Lexie Hoodie

I am very excited to say I made myself a quilted hoodie!  When I saw the pattern for the Lexie Hoodie just before Christmas I knew I wanted to try my hand at making one.  So glad Santa and an elf figured out how to get one in my hands.

The pattern is from Australian designer Melly and Me.  It is drafted to work with the non-stretchy nature of quilted fabric.  It has very easy construction techniques that would be approachable even if you haven't sewn any garments before.  I found the sizing to be perfect if you went by the included measurement chart and didn't worry if it was labeled small, XL or 3X as those labels do not relate to any commercial sizing.

I have big plans to make a second one of these but for the first I pulled some fabric that I already had at home.  The stars are made from the Make collection from Kristy Lea of Quiet Play, and the background is from the Hush 3 collection all from Riley Blake.  I had just enough fabric in the one fat quarter of the stripe to get my bias binding cut out.  I enjoyed fussy cutting the motifs that first drew me to that fabric collection for the centers of the star.

I sewed the lining fabric together to test the fit before I cut into my quilted panels.  I decided to make a couple of adjustments to fit me better - I tapered the sleeves to reduce the wrist opening and I made the neckline about an 1" lower.  The pattern suggests either a thin batting layer or a piece of flannel.  I chose to use Hobbs Thermore batting as it has been recommended for garments for a very long time.