Tamarack Jacket + Liberty of London + Baby Lock Sashiko

In 2020, I made a Tamarack Jacket with already quilted fabric. It turned out nice and I loved the result, but I always had a desire to revisit the pattern.

This time I really wanted to piece the top and quilt it myself and then make it into a jacket. After 4 years (4 years!? I was thinking it was only a couple years. Isn't it crazy how time flies?), I discovered that Grainline Studio offers a Hood, collar & patch pockets pattern for Tamarack jackets. I was so excited about this and HAD to make a quilted jacket before this year ends. After going back and forth on design ideas, I decided to use my precious Liberty of London fabrics. I bought them here and there and added them to my collection for a "special project". Recently I am in the mindset of "saving the fabrics for a special occasion is nice, but I should just use them and enjoy them while I can". At first I thought about making the jacket 100% with Liberty, but decided to use gray fabric with it. I used Ocean Wave quilt blocks and started cutting and piecing the fabrics.

So far so good...

As I was piecing the fabrics, I was thinking about how the front, back, hood, and sleeves were going to look. I wanted the quilt design of the front panels to match up and the design on back and hood to be centered. I was less worried about the sleeves, because you don't see them side by side much. I recommend laying down the pattern often to see if you are headed in the right direction while you are piecing.

Then, the most scary part...cutting. I spent so many hours piecing the fabrics and I really didn't want to mess this up. There are other people who posted videos of how they made their quilted coats, but I decided to cut the top first, then, lay them out on the layer of backing and batting to cut. I recommend you cut more extra edges for the batting and backing, because as you quilt it, the top will shift. I thought I had enough, but in some areas, I was running out of the backing a bit.

Then quilting. You could do this with your regular sewing machine, but I really wanted a hand quilted look. I started quilting with my Baby Lock Sashiko, and it was so much fun to see how my pieced top became a "quilt".

After all the pieces are quilted, I assembled them as instructed in the pattern. I haven't added snap buttons yet, but I started wearing it right away. I simply couldn't wait!

I love the shape of the hood and how it drapes down in the back.

I love everything about this jacket and how it fits me. Oh! Just as a reference, I shortened my jacket by a couple inches to create better balance/silhouette for my body type. I am glad I did!

There were several people who thought I hand quilted my jacket and I told them that I did it with a special machine. I’ve had my Sashiko Machine for almost two years, but everytime I used it, I can't help but stare at the mechanism of this clever machine. This new jacket of mine is a collaboration of Tamarack Jacket, Liberty of London, and Baby Lock Sashiko. All my favorite things in one. I will treasure it for years to come!