Last but certainly not least in our STUDIO collection deep dive: the Moss Jacket! This one may be my personal favourite (but it is so hard to choose)! Moss is the perfect layering piece to have on hand for any occasion. I love wearing Moss in my studio (duh), but I’ve also worn it out to dinner, walking my dog, travelling—you get the idea. This is the kind of pattern that transforms depending on what fabric you sew it up in and it is SO much fun to play around with this design.
Overview
The Moss Jacket is the ultimate easy layering piece for your wardrobe. View A features an external front band facing and view B features a wide, folded collar. View A hangs open in the front and is ideal for casual or dressy layering. View B has long sleeves and can be worn as lightweight outerwear. Choose from two lengths for both the jacket and sleeves, offering many possible combinations of views. All views have front pockets and a back yoke detail. Moss can be made in many different fabrics to achieve a variety of looks!
Fit
Moss is a loose-fitting garment but it is not oversized. It is intended to look relaxed and chic without looking frumpy or messy. The view A front band hangs straight down from the shoulder, meaning that Moss hangs open in the front to show off your beautiful outfit. View B features a wide band collar that folds over on itself and creates more coverage in the front of the jacket. We love wearing the longer sleeves rolled up for a modern look.
Construction
At first glance, Moss looks very simple. This is a boxy shaped design but it is deceiving. We love a good, fun construction detail so we’ve included a few in this pattern! Moss features a back yoke that is sewn using the burrito method. This is a fun opportunity to play with print direction or colorblocking.
The view A front band is actually an external front facing, and it fully encloses the front seam as well as one side of the front patch pockets. The View B pocket is also sewn into the front seam. We provide multiple construction options for attaching the view B collar so you can sew it with no exposed seams if desired.
You can sew Moss on your home sewing machine and we provide four different seam finishing options in the pattern instructions. Moss is a true joy to sew and it is fast, approachable, and fun!
Views
The Moss Jacket includes two distinct views. View A is a short sleeved, longer layering piece. View B is a long sleeved, shorter jacket with a wide band collar. Both views include pockets and a back yoke detail. One of the great things about Moss is the ability to mix-and-match elements from the two views to create other looks! Here are the combinations you can create using Moss:
Fabrics
Moss works best in light to medium weight woven fabrics with no stretch. Linen, cotton, denim, wool, hemp, rayon/viscose (challis, twill, crepe, poplin), and Tencel twill will work well. We recommend drapier/flowy fabrics for view A and more structured fabrics for view B.
Can you sew Moss in a stable knit? Yes, I think so! A stable knit like ponte or a sweater knit would likely work for Moss. I can’t wait to experiment with this myself!
Final Thoughts
I can’t overstate how much I am loving my Moss Jackets! I put on jeans and a t-shirt and it’s a regular day, but with a Moss jacket in the mix—BAM! Special day. I keep seeing all my medium-weight wovens as potential View B Moss Jackets and all my lightweight rayons as View A Moss Jackets. Send help! I hope you enjoy Moss as much as I do 🙂
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13 Comments on “Spotlight On: The Moss Jacket”
Hi Helen, congratulations on the “collection” patterns releases! Questions: Do you have hints on fabric requirements for View B short sleeves? I’m looking for a short jacket pattern using a rayon / wool boucle remnant. I’ll potentially line it too, but that looks quite doable and easy.Thanks! Heather
Hi Heather!
Thanks! This really depends on the size and width of your fabric. I suggest prepping your pieces and laying them out to get the most accurate fabric requirements 🙂
Hi Helen, love the new studio collection! Can you please share where you purchased the colourful checked fabric for the Moss jacket from? Thank you so much!
Hi Yvonne! This fabric is from Blackbird Fabrics – it is called rainbow prism check. https://www.blackbirdfabrics.com/collections/group-prism-yarn-dyed-check-linen/products/prism-check-yarn-dyed-linen-rainbow
Hi Helen – such a versatile Jacket – my head is spinning with ideas! Slightly tangential question. I would love to know more about the mustardy colored dress that you are wearing underneath the longer Moss? Is it a hack of another Helen’s Closet pattern? I LOVE the combo of the 2 together! Thanks 🙂
Hi Lynn,
This is our new FREE Orchard top and dress!
Hi, how many yards of fabric do I need for view B as a Long jacket?
I’m also planning on making this jacket with an old quilt top that I plan to quilt lightly so it’s not too dense. Do you have any advice/
Hi Tanya,
I would add a 1/2 meter to the fabric requirements just to be safe. I think this pattern would work well as a quilted garment!
Hi Helen
I’ve recently purchased the Moss Jacket pattern and planning to sew one for my mum for her birthday in Sep. I think it’s a lovely easy put-on coverup…thank you.
Hi Helen, I’m excited to try this pattern. I bought some pinwale corduroy to make View B. It’s a 98% cotton with 2% spandex. I’m wondering if you would recommend lining the jacket for corduroy, and if so, do you have any hints on construction and/or lining fabric?
Hi Loretta,
Thanks for sewing Moss! I do not think you need to line corduroy jackets unless you really want to. As for construction, you will want to draft a lining. Here is an article that can help: https://www.seamwork.com/articles/a-lesson-in-lining. You want the sleeve and body of the lining to be a bit longer than necessary so there is ease and it doesn’t bunch the jacket up.
I love this pattern. I made view B with the collar. I used the same black and white print that you did. Loved that too. The problem that I have is that the fabric is thick and the collar seems to fall back at the neck and pulls the shoulder seams too far back. Then of course the front hangs much higher than the back. Is there a fix for this that won’t require me to recut much. I will rework it, because I like it so much, but would rather not. Thank you for any help.
Hi Jane! It sounds like you need more room in the upper back to make space for the collar. I would suggest experimenting with scooping out the back neck more on the back yoke piece, adding some length to the collar to match, and seeing if that helps. A muslin would be a good idea here to check the fit.