Jalie 3884: Frédéric Hoodie

Background

The Jalie Frédéric is drafted for men and boys, sizes 2T to 50 (XXL). It has zippered pockets, ribbed cuffs and hem, a full zip, and lined hood with drawstring. The front and back are seamed at the waist.

While it is drafted for men and boys, women can use this pattern too as long as they’re aware that it falls straight down from the chest and the hips are drafted smaller than they would be for a women’s pattern. (I’ve also found that Jalie men’s patterns tend to be drafted with longer body and sleeve lengths than the women’s patterns.)

I made this for my two year old son. I was specifically looking to make him a non-bulky fleece jacket he could wear while traveling in his car seat during the cold months. (I never realized how problematic winter coats could be for kids using car seats until I actually had a kid and quickly found out that puffy down jackets are a no-no for car seats.)

Fabric and Notions

Suggested fabrics are stable sweatshirt fabrics, with rib knit for the cuffs and hem band and lightweight jersey for the hood lining. The seaming and colorblocking potential makes it a great stash buster, especially for the little sizes.

I used 4-way stretch Polartec fleeces for the body, sleeves, and hood. Both are scraps from previous projects and purchased years ago from Fabric Mart. I think it’s possible the black fleece is 15 years old at this point!

I used a black cotton ribbing from my stash for the cuffs and hem band. It was from either Nature’s Fabrics (my most common source for ribbing) or Fabric Mart. As a side note, Jumping June Textiles is also a great source for ribbing, especially if you’re looking for the heavier 230 gsm weight more suitable for sweatshirts.

The hood lining was cut from an old modal/cotton/lycra jersey Amazon Essentials t-shirt of mine.

The front zipper is a #3 YKK molded plastic separating zipper from WAWAK I had in my stash. The pocket zips are plain YKK #3 nylon coil non-separating zippers, also from WAWAK. The pattern referred to “nylon oil zipper” for the pockets, which left me totally confused until I realized it was likely a typo and meant to say “nylon coil zipper” instead.

The grommets for the drawstring are also from WAWAK. The drawstring for the hoodie was part of a 3/8” herringbone weave cotton drawstring color assortment from Amazon.

Fit and Sizing

I cut a size G (3T) for my son. It’s big for him, but he’s grown SO much since his birthday four months ago (like 1.5”) that I’m reluctant to make his actual size right now, which would be 2T.

The only alteration I made was widening the hip area by 2” to make more room for his cloth diapers.

I’m really happy with the fit. It isn’t too bulky and layers nicely over sweatshirts, while allowing plenty of room for future growth.

Construction

The most challenging part of this jacket is probably the zippered front pockets. If you look at the “Tutorials and Resources” section of the pattern listing on Jalie’s website there is a handy written tutorial with photos on how to construct them (though I didn’t use it myself).

The seam allowances included are 3/8”. When I make this pattern again (either for my son in a larger size, or for my husband) I will trim down the seam allowances on the pattern to 1/4” for everything that’s able to be sewn on the serger.

Since my fleece is so stretchy, when it came time to attach the zippers (both pockets and front) I ended up using strips of some Pro-Sheer Elegance fusible interfacing for stabilization. I also used a scrap of this interfacing for stabilizing the section of the hood where the grommets are set.

Conclusion

I’m very pleased with how this jacket came out. It isn’t a super quick project that I could bang out in a couple of hours, but he’s wearing it so much that it was well worth the effort.

With the chaotic tariff nonsense causing issues with importing back issues of the Ottobre pattern magazine, I find myself using Jalie patterns more and more. I’m doing a lot of family style sewing at this point in my life and the wide range of sizes, reliable drafting, simplicity, practicality, and often unisex styles make them surprisingly cost effective.

Jalie 4239: Zip Front Hoodie

I was interested in making myself a relaxed fitting zip front hoodie with pockets that would be more suitable for layering than my beloved Ottobre hoodie.

Background

This is a zip front hoodie in two lengths: hip and mid thigh. There is a front waist seam with front angled pockets. Ribbing is used for the cuffs and hem band.

Materials

I used a 100% cotton 230 gsm weight red sweatshirt fleece from Nature’s Fabrics I got on sale sometime during the last few months. It was wonderful to sew and is wonderful to wear!

The ribbing is a 230 gsm weight ribbing from Frollein S. Unfortunately she shut down her fabric store right after my purchase, which is too bad because I had just discovered the store and she had such wonderful stuff!

