I may be getting ahead of myself, but with a few hints of autumn mornings on the horizon lately, I’m diving into planning my fall wardrobe. There’s probably one thing that’s missing in most of our closets: a cape. We love a good cape here in the Sewciety studio and we’re obsessed with our new Yvette Cape free sewing pattern! The drape of this Thom Browne boucle gives the cape gorgeous movement that really lets her shine. Whether wearing to work, strolling through the park, or investigating the latest neighborhood mystery, Sherlock-style, our Yvette Cape is the early fall addition that we all need!
Purchase Materials Used Below:
- 3.5 yards of Thom Browne Cream, Black and Red Plaid Blended Wool Boucle Coating
- 3.5 yards of Margot White Polyester Lining
- 1 yard of Heathered Black Warp Knitting Fusible Interfacing
- 4 pcs of Italian Shiny Black 4-Hole Plastic Button – 36L/23mm
- 1 spool of 20 White 100m Gutermann Sew All Thread
- MDF326 – The Yvette Cape Coat Free Sewing Pattern (free download below!)
Alternative Recommended Fabrics:
The seam allowance is ½” unless otherwise stated.
How to sew the outer layer:
1. Sew the front pieces to the back by sewing at the shoulders, right sides together.
2. Ease stitch the shoulder curve of the sleeve drapes.
3. Right sides together, pin the sleeve drape to the front and back pieces, lining up the notches. Ease the curve of the sleeve drape’s shoulder into the front & back shoulder pieces. Sew, taking care to leave the arm openings free. Repeat on the other side.
How to sew the collar:
The seam allowance for this section is ⅜”.
1. Attach interfacing to the collar & collar stand pieces, if needed.
2. Pin the two collar pieces right sides together and sew the ends and straight edge. Leave the curved side free. Clip the corners and trim the seams to reduce bulk. Turn right side out, then press.
3. Topstitch the three edges.
4. Align notches and pin the collar stands to each side of the collar, right sides together. Sew along the bottom edge.
5. Pinning the collar ends out of the way, sew up the ends of the collar edge.
6. Topstich the collar stand, as pictured above.
How to sew the lining:
1. Right sides together, pin and sew the front facing to the front lining. Topstitch the front facing. Repeat.
2. At the shoulders, sew the back lining to the front pieces, right sides together.
3. Ease stitch the shoulder curve of the sleeve drape linings.
4. Ease, pin, and sew the sleeve drapes to the front & back lining, leaving the arm holes free.
How to attach the lining & collar:
1. Matching notches, pin the lining to the outer, right sides together. Sew both front ends.
2. Sew the bottom edge with a 1” seam allowance. Grade the seam. Then press towards the lining.
3. Understitch the lining on the bottom.
4. Put the collar in between the two layers. Align the notches and edges, and pin the collar stand to the neckline, from end to end. The heart pins in the picture above show where the collar is pinned.
5. Grade the seam allowances and clip the corners to reduce bulk. Using any of the holes in the lining, pull the coat right side out.
6. Press the coat and topstitch the edge of the lapel, all the way down to the bottom.
How to finish the cape:
1. At the arm hole openings, fold under, press, and pin the outer and lining together. Topstitch.
2. Sew your two buttonholes onto the wearer’s left side.
3. Attach 4 buttons onto the wearer’s right side.
25 comments
I love this cape pattern. Can’t wait to try it?
looks like a great model, I can’t wait to try it!
Hello, such a beautiful cape jacket. i have a question. Do you sew up the outer part of the jacket first and attach the cape sleeve after? Does the cape sleeve suppose to be lined first? Before attaching it the the jacket. Also does the cape sleeve suppose to be attached to the whole back of the jacket or is it suppose to be free? Like the way it looks in the illustration. Thank you.
Hi Ana, yes, sew the front pieces to the backs by sewing along the shoulder seam. Then attach the cape sleeve. Sew the outer layer first, then repeat with the lining. The cape sleeve is sewn all the way down the back as it appears in the illustration! Happy sewing 🙂
This pattern reminds me a lot of “cape coats” or like an old vogue pattern that I’ve always wanted to make. Cant wait to see any redux that might get made and see what other sewists will make with this!
Looks like the top of the beautiful white suit Charlotte wore in season 3 of WestWorld. (I’ve been catching up). Was wondering how to create it and this pattern came just in time!
Wasn’t that a gorgeous corporate cape/jacket?
This is a gorgeous cape. I’m looking forward to making it, yet I have a terrible wool/any hair based fabric allergy. What would you suggest for a suitable replacement fabric? Fleece first came to mind, but I’m not sure if it has the proper drape.. Though TBH, I have a fab cotton flannel in red with a scrolling, twisting pattern made of The Who song names I planned to use for pjs.
Hi Tonia! I would suggest polyester or acrylic wool substitutes. Cotton flannel would work as well, if it is of a heavier weight. 😀
I am confused. How and when are the front and back side seams sewn?
Hello there!
