Designer Inspired Safari Jacket
Introducing a versatile women's sewing pattern for a classic safari jacket, featuring a utility-chic design with four flap patch pockets, shoulder straps, and a belt at the waist.
When To Wear
This safari jacket is a stylish and functional choice for a variety of settings, making it perfect for:
- Travel & Exploration: Ideal for adventurous excursions, offering both comfort and practicality.
- Everyday Chic: Elevates casual outfits with its sophisticated yet relaxed aesthetic.
- Transitional Seasons: Perfect for layering during spring and autumn, providing adaptable coverage.
Key Design Features
Silhouette: a straight and relaxed fit, which can be cinched at the waist with a self-fabric belt.
Neckline & Collar: Features a classic one-piece shirt collar with pointed ends.
Closure: a center front button closure with facings, buttonholes on the right front.
Sleeves: Long set-in sleeves finished with straight cuffs.
Pockets: Four patch pockets with box pleats, each topped with a pointed buttoned flap; two on the chest and two larger ones on the hips.
Shoulders: Detailed with classic shoulder straps set into the armhole seams, adding to the authentic safari aesthetic.
Waist: a self-fabric belt threaded through belt loops at the side seams and center back; the belt ends hang free at the sides.
Hem: a straight, topstitched hem.
Length: Designed to fall to the upper thigh, providing versatile styling options as an outer layer.
Level Of Difficulty
Intermediate. Requires confident sewing skills, including collar and cuff construction, pocket and flap assembly, shoulder strap application, and precise buttonhole creation.
Fabric Recommendations
Choose lightweight woven fabrics with good drape for an elegant finish:
- Silk fabrics
- Viscose fabrics
Additional Supplies
- Fusible interfacing
- 9 buttons
Cutter's Must
- From main fabric:
- Front – 2 pieces
- Back – 1 piece
- Sleeve – 2 pieces
- Cuff – 4 pieces
- Collar – 2 pieces
- Upper Patch Pocket – 2 pieces
- Lower Patch Pocket – 2 pieces
- Upper Flap – 4 pieces
- Lower Flap – 4 pieces
- Shoulder Strap – 4 pieces
- Waistband – 2 pieces
- From fusible interfacing: front facings, upper collar, cuffs and flaps.
Sewing Instructions
- Fuse interfacing to the front facings, the upper collar, the cuffs and the flaps.
- Press the box pleats on the patch pockets. The box pleats are the wrong side of an inverted pleat.
- Turn under and topstitch the cut-on facings at the top of the pockets; press the side and bottom seam allowances of the pockets under along the pattern lines.
- Place the Upper Patch Pockets and Lower Patch Pockets on the fronts according to the markings and topstitch them in place.
- Stitch the Upper Flaps and Lower Flaps in pairs, turn right side out and topstitch 0.3 cm from the edge. Overlock the upper raw edge of the flaps and stitch them to the fronts according to the markings. Turn the flaps down and topstitch them to the fronts.
- Overlock the inner edge of each front facing. Stitch the facings to the front edges.
- Stitch the shoulder seams.
- Stitch the side seams.
- Stitch the under collar to the upper collar, turn right side out and press.
- Turn the facings to the wrong side, baste the edges and press. Stitch the under collar to the neckline, turn under the raw edge of the upper collar and topstitch it over the under collar seam. Tack the facings to the shoulder seams with a 1 cm bar tack.
- Stitch the sleeve seams.
- Press under 1 cm along the upper edge of the inner cuff. Stitch the inner cuff to the outer cuff and turn right side out.
- Stitch the outer cuff to the lower edge of the sleeve, then topstitch the inner cuff over the seam.
- Stitch the Shoulder Straps in pairs, turn right side out, press and topstitch 0.3 cm from the edge.
- Set in the sleeves, inserting the Shoulder Straps into the armhole seams and easing the sleeve cap.
- Fold the Waistband (belt) in half lengthwise, right sides together, and stitch along three sides, leaving an opening in the middle. Turn the belt right side out, press and slipstitch the opening closed.
- For each belt loop, fold the strip lengthwise in half with right sides together, aligning the raw edges, and stitch 0.5–0.7 cm from the edges. Turn right side out and press, either centering the seam on the fold or rolling it 0.1–0.2 cm to the inside.
- Topstitch the belt loops according to the markings at the side seams and at center back. Thread the belt through the belt loops.
- Overlock the hem allowance, turn it to the wrong side and topstitch along the edge.
- Make buttonholes on the Shoulder Straps and on the flaps.
- Make buttonholes on the right front and sew the buttons on the left front.
