Pattern Review: Simplicity 1688 Cynthia Rowley Jacket

So here is the final product of my MAGAM April post. It's been a while since I have sewn with a more recently released pattern, instead of sewing from my pattern stash that are all Out Of Print years ago. It was a $1.5 Simplicity sale that I couldn't resist. The little crop jacket caught my eye in this pattern. I found some remnant of this red heavy linen in my stash. I made a not-so-successful dress from this fabric before. I just had enough of this fabric for a short sleeve jacket.

I cut a size 14 (I'm usually either 12 or 14 for Simplicity patterns). I first pattern fit myself and the jacket was short, even for a short waisted person like me. It was just above my short waist. So I added 5cm to the lower band, cut a short cap sleeve, and drafted front and neck facings since I didn't want to add a lining for a breezy summer linen jacket.

The jacket went together fairly quickly. I didn't look at the instructions since the pattern pieces spoke for themselves. The fabric was a bit stiff and there seems to be a bit more ease at the sleeve cap so I added a little inverted pleat at the top (a total improvisation because of my lack of skills). And this is how it turned out:

You can see that the back is quite loose fitting, which is fine with me. Of course being the oddball who can't follow rules, I added more features to this jacket - inseam pockets:

And here is the little 'dimple' (inverted box pleat) I added to the top of the sleeve cap:

I can see this jacket  being very useful for layering over sleeveless dresses, tank tops for this spring/summer. It actually looks nice enough for the office too. Here is how it looks with jeans:

I'm happy that this little jacket turned out to be a wearable muslin. And I was able to use the stiff red linen remnant too. I think I may just tweak this pattern a bit to reduce the boxiness at the back. I am itching to sew this pattern with other fabrics in my stash too!