Pockets

My jacket has two pockets with flaps which need to be constructed once the darts are sewn. Because I had not sewn a pocket with a flap before, I decided to do a sample. I found the flap fairly challenging and time consuming, partly because my first attempt did not lay flat and was too small for the mouth of the pocket. This was due to the fact that only seam allowance had been added which did not allow for the lip on the reverse side of the pocket, and the lining being pulled too much. I decided to see if I could find a solution to this problem by looking in tailoring books and found a slightly different way of constructing the flap. This produced a much better result, and allowed me to continue with the rest of my sample.

First flap: 

Second flap:

Flap Instructions from 'Classic Tailoring Techniques' by R. Cabrera & P.F. Meyers:

I used the pattern that accompanied the instructions as a guideline for the shape of the flap

The rest of the pocket was fairly straight forward, and I enjoy constructing jetted pockets in particular. Nevertheless, when I came to sew the flap into the top jet I found this difficult as the flap got in the way of being able to easily match the top jet - I had to unpick my first attempt and do it again. Despite this, I think my sample has turned out fairly successfully with a few imperfections. I hope to complete the pockets on my jacket as successfully, although will have the added challenge of ensuring both sides are the same.

Finished poket sample: