A couple months ago I came across a beautiful inspiration pic on the Sinclair Patterns Facebook Group. The sweatshirt was being used as the base for the latest sewing pattern: The Alba Jacket. I instantly fell in love with the beautiful neckline, the grommets with drawstring, and the assymetrical zip. Imagine how thrilled I was when the owner, Oxana, reached out and asked if I would like to give this pattern a try. Here is my version of this DIY Cowl Neck Sweatshirt and my thoughts on the pattern.
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In order to sew up this jacket as I have made, you will need a couple additional supplies. The pattern calls for Knit fabric in varying degrees of stretch, etc. I chose to make my entire jacket out the Large Loop French Terry found at Mily Mae Fabrics. It worked great for both the main portions, lining, cuffs and bands. The only downside to working with this fabric is stitches can get lost in it, so removing any mistakes can be tough. It also likes to roll on its edge which can be annoying while sewing. However, it is super soft and snuggly and perfect for a year round sweatshirt.
You will also need a separating zipper, fusible fleece, grommets, and drawstring.
I love the zippers I recieved from a variety pack on Etsy. The grab bag assortment I purchased is not always available, but they have a good variety of zippers in all types and styles.
My favorite fusible fleece is from Pellon – I think it created a nice soft cowl while still giving it structure. I would highly recommend ironing it on the lining side of the cowl. It is a bit confusing in the directions and I originally left it out. I ended up having to go back and add it for a nice thick cowl.
I purchased this set of drawstrings from Amazon and it is great
And my grommet and grommet setter are from the Sewology line at Hobby Lobby. You can also buy similar sets on Amazon like these:
My thoughts on the Sinclair Alba Jacket Pattern
Well, where should I start? This pattern is pretty awesome but also quite challenging. I would in no way, shape or form recommend this for a beginner. It took me several weeks, working on and off, to cut out and assemble this jacket. It has many pieces, tons of steps, and more difficult construction. All that being said…look how amazing of a pattern it is. In order to get this type of style it does require some patience and many steps. Oxana did an overall great job with this design and the steps. It is hard enough to follow, I can only imagine how hard it was to create. There are some steps that left me scratching my head a bit, and hoping I was doing the right thing. While it all turned out in the end, there are definetly some areas that slow you down and can be hard to understand. I think having a video sew along of this pattern would be quite helpful and I wish it was available for visual learners like myself. I can say the biggest thing that saved me on this make was BASTING. If I was unsure, I would baste first, do a thorough check and then proceed with final stitching once I knew it was correct. The steps all have clear photographs and diagrams and are explained fairly well, I just think the nature of putting together this type of jacket is a bit challenging to explain and to do. Overall, if you want a bit of a challenge and you love the style of this sweatshirt I think you would really enjoy this pattern. While it is not the quickest sew, it is very satisfying to have a project that is cozy and stylish. I might try another one in the future, but I need a little break from it for now. LOL – I will post some more pics of the top and explain how I added the grommets to my sweatshirt if interested. Please read on below for that info.
How to Add Grommets and Drawstring to the Alba Jacket
One of the main details I liked about the Pinspiration sweatshirt is the grommet and drawstring. I thought it would be a fun addition but I had to give a good guess on where to place them. Here is the process I followed:
- cut out 1 inch squares from faux leather and interfacing
- eyeballed where to place the leather patches on the cowl (I would move down the grommets by about an inch if I were to make this again)
- Stitch around the edges of the faux leather square to attach to cowl
- Iron on interfacing to the backside of the fabric where you stitched on the square of leather
- poke hole in center of leather and put in a grommet according to your grommet instructions
- lace drawstring through, I shortened my drawstring by tying a knot in the center back. I did not sew a casing for the drawstring, it sits inside the cowl portion and is functional without a casing.
I hope you enjoy this look at the Alba Jacket from Sinclair Patterns- And thank you so much to Oxana for letting me try out this fun new make.
Until Next Time,
Happy Sewing
About 18 years ago I decided to teach myself how to sew. Long before blogs and resources available today which meant it was often disastrous. But I never gave up because I loved it so much. Today I love helping others get started on their own sewing journey. You can read more about my family and I