Do you ever make something that you love so much you can’t stop showing it off to every person you meet? It’s Nikki here, Product Manager at Team Buttons, and that’s how I feel about my Eden jacket. I finished mine a couple of weeks ago and I’ve worn it nearly every day since. It’s true love.
I knew I wanted to make a short Eden version in something water resistant, so chose a beautiful sage green dry oilskin from Merchant and Mills for the outer fabric. When I first bought it the fabric felt really stiff, almost a bit like cardboard, and I’d certainly not handled anything like it before on my previous sewing adventures. I was a bit nervous about how my machine would cope with such an unusual fabric, however, I needn’t have worried as it was a dream to sew with. I followed Tilly's advice and used a microtex needle and used fabric clips instead of pins and the whole experience was rather enjoyable. I’m so impressed with it!
I love how you get a little peek of lining at the cuffs and inside the hood on the Eden so I wanted to line it with something a bit jazzy. I am obsessed with gingham at the moment (I mean literally obsessed) so I lined it with a black and white cotton gingham from Bloomsbury Square Fabrics. I also chose to line the main part of the sleeves in a black acetate lining fabric to make them slippy enough to get my arms in easily.
I think my fave bit of the jacket is the little black snaps, which sounds like a weird thing to say but I love how they stand out against the green, especially on the pleated pockets! And I love how the facing hides the zip (which you don’t need to add in but I did), as I think it makes it look super clean and profesh.
To top off the wearability stakes of my Eden, I was overjoyed to discover it went perfectly with my most worn outfit combo ever - a trusty Cleo pinafore dress and a Freya top from Stretch!, of which I have many. I love how the grey Cleo goes with the gingham from the lining and my monochrome Freya in these photos.
I'm already planning a long red wool duffle coat version with big toggles for the winter. Or maybe bright pink. Or green? Gah, the possibilities are endless! In the meantime, I’m going to wear my lovely Eden throughout all the April showers we’ve been having (the big hood is perfect for this!) before making a bajillion Stevie and Seren dresses for the summer. Red frilly gingham Seren dress hack anyone? Yes please.
As always don’t forget to tag you Eden coat or jacket on Instagram with #SewingEden - we absolutely love seeing what you make :)
