A Tale of Two Hoodies….

 

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again- winter is NOT my friend. We tend to joke in our family that I’m part lizard, because I don’t seem to generate my own body heat- I’m only warm and happy if I’m IN a warm and happy environment.

While I wish I could simply fly south every winter, and avoid the season entirely (I have NO issues with decorating a palm tree for Christmas!), we aren’t planning on moving any time soon, so I’ve got to make do- and hoodies are big part of that equation.

I settled on the New Horizons TAMI hoodie– I hadn’t made it in over a year, and remembered really liking the fit.  You can see the versions I made last year here (along with my nursing hack)- I love them, but since I’m now nursing a toddler, and not a baby, easy access is no longer required. I stuck with the original version of the pattern, which has since been updated, because I like the slightly looser fit for layering over tanks and long sleeve shirts, both for modesty when nursing and for an extra layer of warmth.

This pattern has an awesome zip and double hood option, but to keep it simple, I went with the single crossover hood, and lined it instead of simply turning it under, so I could add a little contrast.

The front and back are sewn with textured athletic knit from Surge– I had originally ordered this with leggings in mind, but it doesn’t have enough stretch for my favorite leggings pattern, so I decided to use it on this instead. The arms and outer hood are from a So Sew English floral (there are so. many. florals. on that site, I can’t remember the name, but I love the fall colors!), and the inner hood and waistband are scraps leftover from my Uvita top that I made last year.

Since I used a little bit of everything, this turned out to be quite a scrap buster, and it was fun trying to coordinate the fabrics. In addition to my small hood modification, I followed the tutorial on the New Horizons blog for the thumb cuffs. I had a little trouble with the hemming at the end on the cuffs- I didn’t really have enough to turn down. I also didn’t like the raw edge on the inside of the thump part of the cuff, which is serged but still a bit scratchy on my dry winter skin.

After thinking it over for a while, I noticed on my RTW sweatshirts with a similar cuff the top and bottom cuff pieces are folded, so all the raw edges are enclosed in the main seams, which is much more comfortable. I might try to re-create that method on my next try, but I do prefer this type of cuff to the normal one that’s included in the pattern- much easier to construct, and my thumbs have a bit more room.

I also included the in seam pockets on this one- which are quite cozy, but tend to make the hip area stick out a bit, since it adds bulk there. I fixed this issue by using the kangaroo pocket option instead on my next version, which I’m also sharing today. My hips don’t need any help showing themselves after 3 kids, if you know what I mean!

Without the zip, this is a pretty quick sew, and I was happy to churn out another one to add to my winter wardrobe.

This second sweatshirt was made out of a thick, stretchy sweatshirt fleece I found at a warehouse in San Francisco- it’s pretty much the perfect sweatshirt fabric! I’ll never understand why most of the sweatshirt fleeces at JoAnns don’t have any stretch- who wants a hoodie that doesn’t have any give? This stuff is much better, and I should have bought dozens of yards- but then I’d probably have a whole army of grey hoodies, and someone might find that a bit boring style wise.

The inner hood and cuffs on this one are made from merino wool scraps leftover from my Portlander Pants (never blogged, so I’m sneaking them in here!)- making this the best lounge outfit EVER!

I’ve already gushed about my love for merino in my last post, so I’ll just say this stuff is perfect for us cold-blooded creatures.

I did a reverse coverstitch to attach the pocket- which I could swear is even in real life, even if it doesn’t look right in this photo (warning: photos add 10 pounds and distort pockets)

The only modification I made on this one, besides lining the hood and sewing the thumb cuffs, was to lower the neck slightly. You can tell in my first one, that the neck bunches a bit at the seam, and lowering it helped- I’ll probably even lower it another 1/2″ in the future.

Next up in my queue is a new Summit Peak- I’m thinking a comparison might be fun! If you’ve made both, what are your favorite features and why?

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