I TOLD YOU I WAS SEWING!! i finally decided i couldn't live without a (working) sewing machine so i finally bought one.... 9 hours later i have what i like to call my franken-vest.
backstory: in march of 2021 i had a breast reduction, and by october 2021 when i got some sensation back, the slightest bit of cold would give me incredible pains in my chest - so much so that i spent a good portion of downrig holding a hot water bottle on my tits (photo below) enjoy baby chip.
since then, neither the pain nor frequency has gotten less severe as soon as a chill comes through the air UNLESS i wear a vest. i did a fleece full zip for a while, but would always wear it under my sweaters so the bunching of the zipper bothered me. i then got a really nice heavy wool vintage eddy bauer button vest, but it was simply too hot to wear when i went from being at rest to doing any sort of manual labor. i then found a quarter zip fleece vest (which has been my favorite solution so far) - it's relatively form-fitting, so i can wear it directly over my undershirts, and it's s child's size so the zipper is short enough to not create any uncomfortable bunching. ANYWAY i still wanted a wool vest that: kept the melons warm but my back cool, had a full front closure (for ease of removal), and also looked cool as shit. i accepted i would have to make one myself.
conception and creation: i took a pattern from a denim vest i have (i'm guessing from the 1990's 70s-revival because of the condition and cut of the actual vest itself in addition to the large collar, but i have inquired about it with the costume designer from my hometown community theater i used to volunteer at, so i'll edit when i get the answer). the front panels are a midweight wool felt that an old shipmate had bought for me to make a cloak for him that i hadn't finished, but the fabric has just been sitting in my bin since he passed last year. the back is larger scraps of a lightweight suiting wool that i pieced together and added an old denim belt loop to one of the seams for it to hang from. the lining is - in front: the face of a quilted pillowcase (i removed the batting), in back: an old summer button down i haven't worn in a while. collar is 12oz natural cotton duck, and the waistband is from a pair of corduroy pants my buddy gave me that have never fit me but couldn't bear to give up because i knew they would be perfect for some future project. i took the buttons from the button jar that lives in the focsle of the Lady Washington- most are pewter that had been kept as replacements for any popped buttons on the old uniforms (recreation late 18th-early 19th century garments affectionately referred to as funnies) this was also my first time using the buttonhole foot. someone clap for me.
long-winded way to say:
I HAVE A DAPPER NEW VEST LOOK AT IT 🫵🏼😯
