An Epic Fail, or why I need a walking foot

I got that big piece of velvet in seafoam green color with all of that free fabric from Alicia. My original thought was "om nom nom" and I knew I would make a jacket out of it, a Cordova jacket! I wanted to do a trial run with the pattern and this fabric would be perfect!

Andrew saw the fabric and said ew. I ignored him. 

 Sadly, he was right. Just for the record, I didn't even finish it. After I put in the zipper, I could tell it was a lost cause. So it is not hemmed at all.

Problem one: Velvet. I was like "No, man, I got this." I made a velvet dress before, it'll be fine... Yeah, thinking back, I rush-made a really shoddy red dress for the last day of school before Xmas break. Seriously, go look at it. Such a turd. So since that was my sum total of velvet experience...

Solution: I need a walking foot for my machine. I tried my best, but the pieces would get fed through at different paces and every. single. piece. was. off. I did find a picture online and looked through all of my miscellaneous feet, but I don't have one. Sooo.....something to buy soon.

Oh lawd!

 Problem two: Style + fabric, use some logic please.

The Cordova pattern is for a nice, slim jacket with some detailing and a zipper front. There have been some very good versions that I have seen around the interwebs. Trisha made nice purple one and Tasia made nice tweed one. Everything about the fabric, color and style is all wrong; the sleeves look absurd. It looks like some poorly done costume for an un-researched movie set in the 1800s, minus the not-yet-invented zipper. I am frowning just looking at the pictures. Sooooo ugly.

Solution: Sometimes it is necessary to sit down and actually think about if a pattern and a fabric will

LOL I know!

 Problem three: the zipper. Seriously, if you can't find a zipper that matches (which was impossible at Jo-Ann, the only place I looked) you should not use a random, white, separating one from your stash. Plus it was a little too long, so I cut an inch off the top. The top. So now there is no metal stopper, and the tab can just shoot off into the atmosphere. When I realized this, after I had sewn it in (unevenly, due to no walking foot), I just quit. We're done here, folks.

Solution: Find a damn zipper that matches!

Saggy McDroopertons

Plus,I think the fit is too baggy in general even though I made my usual size 2. It will definitely need some sizing down if I make it again.

Now that it's finally starting to feel like Spring, who cares about jackets!

Feel free to say whatever mean things you like about this wad of crap! I have zero attachment to it and it will be going in my freecycle fabric scrap bag. Oh no wait, I already did that. Haha!