Two Henday Hoodies

As a pattern tester, I was provided this pattern free of charge, but all opinions are my own.

I'm the kind of person who appreciates a quick and dirty project - one that I can sew during naptime or right after the kids go to bed, so I typically stay away from outerwear. I know, I'm such a baby. I don't want to have to sew a lining because I'm pretty much sewing two jackets...which is exactly the point so it'll be warm. And don't even get me started on pants. I've had the same pair of shorts for my daughter sitting on my work table for months. MONTHS. Because I can't bring myself to make another fly or sew on tiny belt loops. Pants are my kryptonite.

And I mean that is a completely non-creepy way.

Anyway, after making up a few Raindrop Tees, I called my fall sewing done and set out to catch up on Game of Thrones - I've become a recent addict and am currently in the middle of season 3. And then, Jess of Gracious Threads put out the call to test her newest fall pattern, the Henday Zip-Up Hoodie. My kids are always in need of outerwear (probably because I never sew any??), so I asked Jess how long it took to make one. Less than 90 minutes, she said, zipper and all. Sold.


Luckily, Jess added me to the tester group, and I ended up making not one but two jackets. I'm a now a believer in sewing outerwear. Or at least this one anyway.

The Henday Hoodie comes in two lengths - hip length and cropped (which is for the girls.) I tested a hip length 4 for my tall son, who will be 4 in November. It was SO nice to sew something for Connor for once. Poor kid, his sister really gets most of the clothes, so it was a welcome change to allow him to choose his own fabric so I could sew something for him for once. I actually finished his jacket up during a nap and when I went in to wake him up, he grabbed it and cuddled up to it saying, "Oh Mommy, I love it."

Melt.

This hooded jacket is unlined (yay!) and can be made from a variety of materials depending on how warm you want it to be. I made mine from fleece that I got on sale at JoAnn's for 70% off. That made this jacket around $6, which I'm pretty giddy about. And since the fleece is nice and warm, Connor will be able to wear this through the fall.

The hip-length version includes zipper pockets on the side that I love because Connor always finds rocks everywhere we go, which I inevitably end up having to hold. The hip-length version takes a little longer to sew because of the pockets, but you could always leave those off in case you wanted to save some time. But I find that they're pretty essential for boys and their treasures.

Since I got such a fantastic deal on the fleece, I figured I might as well make the cropped version for my daughter while I was at it. She has to have pink everything lately, so we picked out this fun sunglasses print from JoAnn's as well.

The cropped version includes a band made from rib knit on the bottom and excludes any pockets, so it was a super fast sew. Rib knit is from The Fabric Fairy.

They both love their new jackets, and I am happy to say I'll be making more for them in the future (I actually have one that I'm planning for my son's Halloween costume :)

Visit Pattern Revolution to see more tester photos enter to win your own copy of the Henday Hoodie!