Sashiko Happy Coat No.2

I was going to do another technique tutorial blog, but then I finished my second Sashiko Happy Coat and I immediately wanted to share - so change in plan, and here we are! I am totally over the moon with it. - Ta dah!!

Coat No.2 is in front with buttons, my original coat is in the background

I think I love it more than my original award-winning Happy in Red version!! Crazy talk, …but true. I am a bit excited about how the colours play off each other, and it’s got me thinking colour combos I would like to see…. I would like to know what colours you like and I am running a little competition to win a free Sashiko Happy Coat pattern to find out - details are at the end of this blog!

First, I am going to saturate you with coat photos until your eyeballs need a rest, (while sharing a few things I did a little differently this time around), then talk other colour palettes that might just stop traffic!

Full length front view over a navy blue dress

Full length back view, over a navy blue dress

The most obvious thing I did differently this time is that I chose the buttons option for closure at the top. My pattern describes both options to make the coat without buttons like the original red version, and with buttons like this one.

Confession: My own pattern dose describes a total of six buttons, but I only elected to put five on this coat. This coat is a Small, and it just didn’t feel right to crowd the top of the embroidery with the lowest button, even though I had already made a button hole for it. Its just one of this in-the-moment decisions.

Attaching Buttons - I did this while on the mannequin to make sure it would hang smoothly when closed

Second confession: I did not frog to rectify the unused button hole that existed in the bodice fabric, yet the hole is gone! I just sewed a strand of yarn back and forth just a couple of times to mimic what a dc flo stitch does, weave in the tails and nobody is the wiser…. Well, until now of course.

But you know, sharing means others may not panic if they change their mind like I did. Just have a good look at how the neighbouring yarn loops sit, and sew through a strand in a fashion similar to the adjacent stitches. Don’t overdo it to make it stiff or darned though – just enough to match the surroundings and it will become “just part of the furniture”. Think of it like using the blemish correction tool on Photoshop.

Two Sashiko Happy Coats: Original in reds and No.2 in blues

So: colours… I LOOOOVE them!! This time, the main coat fabric is Scheepjes Our Tribe in colour 974 The Curio Crafts Room worked double stranded. Again, I selected two balls that were at different stages of the variegated colour change, so the two strands together tended to create a third colour effect more so than stripes. The royal navy blue and lush deep greens of this yarn really harmonise beautifully, and the flashes of purple gives the whole coat a rich undertone.

I had intended to keep it just the Our Tribe in The Curio Crafts Room blues and Scheepjes Alpaca Rhythm slip stitch embroidery in 670 Bop white – very classic, elegant and timeless, but when I pulled out the Alpaca Rhythm in 667 Jitterbug, just to see, there was no going back! Suddenly it felt like an elegant lush garden with spring flowers! I decided I would just use it for contrast trims though, not the small embroidered motif at the bottom of the bodice.

The accent pink of 667 Jitterbug was irresistible.

When it was all coming together assembling all the pieces and crocheting trims, I popped the coat on one of my Veronica mannequins to take it all in – “it needs MORE pink” is what Veronica whispered softly to me... So again, contrary to my own pattern instructions, I snuck and extra row of contrast embroidery around the outer collar so both sides have Jitterbug colour.

Every make is different and needs a bit of customisation. I originally worked the same contrast trim on the outer collar of my first coat, but the orange dominated the collar when I stood back to check the overall effect, so I frogged and elected to not put it in the pattern. This colour combo felt better with it - you just have to go with your gut.

Apart from those little tweaks, it is the same coat. But I have to go back to the buttons for a second – how good do they look!?? I was a little unsure if they would detract from the collar, but I searched for understated navy buttons so they would only be a supporting act, and I am totally thrilled with the aesthetic. They add structure and formality to the collar when its closed, and the top ones are hidden when the collar is open. They add so much versatility - you can wear it a bunch of different ways, and I have shown pictures of each below. So happy!!

Collar can be worn all the way up, loose around the neck.

Collar can be worn flat, with buttons closed, or open and relaxed.

Collar can be worn closed and folded down for a formal look.

I am so glad to be designing with yarn support from Scheepjes - their colour range is a-mazing! So last night I was perusing their website, playing with COLOUR PALETTE ideas and came up with a few combos I would love to see become a Sashiko Happy Coat. Which one gets your hook quivering?

The first one shown below is as I used for my second coat: "CURIO SPRING", listing the colour codes left to right to match the image. The Our Tribe Curio Crafts Room blue for the coat fabric, the Alpaca Rhythm Bop white for the main embroidery, the Alpaca Rhythm Jitterbug pink for the accent embroidery.

CURIO SPRING: 974 The Curio Crafts Room, 670 Bop, 667 Jitterbug

Then, ten more options follow in the same format:

CYPRESS OCEAN: 970 Cypress Textiles, 656 Polka, 658 Boogie

JELLINA CARNIVAL: 971 Jellina Creations, 668 Disco, 658 Boogie

CYPRESS GLACIER: 970 Cypress Textiles, 670 Bop, 652 Smooth

NUTSHELL BOUQUET: 973 Its All in a Nutshell, 658 Boogie, 667 Jitterbug

CURIO AQUA: 974 The Curio Crafts Room, 655 Twist, 669 Cha Cha

SPOONFUL OF CRISP: 977 A Spoonful of Yarn, 670 Bop, 659 Lindy

LILLA 2 REGAL: 978 Lilla 2, 660 Calypso, 663 Tango

SUNNY DAY: 980 Simy 2 with 970 Cypress Textiles, 668 Disco, 657 Charlston

SPOONFUL FLORAL: 977 A Spoonful of Yarn, 670 Bop, 666 Meringue

STOP TRAFFIC: 984 Old Bewick, 662 Paso, 655 Twist

My original CGOA award-winning Sashiko Happy Coat

If you feel inspired, my Sashiko Happy Coat pattern is available from my Peppergoose Designs Ravelry store – as a paid ad-free pdf downloadable in UK terms and US terms, and I thank you for your support! Don’t forget, you can also find supporting Crochet Technique tutorials for some of the techniques used in this (and others of my) patterns here on this blog.

SIZES:

S, M, L, XL, XXL

To Fit Chest (cm)

81-86, 91.5-96.5, 101.5-106.5, 111.5-117, 122-127

To Fit Chest (in)

32-34, 36-38, 40-42, 44-46, 48-50

WHERE CAN YOU BUY THESE GORGEOUS YARNS?

Check here for all Scheepjes retailers worldwide!

Some handy shop links:

Wool Warehouse (in the UK)

Caro Atelier (in the Netherlands)

Black Sheep Wools (in the UK)

Jimmy Beans Wool (in the US)

Knotty House (in Canada)

& shopping at Yarns For All helps to support a small Australian business in my local city of Perth Western Australia (a good option if you live in New Zealand - they ship worldwide).

FOR THE PATTERN GIVEAWAY:

There will be one winner on Instagram and one on Facebook, chosen by random selection.

TO ENTER: Choose which of these colour palettes you like best (if it's actually my original coat, then we will call that "ORIGINAL" - nice and simple), and go over to my Facebook page or my Instagram to enter by telling me which colour palette tickles your fancy and tag some friends in my post there - all the terms and conditions are listed on Facebook and Instagram.

ENTRIES CLOSE: 6pm Thurs 26th September 2019 Pacific Standard Time. Winners will be notified by private message, then announced on social media. (This promotion is not a collaboration with Instagram, Facebook or Ravelry.)

I am off to have a cup of tea and savour the “finished object afterglow” one feels when you have completed a big project. Yay!

Happy stitching,

Susannah (Peppergoose)

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