Today I have a totally unexpected make to share with you: the Ilford Jacket by Friday Pattern Company in this Merchant and Mills 6oz denim which I purchased from Cross and Woods.

The Ilford Jacket actually hadn’t really been on my sewing radar at all.

Until I purchased this completely different fabric and was thinking it might make it a good jacket. In the course of cruising for jacket sewing patterns I found the Ilford Jacket. So I decided to test it out in this denim, to see if it would be a good fit!

I feel like it is sewing destiny because, while I’ve decided that it’s not the right pattern for the print, I think it is fabulous in denim!

My Ilford Jacket

My Ilford Jacket is a size XL. It is about an inch shorter than the pattern as designed, as I only had 2 metres of fabric and this is the maximum length I could fit.

The Ilford Jacket comes with these oversized sleeves, designed to be worn rolled up, or a proper traditional shirt sleeve. It has both a shorter and longer length.

The Ilford Jacket is a really simple sew, with great instructions.

I actually enjoyed it much more than I thought I would.

I think it is a really accessible sewing pattern – skating the line between a jacket and a shirt. It would also be a great starting point for anyone who might be intimidated by the idea of jacket sewing. For example, the collar is a very simple one-piece variant with no collar stand. These kind of collars can feel a bit cheat-y to me but, I’m not going to lie, I kind of love sewing them!

Pocket fun!

The most fun thing about the Ilford Jacket is playing with its patch pockets.

We all know that pockets are political, so it feels like an expression of feminism to have about a million pocket options available to match to my personal specifications!

Enough pockets to be freed from the yoke of the hand bag!!

The Ilford Jacket comes with a large array of different pocket options with the idea that you mix and match according to your needs.

Deep pockets. Rectangular pockets. Angles Pockets. Hand-warmer pockets. Pockets with flaps of various shapes.

There’s even a damn pen pocket which is just cute as a button!!

I wasn’t sure which pockets I wanted so I decided to get a little bit crazy and try out a bunch of them.

This is my version of lockdown living large.

And, truth is, I love this final mis-match. I feel like it works quite well in a solid fabric like this.

And I feel completely confident in declaring that this garment is one of a kind!

The one little thing that might have been useful would be if the Ilford Jacket sewing pattern pieces had marked suggested pocket placements. I understand that it didn’t because the entire idea is one of full personal customisation. However, it took me a while to find the right “line” for my top and bottom rows of pockets. It would have been faster to have been able to start with a suggestion and adjust from there.

But that’s inconsequential compared to how happy I am with this Ilford Jacket.

I feel that this Ilford Jacket in denim is eminently wearable and I’m looking forward to returning to the pattern.

It’s nice sometimes when a sewing pattern that wasn’t even on your sewing radar, turns out to be such an easy, satisfying, sewing win!

If you want to see more of my sewing adventures, you can find me on Instagram here.