Thanks for visiting the Mood Sewciety Blog! We’re proud to have released over 350 free sewing patterns, and we hope you’re enjoying them.
Behind the scenes we’re a dedicated team of three, and we want to be able to offer top notch support. We have exciting plans for our patterns on the horizon, and as we continue to grow, we’ve decided to focus our sewist support on patterns from the last 2 years. If this pattern hasn’t been recently reduxed or updated, we won’t be able to respond to technical questions on these older posts.
If you come across any pattern errors, rest assured our team is on it – just let us know!
Don’t miss out on our Mood Sewciety Facebook Group – a fantastic space for fellow sewists to connect, share wins, and tackle challenges together.
Thank you for your understanding and happy sewing!
Best regards,
The Mood Sewciety Blog Team
Hi! I am looking forward to making this cape. I am a size 10, which should be the 7th line from the inside on the pattern. However, while I was figuring out which lines to cut, I noticed that the line placement for size 10 on the pattern does not match the Size Line Key. It seems that the dash sequence for size 8 has been printed twice.. Should I just use the 7th line in to make a size 10? Thank you,
– Kira
Hello there!
Thanks for visiting the Mood Sewciety Blog! We’re proud to have released over 350 free sewing patterns, and we hope you’re enjoying them.
Behind the scenes we’re a dedicated team of three, and we want to be able to offer top notch support. We have exciting plans for our patterns on the horizon, and as we continue to grow, we’ve decided to focus our sewist support on patterns from the last 2 years. If this pattern hasn’t been recently reduxed or updated, we won’t be able to respond to technical questions on these older posts.
If you come across any pattern errors, rest assured our team is on it – just let us know!
Don’t miss out on our Mood Sewciety Facebook Group – a fantastic space for fellow sewists to connect, share wins, and tackle challenges together.
Thank you for your understanding and happy sewing!
Best regards,
The Mood Sewciety Blog Team
Hey looks great. Would I be able to make this from a satin for a shiny almost tuxedo look?
Hello Grace! Yes, that sounds absolutely gorgeous. Let us know how it turns out!
I finished this cape over the weekend. I am fairly new to sewing and self taught so I had to look up a lot of the terms. I learned so much when sewing this project and it is, by far, the best thing I have made so far. I used a cotton flannel on the outside and a sherpa lining for the inside. The sherpa lining peeks out a little because it is so bulky but it looks so cute. I also made the collar where the outside layer matched the flannel and the inside matched the sherpa lining so it just looks like an extension of the coat. I did have some questions that I had after I finished the pattern that maybe someone could answer.
1. what is the purpose of the collar stand?
2. the front panel lining instructions confused me. I know that you need interfacing to help strengthen the buttonholes and buttons but why didn’t the lining go all the way across? Since this didn’t make sense to me I just cut out the lining exactly the same size as the outer layer.
Thank you to whoever answers the question(s)! I wish I could post a picture of my cape to share with you all.
Hello there!
Thanks for visiting the Mood Sewciety Blog! We’re proud to have released over 350 free sewing patterns, and we hope you’re enjoying them.
Behind the scenes we’re a dedicated team of three, and we want to be able to offer top notch support. We have exciting plans for our patterns on the horizon, and as we continue to grow, we’ve decided to focus our sewist support on patterns from the last 2 years. If this pattern hasn’t been recently reduxed or updated, we won’t be able to respond to technical questions on these older posts.
If you come across any pattern errors, rest assured our team is on it – just let us know!
Don’t miss out on our Mood Sewciety Facebook Group – a fantastic space for fellow sewists to connect, share wins, and tackle challenges together.
Thank you for your understanding and happy sewing!
Best regards,
The Mood Sewciety Blog Team
Hello, I am excited to sew this cape jacket! I just wanted to express a concern. For the buttonhole how do mark them on the pattern so that it helps when applying marks to the fabric?
Hello! I usually use dressmaking pins to first mark the buttonholes. Lay the pattern over the fabric, and stick pins in the top and bottom of the buttonhole, straight through, only piercing the paper once. Pull the pin heads through the pattern paper (since the heads are small, it shouldn’t take too much effort), and there’s the length and placement of the buttonhole! There are a number of marking tools you can use, depending on the fabric you’re using. We carry Fabric Pens and Fabric Pencils. Good luck!
Thank you for yours prompt reply and help! I also have a followup question. Was there a buttonhole guide on the pattern or are we (the sewers) supposed to make it ourselves?
Hi Arielle! The placement of the buttonholes are to be determined by the sewists!
Hi! I noticed the pattern says for the back piece, G, to only cut one of the fabric, but to cut 1 lining on fold. Is this a misprint? I’m trying to wrap my head around how to attach only half a piece of fabric then a whole piece of lining to each other lol.
Hi Courtney, that applies to both the fabric and lining! If it’s at the bottom like that, it usually applies to everything above. 🙂
Terrible instructions.
Hi J! If you need more instructions, I’m sure there are some companies that provide paid patterns in a similar style that could suit your needs! Good luck 🙂