The zipper is a #5 molded plastic YKK zipper from WAWAK. I used these zipper stops from a kit I got from Amazon to shorten it.

Fit/Alterations

As usual per Jalie the sizing is pretty inclusive and goes from 2T to 2X (womens size 24). Per my measurements I cut a size Y (40” bust) for the top and tapered out to a BB (47” hip) for the bottom. I would say it is a more relaxed fit but not baggy. In my photo I’m layering a slim fitted tee under a long sleeve fitted merino wool top under it, and it feels like it has the perfect amount of ease for this.

My waist is a size W (31.5”) so just for the back I tapered to the size W cutting line, just for a tiny bit of extra shaping.

I feel like the sleeves run a bit short for Jalie and added an inch to the length. I also added 3/4” with to the sleeves at the bicep/elbow (pretty normal for me no matter what the pattern brand).

It was tricky figuring out how to add the extra with at the hem for the front, so below are my altered pieces in case if you also need to alter from waist to hip and having a hard time envisioning what to do. I went from a Y at the waist seam to a BB at the bottom of the hem.

Here’s the lower front once altered. The right shows the original Y cutting line drawn in, tapering out to BB.

This is the front inset panel. Again, the right side shows the original Y cutting line drawn in. (The left is just me drawing in the stitching line when trying to figure out how to add the extra amount.)

Here’s the pocket piece. You can once again see the original cutting line drawn on the right. The pocket piece is actually the same for all adult sizes, but since I was going between sizes I needed to add extra room on the right. (Once worn I also found the pocket piece too narrow for my taste, so for next time I widened it 2”, that’s the middle alteration. That’s what is going on in the middle of the piece.

Construction

As usual with the newer Jalie patterns, I found the instructions were excellent (and I believe a video tutorial is also on their website). The hardest part is probably Step 10, getting the inset lined up with the lower front (since the pockets are tacked together at the very top and very bottom of the slash.)

I think in the future I would consider adding in a zipper to the front pockets, just for some extra security while at the playground.

I found the finishing where the hood attaches to the zipper very neatly done.

I do recommend tracing piece C1/C2 lower front and lower back) twice. One to attach to the upper back piece, and one so you can avoid having to take the extra step to cut the piece off indicated by the instructions in Step 5 after cutting the entire hoodie. Just eliminates more room for error.

Conclusion

A great hoodie pattern, especially for layering! It is perfect for my casual stay at home mom to a toddler life. I do recommend checking the width of the front pockets though because they seem on the narrow side, and while they work fine for hand warming I would like the ability to more securely store my keys, phone, etc when out and about. As you can see below there’s plenty of room to extend the width towards the center front.

Ottobre 1/2024 #2: Velour Bear Hoodie and #3: Velour Pants

This was unfortunately the best photo I could get of him wearing the set…he’s not the most cooperative child and would not stand still while facing me.

I have been wanting to make this for my son since I first saw it when the issue came out nearly two years ago. About two months ago I finally got around to it.

Pattern Background

The velour hoodie has a half zip front with a bear face applique. The bear has little ear and paw pieces that are sewn in. Sizes are European 62-92.

The slim leg pants have an elastic waist and front pockets. They come in sizes 62-92. Velour is recommended for them as well, though I think they’d be great out of a jeggings denim or stretchy French terry.

My son is currently a 92 so this fall was my last chance to make it before he grew out of it forever!

Fit/Alterations

For the hoodie I added a total of 2” width to the bottom at the hem. For the pants I added 1/2” to the center back crotch curve at the top. These alterations are mostly because he wears cloth diapers and needs extra room there.

Materials

I used cotton velour knits from Nature’s Fabrics for the hoodie, bear face, and both pairs of pants. For the face and lining of the ears and paws I used single knit cotton jersey, also from Nature’s Fabrics. I’m not entirely sure where I got the ribbing for the cuffs, hem band, and hood binding…it was probably also from Nature’s Fabrics but Fabric Mart is another possibility.

For the applique stitching I used Simthread embroidery thread from Amazon. If you buy this thread, make sure you check off the coupon to save yourself $7!

The zipper is a #3 molded plastic YKK zipper from WAWAK.

Construction

I have almost no experience with applique, and found the bear face finicky and time-consuming. Ottobre has you iron fusible knit backing to a piece of single knit and then cut out the eye, eyebrows, and mouth/nose pieces from that. I also added an iron-on tear-away stabilizer to the back of the brown bear head before doing the applique. The pieces are extremely tiny and very tricky to place and stitch, especially since velour isn’t the easiest fabric to transfer markings to nor to applique. My applique work is not perfect (as I mentioned before I have pretty much no experience with applique and velour can be tricky for fine work) but hey, it’s for a kid that will outgrow it sooner rather than later.

