Winter has arrived here in Southern Manitoba and that affects my sewing world in two ways;
- It’s Christmas flannel pajama prep time!
- It’s time to sew Henley a winter jacket!
Christmas PJs
The nieces and nephews have been measured, flannel has been selected, washed and cut. It now sits in nicely folded piles waiting to be sewn together for Christmas. (I’ll write more about the pajamas in a December blog post)
Henley’s Jacket
Weimaraner’s don’t have a thick coat of hair like a lab or a husky and since I need my sidekick to keep warm as we spend time outside this winter when temperatures hit -25, I decided to sew Henley a winter jacket. I browsed around to find features I wanted in a jacket and went home to figure out a pattern. Below are the first two versions of the jacket.
First Draft
Henley’s eyes tell it all…
“I feel like a superhero in this cape, I don’t like it…”
The jacket’s outer shell is a windproof/waterproof outdoor jacketing, lined with black polar fleece. For this first draft, I added hi-vis reflective tape. This grey ghost will be seen as we’re out walking on cold winter evenings.
It’s an easy jacket to slip on and off over his head with a panel that secures behind his front legs with velcro.
Second Draft
For the second draft I lengthened the band around his chest and widened the tail end of the jacket. (less cape like…)
I’ve gotten the jacket to the point that it is functional and will keep Henley warm as we move into winter.
So far Henley has taken well to the test fittings on our morning outings at the dog park.
An outing at Little Mountain Dog Park. Before the snow arrived.
A sunny afternoon at Maple Grove Dog Park.
Winter is Here!
M. Joy 