends of the upper stitching to the ends of the lower stitching. Insert the raw edges of the flaps between the facings and stitch in the ditch of the upper facing seam. On the inside, sew the pocket bags to the flap seam allowances and to the lower facing seam allowances. Trim the pocket bags even and sew them together.
- Sew the back panel seams and the center back seam.
- Sew the shoulder and side seams.
- Place the center front facings on the fronts right sides together, pin along the front edges and stitch. Sew the shoulder seams of the center front facings and the back neckline facing.
- Sew the center seam of the under collar and press open. Stitch the upper and under collar together along the outer edge and turn out. Sew the under collar into the jacket neckline and the upper collar into the neckline of the facings. Press the seam allowances open. On the inside, stitch together the pressed-open seam allowances of the under collar seam and the back neckline facing seam.
- Hem the jacket.
- Sew the sleeve seams, leaving the vents open in the elbow seams. Clip the lower sleeve seam allowance above the vent marking and press the seam allowances open above the vent. Hem the sleeves. Press the vent edges of the upper sleeves to the wrong side. Pin the vents closed and, from the inside, stitch the vent edges to each other. Set the sleeves into the armholes, easing the sleeve cap.
- Attach shoulder pads.
- Sew the darts on the back and front lining, then sew the lining pieces together. Sew the lining to the lower edges of the sleeves, the inner edges of the center front facings and the back neckline facing. Hem the lining.
- Make buttonholes on the right front; sew buttons on the left front and on the sleeve vents.
