So, I was reviewing my wardrobe yesterday in an attempt to see if anything was missing before school started again. I decided that I'd like a fitted military style jacket. I looked in a lot of places, but I've been unable to find what I want. So, since I have a really paticular design I want anyway, and I'm not half bad at sewing....I want to make it myself.

Because I've never done this before, though, I figured I'd come to you wonderfully creative people here to help me out. (Where is a good place to buy cheapish, quality fabric? Where could I get the patches? Any sewing tips?)

So I want it to be Olive drab green, be fitted around the middle, and with a sort of blazer style. I also want it to have military-looking patches on the arms and whatnot, and I have no idea where to get them. Any help?

Heh, I am going to an Army Surplus shop in a little town near where my family live, on Thursday, in order to buy some army stuff for a party I'm going to on Saturday. If only you lived in the UK!*

Umm.. I guess my advice wouldn't be very useful because I have no clue about haberdashery in Texas BUT have you tried E-bay? It's pretty good for odd bits of fabric and patterns. What kind of fabric do you want? What "era" do you want your jacket from? What country patches do you want? (you could either get these from e-bay or here)

Good luck on making it!
*If you do want a bought one, PM me with your dimensions and maximum amount you'd be willing to spend on one, and I'll ship it over

Ooh, thanks for that website, those are perfect. I would just get one from a military supply shop but like I said I'd want it fitted and I'm waaaay tiny....I just doubt there'd be anything the right size. And I like sewing anyway.

It's a pretty modern looking pattern, and the fabric I want to make it out of is kinda hard to describe - kinda like denim...(a bit thinner than it, though) but...ribbed? I really wish I knew the name for it. A trip to the fabric store is in order. (although I'll check e-bay first, I hadn't thought of that)

Oh to be too skinny for 'normal' military jackets You could always alter one. Eeeenyways:
do you mean corduroy? It's a really nice fabric to make things from as it looks and feels nice- except that you have to lay out the pattern a certain way because of the weave (i.e the direction the lines go). Also, it frays like a b**ch and makes lots of mess (French seams are your friends, but it can sometimes be a bit bulky, depending on the size of the corduroy- needlecord being very fine, jumbocord being fat etc). It IS useful, however, that you have lines in the fabric so you can see if you're sewing/ cutting straight

I could alter one...I'm just stubborn.

It's not cordroy (although I do love it...it sounds like too much of a pain to sew on!) it's...actually...I've stolen a friends jacket made out of it...one second.

It's some sort of odd, heavish cotton weave, I've decided. I know...i'm horrible at explaining. My mom called it duct? Anyway, it would have the lines on it too....I just hope it wouldn't be as..messy..to work with.

*still remembers sewing faux fur on a stuffed animal years ago....fur....everywhere*

I think I know what you mean.. But I can't think I have ever called it anything :/

haha, Oh yes. The perils of working with fake fur. My mum makes costumes for amateur dramatics groups and one year they did Macbeth. Cue lots of leather jerkins and fur lined collars. Our hoover ended up looking as though it had swallowed a cat...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabardine

Cotton Gabardine or Cotton Twill

Durable, cheap, pretty

Duck is something a bit different, though still very strong:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton_duck

Garbidine would be what I was looking for! Thanks kitty. "cheap" was the word I was looking for there, I was afriaid it was going to be something ridiculous like $20 a yard!

Alright then. I've got my fabric (or at least I know what it's called now), I know where to get the patches...everything else should be at the craft store...

Operation jacket is a go.

To be honest if you want to make a tailored jacket (ie. made properly with all the correct stiffening etc) it's really not that easy. Admittedlly it is about my favorite part of fashion and making.
So my surrgestion is to perhaps look into altering another jacket as surgested. But anyway Good Luck and if you need any pointers feel free to ask and I'll see if I can help. I think I probably have a interfaceing plan I can send you to give you an idea of what needs to go where if your interested.

That'd be great.

Well I won't be making it all on my own, I'll be getting quite a bit of help from my mom, who's really great at everything involved with sewing. So I'm hoping it won't be that hard. What exactly about it is difficult?

Body shape. Made to measure skirts are dead easy because there only 2 major curves to worry about (one either side ) the rest is shaping and tweaking. Jacket and top in general you have a few more curves and holes to take into consideration and fit to, boobs, waist, hips and armholes etc. Just generally makes it all a bit more confusing. Amittedly due to doing a fashion course I developed a hatred fr the tissue patterns and keep trying to make them from block patterns and driving myself insane when it does quite come to the picture in my head. But that's me.
I finally managed to get a skirt to look like the picture in my head this year, that how bad I am, because trust me skirts really are seriously easy even from a block pattern.
I'll hunt down the interfacing spec but I'm away this weekend so may be a few more days.

I actually made an evening jacket for Prom.
I got alot of good compliments on it!
I'm not saying that it was the best made thing around, I didn't use any interfacing in it and the fabric I used wasn't that spectacular.... but It still looked pretty good!

I would really love to remake the jacket though, I want it to fit a bit tighter, have smaller shoulders (me and my mom made it and she insisted the shoulders should be that big, but she's the one that lived through the '80s) and make it with all the proper interfacings