Hoth Leia Vest Pattern

I think my favorite thing about Hoth Leia so far is making lots of faces at the camera - channeling Leia's reactions to Han! Maybe some day I'll make a Hoth or ESB version of Han for my husband so I can make faces at him on camera while wearing this. . . although if you've seen any pictures of us together in Han and Leia you'll know he can't keep a straight face. But I love his smile, so I can't really complain!

I'm pleased to be able to share my Hoth Leia vest pattern with you! Here it is: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lxzBvlb6WSqH4pYCxYl1Zs0_GTPixShu/view?usp=sharing

It was made to fit - Chest 37/38", Waist 30", Hips 39". Those measurements don't include the lightly insulated snowsuit. I ended up using VERY narrow seam allowances on the side seams and front seams, as I wasn't happy with how narrow the front opening was at first.



I took some progress photos as I worked. Let me know if you have questions!



The line of piping in the back. On the pattern, I generally remembered to mark where piping would be set into the seam. Here's a good tutorial on making piping - https://blog.colettehq.com/tutorials/tutorial-how-to-make-piping 

Here's the collar before I stuffed it.

 I used a water soluble marking pen (affiliate link) to mark the location of the ID badge holder.

More piping!

 I sewed the id badge holder by sewing on the middle blue rectangle. I cut the seam allowance on the innermost blue rectangle, clipped the inner corners, and turned it inside out.

I used A LOT of pins as I turned the outer seam allowance under.  I ironed it (make sure you don't iron the plastic pins!)

Fun fact - the quilting pattern is different on the left and right sides. I included both sides in my pattern.

Would you like functional pockets? WHO DOESN'T?????? You can use the pocket flap placement line as the top of an extra piece. 

Assembling the outer layer.

Stuffed the collar!

Pinning the collar to the outer layer. This will get sandwiched between the outer layer and lining.

 Lining! Made of the same fabric as the outer layer. I can't link to the fabric I used, as I actually used an old bed sheet I got from a thrift store! Cheap and eco friendly!

On the pattern you'll see there's a section on the collar where I have the original cutting line marked, as well as my actual cutting line. I wanted the collar to end a bit before the front corner, so I trimmed off the part that extends above the lined section.

And now, the magic that is sewing a lined vest!

I hand finished the hole I'd left open to turn it right side out.

And that's it!







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How I Digitize Sewing Patterns to Share

My current method for digitizing hand-drawn patterns is a lot more streamlined than it was at first. Digitizing my Ceremonial Leia pattern involved tracing the pattern, cutting up the copy, mounting each piece on a template, and scanning each of those pieces. It took a while! This method is much faster!

You need to use an app that lets you scan documents and essentially identify where the corners are so the app can “square” the document. I have a sheet of white corrugated plastic that I used for some other project that now measures 51" x 36".

I lay the pattern pieces out and use the Notes app and “Scan Document” feature on my iPhone. I always check the corner location and try to get it as close as possible to the corners of the corrugated plastic. Then, I open up my iCloud on my laptop and download those images.

Then I use a program called Inkscape. It's the free version of Adobe Illustrator. I import the scanned images into a copy of this file: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PH9ptj32pK_OGu6zorvvZJBy5uzCEW6c/view?usp=sharing  and enlarge them to 51 in by 36 in. The proportion isn't always perfect but it's close enough. If you’re going to use this template, you should read up on the final pieces of software I use, the one from TitchyThreads, below. There are reasons why most of the elements are in the template, and you’ll need to know what you can safely delete, and what you can’t.

In theory, I could draw new lines in Inkscape over all the pattern lines from the scan, and it would be really clean and pretty. But as long as the lines on your hand drawn pattern are dark enough it works. People may use a bit more ink to print it, but it's the fastest and easiest way to share.

For the last step I use a program from TitchyThreads which will export the pattern layer into the printable PDF at the right scale. The regular version is $70, and I have the pro version. https://www.titchythreads.com/tools/inkscape_pdf_generator

Hoth Leia hair tutorial (video)

I recorded a video showing, in real time*, how I do my hair for Hoth Leia. Here's how I made the Kanekelon hair extensions I used: http://www.jeneyre.com/2019/02/adding-anchors-to-kanekalon-braiding.html 

*I'm saying "in real time" because I didn't edit it... so if you really want to know the process you get to experience all 36 minutes of it!

Adding anchors to Kanekalon Braiding Hair

You can find the video of how I use these to create Hoth Leia hair here: http://www.jeneyre.com/2019/02/hoth-leia-hair-tutorial-video.html