Tag Archives: Jarrah Sweater

The Jarrah Sweater Again

I can’t believe how many times I’ve sewn the Jarrah Sweater from Megan Nielsen Patterns. I first came across this in 2020 when I wanted to try out my new (second-hand) overlocker and I found this. It’s a great beginner pattern especially with my limited experience with knit fabrics and overlocking. The first time I made the pattern, I used a Jacquard Knit Fabric. It was a quick sew and it’s a nice thick sweater, great for really cold days and quite oversized so it slips easily over t-shirts.

Last year, I made another version, but I experimented with a drapier, lighter weight jersey fabric and added a thicker ribbed waistband and a brushed cotton knit version. Both were worn on repeat, but I really loved the lighter weight sweater. It was easy to throw on as a top. Perth is quite Mediterranean in climate which means our winters are cold in the night and mornings but can get quite sunny and warmer in the daytime. It’s great to have a top that is versatile enough to cope.

Jarrah Sweaters from last year

So, since I got so much wear out of my lovely magpie jarrah sweater, I decided to make another one from this beautiful Vanessa Holliday designed jersey fabric from Spotlight Stores. I was thrilled to also find this thin pink ribbing to match. I really love how soft and luxurious the fabric feels.

View A was used to make my top and this time, I did not widen the waistband. In fact, I didn’t make any alterations. I made the size 12 which was comfortable for my frame of 37-inch bust and 33-inch waist. There have been recommendations to size down if you’re unsure of the fit, but I personally love an oversized sweater. There’s been a real appreciation for loungewear since the pandemic. I think it comes from appreciating home and the comforts it provides us. We now love the time spent together, no longer needing to seek excitement and entertainment at every turn. Time together is enough.

Sewing a pattern multiple times also allows me to reflect on technique and helps my progress in sewing. Sewing isn’t just a hobby about making the same thing over and over. There’s a skill set that must be practised and different techniques to master. I was reminded of this when attaching my collar! In my first attempt, I had not used the marking from the pattern (I was winging it!) and as I was attaching the collar, I could see that I had not stretched the ribbing enough at the beginning and was going to end up with some puckering from over stretching the second half, so I stopped and I unpicked all the overlocked stitching. Yes! It is possible but not something one wishes to do too often.

Oh dear! Start again.

The better way to attach the collar is to mark the centre front, centre back, right shoulder and left shoulder in quarters once you have the short ends joined. It will then be easy to match this to the body of the garment. Also, I find it better to have my ribbing under the jersey fabric to make sure that I only stretch the ribbing and not the jersey fabric. 

Ready for some lounging weather! My 2022 Jarrah Sweater

Now that I’ve had my “warm-up” knitted fabric sewing, I’m keen to tackle a few patterns that have been on the back burner. I’ve been meaning to sew up the Pattern Scout Cozi Jacket and True Bias Marlo Sweater. Just need to track down the right fabric!

Thanks for reading and happy sewing!

X Em

The Jarrah Sweater

The Jarrah is a pattern by a beloved local Perth Designer Megan Nielsen and comes with so many options due to the fact that it’s a modular pattern. This allows you to mix and match the different bodice options with different neck band and sleeve options. This is such a feature with Megan Nielsen’s patterns as she offers many variations making her patterns such good value. I’ve now sewn the Jarrah pattern a few times producing a different look each time. The Jarrah is such a comfortable loose-fitting sweater. I also love how the look of the Jarrah changes depending on the fabric choice so I decided to explore this by making two versions. In the first version, using a fleece lined knit and a rayon spandex with the second. 

Both were sewn up in the Size 12 without any adjustments as these were the closest to my measurements. There is a lot of ease in the pattern so you could look at the finished measurements and size down for a narrower fit but I personally liked the generous give in the fit as it feels so comfortable and great for lounging in. For both versions, I had 1.5 meters of fabric which turned out very well. I did try to see if I could use less but had to take into account the direction of the stretch in the first version and the pattern placement in the second version. With the second version, I also needed some black ribbing. You don’t need much, about half a meter should be plenty.

The choice of the fleece lined knit was just right for a sweatshirt style sweater. The fleece I chose is smooth on the outer side and has a loose nap on the underside which is just so soft and plush. It will be so warm and soft to wear against the skin. The peach is a delicious pop of colour that I just couldn’t resist! Testing the stretch of the fleece, it has a tight stretch one way and is quite a stable knit. I made View B with the high-low hemline. It has an interesting curve along the hemline and is the longest option so very good to style with jeans or even activewear. 

Fleece fabric for sweatshirt style Jarrah

The peach is a beautiful colour but it was difficult to find any ribbing to go with the colour so I had to make my own neckband. I did this by cutting a longer than needed strip of the same fabric along the stretch of the fabric. You could also cut along the bias to make it stretchier, however, I felt that it had enough stretch without doing that. I then measured the band against the neckline and subtracted about 20% in the neckband so it could give some tension to the neckline and sit flush when worn. 

To finish the cuffs and hem, I used a twin needle. The cuffs were easy to sew up but it was a bit trickier with the curved hemline. I found it hard to pin the thick fabric especially going around curves so I used some quilter’s tape. Also, a word of warning when you first start sewing with twin needles, go slowly! I was chugging along full speed and didn’t notice the thread getting tangled and broke the needle. Luckily the sharp part was still attached to the thread. It really made me consider getting some safety goggles for my sewing.

View B with high low hem. Using twin needle for finishing.

The second sweater I made was with the Jocelyn Proust Magpie Printed Rayon Spandex Fabric. This is currently exclusive to Spotlight Stores. Jocelyn Proust designs are so recognizable for the Australiana flora and fauna featured in her designs. I love the unique call of the Magpie bird so I fell in love with this design straight away. 

The rayon spandex knit is a very soft drapey fabric and has amazing stretch recovery. It has quite a luxurious feel and although I’m making it for my winter wardrobe, I think this fabric is also quite good for summer. The look I wanted was a long-sleeved cropped blouse sweater so I used View A. Cropped sweaters were all the rage in the 80s so I thought it would be fun to recreate that look. I used black ribbing for the neckline and cuffs and to recreate the cropped look without exposing my belly button. I doubled the height of the hem cuff and shortened the width so it would cinch in the fabric at the waist. 

Jocelyn Proust Design Rayon Spandex

This time, everything was sewn up using only the overlocker. It was incredibly fast doing it this way. I worried about the strength of the seams but after testing a bit of off-cut fabric I felt that the stitches held very well. However, I’m very inexperienced with knit fabric so please don’t take my word for it. Personally, I felt that for the speed and convenience, I was happy to take the risk of sewing up with the overlocker.

The Jarrah is such a versatile pattern and it was fun playing around with all the options. I made my first Jarrah a year ago and I know it will be one of my “tried and true” patterns. It has also been an interesting exercise coming back to a pattern that I made at the start of my sewing journey. I feel that I’ve made huge progress and the finishes, although not perfect, are getting so much better.

Thanks for reading and happy sewing!

X Em