A person can never have enough throw-on blazers, am I right? If you’re wearing a springy top or a dress and a bit of wind happens your way, it’s so handy to have a little blazer or cardigan to pop over it. The Morris Blazer by Grainline Studios is just one of those little toppers that’s stylish and comfortable, a perfect extra layer. Since my much-loved knit blazer hit the donation pile last spring, I  made not one, but two Morris’ to replace it.

My first is made from a fabulous striped Ponte knit, purchased at Mill End Store.

Stripes are everywhere this spring; vertical or horizontal, thin or thick – – any stripe will do! When I saw this knit, I decided its peach and blue stripes were just right.  The Grainline Morris pattern suggests knits and stretch wovens are the fabrics of choice, so I knew this knit would be perfect.

Generally as blazers go, the Morris blazer is a pretty straightforward sew. It isn’t lined, so I serged all of the seams for a ‘finished’ inside. I did have a few scary moments during construction.

Because it isn’t lined, the front and the hem are faced. Even though the instructions are generally pretty good on Grainline patterns, they totally lost me when it came time to attach the hem facing  to the front facing. OMG, I thought I would lose my mind! I screwed it up, twice ,before I remembered there was a Morris sew-along on the Grainline website. Those photos saved me.

Fit: I have narrow shoulders, and frequently have to adjust patterns significantly to compensate. This was not necessary on the Morris. In fact, even in the Ponte knit, the Size 10 shoulders are a bit snug on me, whereas the bodice for that same size needed to be graded down to an eight. To me, this means that even folks with ‘regular’ shoulders might find this cut a bit narrow.My knit Morris is comfy, however, the lapels pop up  (perhaps this is my error?) and it flaps in the wind. Plus, it doesn’t have pockets.I Need Pockets Desperately.

Enter Morris Number Two.

This Morris is  a bit oversized, ‘boyfriend style’, with huge pockets that hold my cell and my keys. Here’s how I got there…..

• I lengthened the bodice by six inches at the line provided on the pattern.
• I cut one size larger in the bodice so that I could add buttons for closure.
• I widened the lapel and front facing by an inch.
• I drafted patch pockets by tracing the hemline of the jacket.

It’s a good thing I ‘sized up’ because the drape of the stretch twill is pretty different from the knit. Even though it had a lot of ‘give’, it wasn’t very forgiving in the shoulders so my boyfriend version isn’t quite as comfortable as I’d like. I do love that I can button-up this blazer though, and the wider lapels lay down nicely and stay down.  My one complaint about this version…I wish it was lined. The blazer doesn’t slip on and off that easily. If I venture down the Morris path again, I’ll likely add lining

Summary: This is a great pattern and I love both versions. For comfort, the knit wins. For versatility the twill ‘boyfriend’ version wins. If I were to make this pattern again, I would probably stick with the knit, adding pockets for sure. In my opinion, the drape of a stretch woven isn’t quite as nice for the design.

I’m sure I’ll wear the boyfriend version a lot this Spring, when the weather is still cool and windy. I will opt for shorter knit version when I want something over a tee this summer.

With this make, my spring sewing is officially ‘on’. And, it’s a good thing, because Me-made May is just around the corner.  Will you participate this year? I’m not sure if I will, as I don’t have jeans in my ‘me-made wardrobe. That problem will soon be corrected though as I’m starting a Jeans Class at Modern Domestic this Spring. So, who knows? I may pull it off after all.

Happy sewing and thanks for stopping by!