How to Sew a Chanel-Inspired Jacket: a Step-By-Step Guide

How to sew Chanel inspired jacket on Baudekin Studio

by Marga van der Vet

https://www.sewingchanelstyle.com/

July 13, 2020

Almost every woman on earth dreams of having a Chanel jacket. A Chanel jacket is pure Haute couture: sophisticated, perfectly fitting, timeless classic and very, very expensive. Sewing a Chanel-inspired jacket yourself is like sewing a wedding dress. A long process and you need to have a lot of sewing experience.  But it should not be a dream. It is possible and we will help you!

 Chanel inspired jacket on Baudekin Studio

Where to start?

As soon as you start to look for information about Chanel-Style- or Chanel Inspired jackets, you will notice there are a lot of sewing patterns available.  Which one should you choose and what kind of fabric do you need? What about the lining, what about the Couture sewing techniques which are mentioned over and over?  Follow our step-by-step sewing guide and you will do fine.

Chanel inspired jacket 

Take your time

But first, realize that sewing a Chanel-inspired jacket will be a much longer process or project than you have ever experienced before.  Most garments you have made so far were projects which ended after a few weeks, maybe days, or even one day. Some sewing patterns even claim to be a "one-hour" project. It actually never happened to us. Sewing a skirt or a dress in just an hour is not very likely to be a rewarding project. Sure, if you need a nice towel to function as a wrap it will be a speedy process. But let's take some more time to enjoy the process and the result, a perfect ‘Chanel-jacket’ as well.

 

Classic or modern?

There are many choices and styles. Your first step should be: take a look around the Internet for a while before you start the project.  Take a close look at your own wardrobe and think about the colour or possible combinations. You can also create a mood board.  Pin or pick ‘Chanel-jackets’ pictures and fabric pictures. As soon as you start to look around you probably notice some specific style you really would like to create. Timeless, classic, boxy, long, shorter, a lot of fringes or plain simple.

Step-by-step guide:

  1. Take a look around the Internet and create your own mood board.
  2. Choose the right sewing pattern.
  3. Be sure about your sewing skills  (Beginner?  More advanced? ). Nothing is more frustrating than not being able to understand the instructions on the sewing pattern.
  4. Notice the fabric you will need, the lining and all the extras.
  5. When you start to order fabrics: be sure to buy more fabric than mentioned on the sewing pattern.  This will make it possible to add some pockets, to make your own fringes, or to have some extra fabric in case you make a cutting mistake.
  6. Which trims or fringes do you love?
  7. Let's find these beautiful buttons you want on your jacket.
  8. Cut the fabrics, sew the pieces, hand-sew all the details; schedule a few weeks to make sure it will not be a rushed job.
  9. If the project crashes, put it away temporarily, read the correct books to tackle the problem, and find the courage to resume it later.
  10. When the jacket is finished, photograph the result, and above all be very proud!

 

A Chanel-inspired jacket is a very nice Crown Jewel of your work as a home seamstress or professional seamstress or your projects so far. It is the absolute finishing touch of all your knowledge and skills of sewing techniques. It is an absolute joy to make this jacket as extravagant, personal and striking as possible. It might even get more attention than the wedding dress you did a long time ago.

 

About the Author:

Marga van der Vet

Marga van der Vet is a 50+ Dutch model and seamstress. She specializes in sewing Chanel-Style jackets and started https://www.sewingchanelstyle.com/ a few years ago to share information about sewing Chanel-Style jackets and all about the brand Chanel.  Lately, she has expanded the website with blogs about sewing for LARP, Cosplay and Fantasy events. Marga lives in the countryside in the North of the Netherlands with her family, her dog and horses. Modelling and Haute couture are, of course, very glamorous but she has a sustainable and green lifestyle. SewingChanelStyle promotes sustainability and women who are having small arts and crafts businesses.





Also in Blog

garden path
The Power of Gratitude

We’ve heard it before time and time again, but I’m going to tell you once more – the power of gratitude is real and it can also have an impact on reducing stress while promoting your overall emotional well-being. 

Continue Reading

model wearing a sun hat
All About Hats

This blog is all about hat-making. Making hats is a fun hobby because it allows you to make the exact hat that suits your style and that you like to wear. You can make hats in two different ways.

Continue Reading

Chanel black and white tweed
Facts and Fiction Behind Chanel's Iconic Tweed Fabric

You may love, or hate, or be totally indifferent about Mademoiselle Coco Chanel. She had good taste. She was an opportunist and a shrewd business woman. She was a woman who understood the power of mystery and the importance of discretion. She reinvented her past to elevate herself to the highest ranks of the society.

Continue Reading