I Splurged for the New Men's Military Jacket Pattern Book

I really enjoy sewing men's outerwear.

I own some pretty good commercial patterns -- they're out there if you're willing to dig: parkas, ski jackets, windbreakers, anoraks, overcoats, and more. But sadly, most commercial men's sewing patterns lack advanced details. I suspect the assumption is that too many details would overwhelm the home sewer, I don't know.

That's why today I picked up a copy of Ryuichiro Shimazaki's latest Japanese pattern book, which includes patterns for nine different military jackets. A taste:

When it comes to meticulous presentation, the Japanese are unsurpassed. And they have a tremendous appreciation for traditional 20th Century American clothing -- workwear in particular. So what if they call a parka a "parker." I forgive them.

These patterns don't skimp on details.

Naturally, the instructions are all in Japanese, but the diagrams in the book are very detailed and the techniques self-explanatory.

I used Shimazaki's men's coat book to make the peacoat I talked about in yesterday's post. (I actually made two versions.) The patterns have to be traced, but I find that's no longer such a big deal.

I'm not sure which pattern I'll start on. Many appeal to me.

Ryuichiro Shimazaki military jackets pattern book can also be purchased on Etsy here for about the same price (with shipping) I paid at Kinokinuya.

I'm looking forward to immersing myself in these coat patterns.

Have a great day, everybody!