aimee’s quilted woodland cape

Once upon a time, there was this gorgeous velour fabric created by the talented Anna Maria Horner. I fell in love with it at first sight and bought an extravagant amount of yardage, stashing it away until I found the perfect pattern. When the Woodland Stroll Cape pattern hit the shelves, I was ecstatic—I finally felt ready to take the plunge and create something truly special.

However, I made a frugal, impulsive decision to skip purchasing any lining fabric and instead rummaged through my stash for "suitable" alternatives. I paired up a few mismatched fabrics and got to work. The cape came together swiftly, and I adorned it with some beautiful mother-of-pearl buttons from my collection. But despite its completion, the cape never saw the light of day. It joined the growing pile of half-finished projects collecting dust in my closet, haunting me every time I opened the door.

Fast forward to 2020. I began noticing all these stunning quilted coats popping up everywhere online. One day, while scrolling through my phone, I stumbled across a picture of the cape languishing at the bottom of a box. It struck me then—this was my chance to give it another shot. This time, I decided to transform it into a quilted masterpiece.

I disassembled the cape entirely, discarding the side with the buttonholes since they were beyond repair. Fortunately, I still had enough leftover fabric to recut that side. I purchased some flannel for quilting and treated myself to some lovely cotton voile for the lining. For each section of the cape, I carefully pinned the velour and flannel together and stitched a diagonal grid (approximately 1-inch diamond shapes) across the entire surface. Once all the sections were quilted, I trimmed the excess flannel and followed the pattern instructions to finish the cape.

This version of the cape came together remarkably fast, and the voile worked surprisingly well as a lining. It didn’t shift much during sewing, which was a relief, though it does tug slightly when putting it on. I'm not particularly fond of working with polyester lining or silk, so I didn't mind the slight sticking sensation when wearing it.

Choosing the closure was another challenge. I wanted something unique yet functional. After researching various clasps online, I even considered crafting my own leather toggle. Then I remembered a vintage floral button in my stash that I adored. My son came up with a brilliant idea: why not repurpose those buttons into toggles? Using leftover braided cotton cording from some drawstring bags, I crafted loops for the buttons. I secured the edges of the cording with my sewing machine and added decorative buttons over them. On the sides, I skipped buttonholes altogether, opting instead for a few machine-stitched tacking stitches hidden beneath additional buttons.

All in all, I couldn't be happier with the final result. Unlike before, this cape now proudly hangs in my closet, no longer overshadowed by unfinished projects. This pattern is deceptively simple yet produces incredible results, especially when given a cozy quilted twist. It's proof that sometimes, all a project needs is a second chance to shine.

Now, whenever I wear it, I can't help but smile knowing I transformed something once forgotten into something extraordinary. And who knows? Maybe it'll inspire others to breathe new life into their own neglected creations!

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