If you have ever wished you could wear your quilting instead of just folding it over the back of a sofa, a patchwork jacket is the project that makes that happen. The Laura Jacket is a ladies' patchwork jacket pattern designed to make a statement, built around your own favourite fabric collection or that cherished scrap stash you have been saving for something special.
What This Pattern Is
The Laura Jacket is a printed paper sewing pattern for a quilted, patchwork jacket. It contains fully illustrated step-by-step instructions and full-sized templates to create your own jacket, so you are not enlarging pieces or guessing at shapes. Sizes XS to XXL are included. The technique used is standard machine sewing, and the finished product is a wearable garment. The pattern is recommended for intermediate sewers — confident sewers who are comfortable with machine sewing and following a multi-step garment project will be well placed to enjoy it.
Why Quilters and Sewists Make It
Most quilt patterns end as a quilt. This one gives quilters two different routes to a finished, wearable piece. You can piece your jacket from a favourite fabric collection for a coordinated look, or dig into your scrap stash and let each section tell its own story. The pattern also gives instructions to whip up the jacket quickly with a beautiful pre-made quilt — so if you have a quilt lying around that is rarely used, this is a way to give it a second life as something you wear out of the house. Because you choose the fabrics, the batting, and the size, no two Laura Jackets come out alike.
How to Make It, Step by Step
- Choose your route first. Decide whether you are piecing patchwork from a fabric collection or scraps, or converting a pre-made quilt. That choice shapes everything that follows.
- Pick your batting for the season. Customise the jacket for mid-season or winter warmth by choosing your preferred batting. A soft, thin bamboo batting gives that perfect mid-season jacket with drape, while wool is the switch to make for ultimate warmth on the coldest days.
- Select your size. Work within the included XS to XXL size range, and check the pattern's sizing information before you cut — with a garment, fit decisions come before fabric decisions.
- Prepare your fabrics or quilt. If you are piecing, gather and organise your collection or scraps so colours and prints are balanced across the jacket. If you are using a pre-made quilt, lay it out and plan where the pattern pieces will fall.
- Use the full-sized templates. Lay out and cut your pieces using the printed full-sized templates included in the pattern, following the illustrated layout guidance.
- Follow the illustrated instructions in order. Work through the fully illustrated step-by-step instructions using standard machine sewing, assembling the jacket as directed rather than skipping ahead — garment construction builds on each previous stage.
- Try it on as you go. A wearable project rewards regular fitting checks. Pause at the stages the instructions allow and check drape and comfort before you finish seams for good.
Practical Tips
- Think about drape before warmth: a thinner batting keeps the jacket softer and more fluid, while a warmer batting adds structure as well as insulation.
- Scrap versions look best when you repeat a few fabrics across the jacket rather than using every scrap once — repetition ties a patchwork garment together.
- If you are cutting into a pre-made quilt, plan the placement of your favourite blocks or sections first, so the parts you love most end up where they will be seen.
- Read the entire instruction set before cutting anything. Garment patterns reward one full read-through.
Care and Storage
Store the printed pattern flat with its templates together, so pieces do not get separated between projects — many makers make this jacket more than once, in different fabrics and battings for different seasons. Care for the finished jacket according to the fabrics and batting you chose: a quilted jacket is cared for much like a quilt, with gentle washing and thorough drying, and hanging it rather than folding it hard will help it keep its shape and drape between wearings.
Project Ideas
- Make a mid-season version in bamboo batting from a favourite fabric collection for everyday wear.
- Build a true winter jacket with wool batting and deeper, richer colours.
- Give a rarely used quilt a new life as a jacket, following the pattern's pre-made quilt instructions.
- Use a coordinated scrap stash for a one-of-a-kind jacket that uses up fabrics you already love.
Shop the Laura Jacket at Linda's Electric Quilters.