The good news is that once you’ve done the face applique and little ears and paws, the hardest part of the hoodie is over. I did find the instructions for the zipper a little confusing, but basically you take a piece of velour, fold it over, and place the raw edge at the bottom of the zipper and the folded section facing up towards the zipper pull. This is what it looks like when finished:

The pants are super simple. I did most of it on my sewing machine, just using the serger to finish the edges and to attach the waistband. Before sewing the waistband in place I ran a three step zigzag along the inside upper edge to make sure the elastic wouldn’t roll during washing:

Conclusion

My son has gotten a lot of wear out of both his hoodie and pants. Velour is great for hoodies and pants – it is breathable, durable, easy to wash, and very easy to layer due to the smooth backing.

Ottobre 4/2022 #1: Baby/Toddler Hooded Sweatshirt and Ottobre 1/2020 #6: Baby/Toddler Jeans

Pattern Overview

Ottobre 4/2022 #1 is a hoodie with raglan sleeves with darts, a front kangaroo pocket, and a close fitting hood with darts. The edge of the hood is finished with ribbing. Ribbing is also used for the cuffs and hem band.

Ottobre 1/2020 #6 is a baby jeans pattern. The edges of the front patch pockets are finished with self fabric bias binding. The waist is encased elastic, so these just pull on.

Fit and Alterations

I made both of these in size 86. When I measured him last month he was 32” tall and 25 pounds. Size 80 is perfect on him right now, but since I’m hoping to use them again in the fall I decided to size up.

I kept the hoodie as is; for the jeans I added knee patches. Up until recently he was a knee walker (and he would ONLY walk on his knees) and as a result half of the pants I made him last fall have holes in the knees now. Now he walks great (on his feet!) but he still does some knee walking and is often on his knees when playing outside, so I’m hoping the patches will help prolong the life of these jeans.

Materials

For the hoodie I used a rayon/lycra French terry purchased years ago from Gorgeous Fabrics. I had originally used this for my first version of my Jalie yoga pants, but unfortunately they haven’t held up well. The fabric is coming apart at some of the seams. I am not sure what’s wrong with it, maybe it’s just old and can’t handle the stress of tightly fitted yoga pants! But it’s perfect for this hoodie since it is so soft and won’t be stretched all the time.

For the hood binding, cuffs, and hem band I used a cotton rib knit from Nature’s Fabrics.

For the jeans I used a lightweight denim from my stash. I have no idea where or when I acquired it. It has a soft, lightweight drape (actually would make a great shirt fabric). The only downside is that the fabric is too soft to hold a rolled up cuff.

Construction

Both of these were pretty straightforward and went together quickly. I will say that for the jeans they have you sew the waistband to the inside first, run the elastic through, then fold the seam allowances over and topstitch in place from the outside. It sounds simple but the elastic makes it fiddly and it was by far the most consuming part of the jeans construction. I would consider just attaching it to the outside first, then topstitch in place from the outside, without folding under the inside seam allowances.

Conclusion

This is a great play outfit for active toddlers!

I use the hoodie all the time now for when we are going out and it’s too warm for his coat but he still needs an additional layer. It fits well over a shirt. I do plan on making him a regular zip hoodie soon but for now this works.

The jeans are working out well too. They’re more durable than his usual sweatpants for playing outside on the ground and being jeans, they go with any shirt in his wardrobe. I would absolutely make the jeans again, but in a stiffer fabric so the rolled up cuff holds better.

Another Ottobre Women’s Hoodie (Download)

Previous hoodie post

This time I made this hoodie out of a stretch bamboo fleece from Nature’s Fabrics. This fabric is so soft and cozy! The greater stretch is across the length, not the width, so I cut it against instead of with the grain. For the rib knit I used a gray heather bamboo/spandex rib knit which as you can see coordinates perfectly. Overall this is a much softer and stretchier version of my first hoodie.

The zipper is a YKK #5 molded plastic zipper that was in my stash, likely from WAWAK/Cleaner’s Supply. I finished the hoodie neckline seam with twill tape from Amazon.

For this version I also added a hanging loop, as I noticed with my other hoodie that I needed to hang it up more than I anticipated.