My First Jacket Conversion

[cdarwin]

OK, it was actually done by a very good friend of mine who knows how to sew. I picked up the jacket at a local thrift store for 2.50USD. It's not a very nice jacket, but she did a great job with the conversion and it serves me well at pubs. Here is the evidence.

Before:


After:

[jgcunningham]

Good on your friend. It looks very nice. I still have one in my closet waiting on me to find the time to convert it. I have to lower the hem on the son's BW kilt first.

[Mickey]

Nice work. I also have one that I keep meaning to get around to cutting down. Hope it comes out as nice as yours.

[auld argonian]

The problem that I run into is that I always find jackets that are so nice that i don't want to start cutting them....hence, I now have half a dozen tweed jackets (most of which are nice 60's-ish vintage) in the closet that I'm just wearing as regular old Saxon jackets...not that there's anything wrong with that...

Personally, I'm throwing in the towel on doing a conversion and just starting a sludge fund to buy a nice grey tweed and vest. My admiration for those of you who have the skill and the courage to re-do a nice tweed jacket, though.

Best

AA

[cdarwin]

The problem that I run into is that I always find jackets that are so nice that i don't want to start cutting them....

This is why I started with this really inexpensive (2.50USD!!!!) one that I had no emotional investment in. Worst case, I'm out $2.50. Best case, my friend gets experience with the mod and I get a cheap jacket that I can pull off with the kilt until something better comes along. Thrift stores are your friend.

[auld argonian]

No...most of these are the $5-$10 jackets but they're still so nice...some look like they've never been worn and I can tell by the labels that they're mid-60's to early 70's vintage and very well made compared to the stuff we see these days. The price isn't so much of a consideration...these are the kind of things that you'd take on the freakin' Antiques Roadshow and they'd ask, "what did you pay?....well, you got quite a bargain there...". Just me, I suppose....just can't bring myself to start cutting something that's so quintessentially what it is...

Best

AA

[Standard]

The problem that I run into is that I always find jackets that are so nice that i don't want to start cutting them....hence, I now have half a dozen tweed jackets (most of which are nice 60's-ish vintage) in the closet that I'm just wearing as regular old Saxon jackets...not that there's anything wrong with that...

Personally, I'm throwing in the towel on doing a conversion and just starting a sludge fund to buy a nice grey tweed and vest. My admiration for those of you who have the skill and the courage to re-do a nice tweed jacket, though.

Best

AA

Well... it's certainly nice to know that I'm not the only one with this problem. I often wear a tweed when out casually with jeans and a button down if not kilted. I've obtained several from thrift stores, and several others over the years ranging from Harris Tweed to J.C. Penny's. Each new thrift store find has hopes of being cut down to a kilt jacket, but that never seems to acually happen. I've about given up on the conversion idea and started a slush fund of my own!

[unaspenser]

Your conversion looks great! A definite improvement on the original.