Cold Weather in SoCal....

At the beginning of the past week, the temperatures plunged....well, plunged as far as they go in Southern California.  When I left for work at 5:30 in the morning, the temperature was 45 degrees.  People were freaking out....wearing scarves, gloves, etc.  The Easterner in me knows that this was hardly cold....

My daughter doesn't have a winter coat, because "winter" is so fleeting around here.  I decided to try a pattern from Figgy's that I had always liked, but never tried - the Nituna jacket.

The pattern gives two options - a single layer such as wool coating or fleece, or a lined version.  I opted for the lined version and decided to use a blue corduroy and some quilting cotton designed by Liesl Gibson from her Ladies Stitching Club line.  The minute I saw this fabric, I knew that I was going to use some and coordinate with the beautiful shade of blue in the fabric.

I started this jacket at the beginning of the week, working on a teeny bit every night after work.  First tracing the pattern, then cutting/marking, and finally by Friday was able to sew it together.

Of course, by that time, the temperature was about 75 degrees during the day.....

I really like the finished jacket.  I made it in a size 2/3 with the length of a 4/5.  Typically, my daughter, a tall skinny 3 year old, wears between a 4 and a 5 in ready to wear, and I typically sew a size 3 with 4 length in patterns.  The sizing on this is generous to say the least.....

This is the first time I'd used one of Figgy's patterns.  It went together very well.  If I were to make this again, I think I'd actually use the smallest size (18 month) and length somewhere between the 2/3 and 4/5 for the sleeves.  I believe that perhaps it's sized so generously to accommodate most people's winter clothing underneath like heavy sweaters, but we don't typically have need for those here.

Corduroy plus quilting cotton make a great weight for our purposes.  Paired with a turtleneck jersey, I'm sure that this jacket will be quite warm enough for my kid to play in the sandbox at school on our coldest "winter" day.