OK, I can answer my own question… doing it “my way” would leave the seam visible inside the jacket; doing it AYCE’s way leaves the seam hidden inside the inner and outer layers. Proceeding… ;)

Almost there… Working on the draw cord…

“Sew Waist Draw Cord Exit Points”

At this point, I have sewn the shell and liner/insulation layers together along the hemline for both the front and back. The instructions say to fold the bottom hemline in on itself. This is a problem because the shell and liner/insulation layers have been sewn together at both the front and back. If I “fold it under at the hemline”, it seems like it would be way too thick. Just doesn’t seem right.

Is the jacket supposed to right-side out or inside out?

If the jacket is right-side out, then I have the above problem, though I guess could sew it like that if it is the way it is supposed to be. If it is supposed to inside out, does that mean I fold the layers right at the seam? If not, how much? But in any case, then I don’t understand how sewing the ‘T’ works. It seems like the stitches which are perpendicular to the hem would close off the channel.

And if the cord just sits at the bottom of the hem, can I just skip the ‘T’ part? That part is just not registering with me… ;) It seems like I could just run the cord through at the very end, after sewing the French seams, and then sew the upper part of the casing…

Basically, I don’t get which layers create the bottom part of the channel. Maybe if I knew that, I could figure out how to create it.

Which two layers are going to be enclosing the cord?

(I understand how you make the top part of the channel at the very end…)

Thanks for all the help.

The very bottom of the draw cord casing is the hem seam you’ve just sewn.  The draw cord itself will run close to the hem, depending upon how high up you sew the “top part” of the casing you reference above.  This means that if you choose to sew it lower than 1/2” that you will sew through the seam allowance of the bottom hem.  This isn’t a problem.

In the next step you’re going to sew a french seam down the side of the Kinsman from the cuff to the hem.  Without the drawcord exit points, you’ll seal the drawcord casing.  Folding in the bottom of the casing as shown will remove the exit points from the seam.

You can skip the “T” part for now.  You will see what it’s used for a little later and can add it when you understand it better.  Or put in 4 buttonholes as exit points, one each to the left/right fronts and backs at the hem.

OK, so this is starting to make sense…

AYCE - 10 September 2011 06:07 AM

The very bottom of the draw cord casing is the hem seam you’ve just sewn.

So in other words, it runs between the wrong side of the shell and insulation side of the liner/insulation?

AYCE - 10 September 2011 06:07 AM

Without the drawcord exit points, you’ll seal the drawcord casing. 

Would marking the fabric with chalk to indicate where the French seams should stop achieve the same effect?

AYCE - 10 September 2011 06:07 AM

Folding in the bottom of the casing as shown will remove the exit points from the seam.

This is the part that’s kind of confusing because it seems if the cord is just going to run along the bottom of the jacket, I’m not clear on what the purpose of the hemline “fold” is…

Should this fold be stitched or just pinned? Or, as mentioned above, can’t I just stop sewing a 1/2” or so from the bottom?

AYCE - 10 September 2011 06:07 AM

Or put in 4 buttonholes as exit points, one each to the left/right fronts and backs at the hem.

New can of worms but… the buttonholes would go in the (unfolded) shell fabric only? And going this route, could I then run the French seams all the way to the bottom of the jacket?

Thanks for your patience on this one.

1) yes

2) yes, that would keep it from being sealed, but it would not finish the raw edge of the drawcord casing.  The little fold is like a hem for the drawcord casing.

3)  the fold finishes the raw edge of the fabric of the casing exit points.  You need to stitch it to keep it in place.  If you get confused you can add the stitching later by hand, but once that side french seam is done using your machine is no longer an option.

4)  yes.  In this case the buttonhole “finishes” the exit point.

OK, FINALLY I think I get it… ;)

The fold is vertical, to finish the opening of the casing in the shell fabric. For some reason, I had it in my head that it was a horizontal fold, which is why it wasn’t making any sense…

Now I’m on it! ;)

Done!

It’s got a few fairly significant mistakes (the photo graciously ignores them) but 7 out of the 10 people I asked were able to correctly identify it as a jacket, so I’d say that’s a success.  ;)

This jacket was made with some cheaper “practice materials”. I’ll probably try at least one more (with some modifications) with more cheap stuff before I use the “good stuff” from Thru-Hiker…

Great instructions and a great kit! And while there were a few times I was a little puzzled, almost every time when I finally understood what to do, I’d end up saying, “Hey, that looks exactly like the picture!”

It is really pretty amazing that a kit with such cutting edge materials can be had (and be made) by beginners for what is really a very reasonable price. Likewise, that instructions for a fairly complicated insulated jacket can be distilled to such simple sentences, and still allow relative beginners such as myself to put together a jacket for their first real project. Keeping it simple is much harder than it seems.

And of course AYCE’s prompt and patient replies to my dumb questions are exactly why Thru-Hiker enjoys the reputation that it does. Thanks for providing a product and service that really isn’t available at this level of quality anywhere else.

Congrats, and nice job!