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Dashes Blue Canvas Box-Style Jacket---Pic Heavy

A few months back I had the pleasure of collaborating with Organic Cotton Plus to make this lovely off the shoulder dress.  I'm delighted to use one of their gorgeous fabrics for my latest project---a box style jacket. Truth be told for me as a designer the fabric comes first and then I hunt for the perfect design to go with it. Trust me there's no method to it for me and it's a completely intuitive process. Upon one glance of their Dashes Blue fabric I absolutely and unequivocally knew I wanted to work with this fabric. The colors is so dynamic and beautiful and the dashes and their arrangement and pattern made it most interesting.

Those who know me and who have followed me for some time KNOW I'M BIG ON COLOR AND PATTERNS! I've never shied away from them. I've been that way since I began sewing over a decade ago and since become an Image and Color Consultant--check out my new website (www.distinctly-u.com). The first thing I do before selecting a fabric is to make sure it's going to go well with my skin tone. I was able to get a swatch from the wonderful folks at OCP and trust me the canvas was even prettier then it looked online. The blue is the perfect shade for my skin tone and is one that is perfect for a variety of different skin tones for sure! 

After confirming the blue dash was what I wanted I ordered fabric and anxiously waited it's arrival which was really quick. The website gave pre-treatment instructions which I followed exactly. The fabric washed and dried beautifully. Alot of cotton's can shrink up or discolor or even loose it's smooth texture. That wasn't the case for this fabric. It retained it's color and texture fine. You can definitely feel the quality of organic cotton. It's really strong and durable yet soft and supple. 

Up close view

Added a fuschia pink lining for a little pop of color

After getting a good feel of the fabric and it's weight I realized I definitely wanted to make a jacket. I knew I wanted an uncomplicated style so the fabric could be the focus.  NewLook 6496 certainly did the trick and was the perfect style for me. As a professional and entrepreneur running 2 businesses I want to add more jackets to my wardrobe. Simpler jackets like the box style are great because they are professional but not overtly dressy.

Back View

Here are a few details about the jacket:

- I lengthened about 3 or 4"

-I cut the size 12 and graded to 14. That's my usual grading but I should have given myself a little more room in the hips and sleeve. That correction is noted for next time.

-I added darts in the back for tapering so it wasn't too boxy.

-I didn't add the front band and unfortunately forgot to lengthen jacket front. So I had to go back and extend so in the end I did add a band of the same fabric LOL!

-I decided to fully line it

-I added a sleeve head and shoulder pads

-I shortened the sleeves a bit more. The next time I make this I would definitely like to add a cuff

For styling---I kept things fairly simple. 

Blue Dash box style jacket

White Top

Silver dog tag

White studded bracelet

Light denim jeggings with cuff

Yellow strappy heels

---- I've got a little backstory (testimony) about the yellow heels: In planning this outfit I wanted yellow heels to wear with this outfit and had been hunting them down for weeks. I knew they would be the perfect addition and yellow great pairs great with blue---remember I'm a color consultant and I'm serious about color LOL. I hunted but to no avail. Did I say for weeks? For weeks! Who stocks yellow shoes in October. Well to no avail I gave up the search. On a whim one day I walked into a Goodwill while doing a donation and guess what I saw on one of the shelves. Yellow heels! Yellow heels that just so happened to be in my size and the exact color and style I wanted. That's hardly a coincidence. That's what I like to call a "God Wink" moment for sure. He sure knows how to make my little heart happy and I love Him for it!

Back View

This was indeed a fun jacket to make and that was definitely due to the Blue Dash Canvas from Organic Cotton Plus! This fabric inspired the entire concept for this outfit. I love when a great plan comes together! Thanks Organic Cotton Plus for such a beautiful fabric!