It’s the most fabulous post of the pattern-making cycle. The one where I get to show off all the beautiful tester makes! Scroll down to see all the beautiful jackets made by the Amalia Jacket test group.

The Amalia Jacket has been in development since this time last year. It’s a big pattern, and it’s been a big year. 

When it came to testing we wanted a whole range of testers: different shapes, sizes, sewing styles, and locations. So many amazing people applied to test the jacket. It was so hard to choose, but we couldn’t have asked for a better group than the one we ended up with.

Thanks to the testers, the Amalia Jacket is the best pattern it could be. They helped us refine fit, instructions, and catch all those little things we might have missed.

Here are the tester makes!

Blair of @beelder3

I’ve had my eye on the ‘brandied raisins chintz’ from Colonial Williamsburg for years, but resisted buying it because I really don’t need any more fabric.

And then Blair started sharing her making photos for the Amalia Jacket, and all my no-fabric-buying resolutions were undone.

Her pattern matching! Her pattern placement! The way she’s mirrored it across the back and front, and carefully placed it so the posies fall on the pleats!

Blair made View A with the View B sleeves in Size 36.

Cait of Willoughby and Rose helped her take all the photos, and captured lots of gorgeous detail shots, like the way the sleeve slit on the View B sleeves gets finished.

Rebecca of @ladyrebeccafashions and Lady Rebecca Fashions on Youtube

I was really hoping that at least one tester would make an Amalia Jacket in one of the famous Ikea 18th century prints, and Rebecca made my fabric dreams come true!

Her matching jacket (View A) and petticoat are just adorable. She’s got the most fantastic set of accessories for her 18th century outfit, complete with red mantle that makes it look like she stepped right out of a fairytale!

She made a Size 48, with customised fit and additional length to suit her height. She’ll be showing her making and fitting on her YouTube, so keep an eye out for that!

Emily of @sewingfrankly

Emily used the most gorgeous blue & white chintz for her View B jacket. I love that she used the same fabric for the cutaway front of View B. It’s a really common look in extant garments, even though it doesn’t make the seaming as obvious.

Emily tested Size 32, and used the alterations and fitting guide to make it fit her perfectly.

Ashley of @sewcial.experiment

Ashley made View A of the Amalia in a black and white chintz, and paired it with a black petticoat for a gothy take on the 18th century, which I am so here for!

Ashely adapted the fully handsewn historical instructions for machine sewing. Here’s how she did it:

I marked the stitch line on the back of the outer body pieces, placed it right side down, matched the cut edges up with the previous piece and sewed it down, machine sewing through the lining as well, then just flipped the piece over and continued on. This served to tack the two layers together in addition to sewing down the outer layer. Then, for the front I just folded the body of the jacket up as much as possible so the inner and outer could be placed right sides together and machine sewed those.

Her overall take on the jacket:

I think this is such a great pattern and I love that it makes 18th century costume available for such a wide variety of sizes

Fabulous jacket + figuring out a way to assemble it that works for her sewing style = winning all round!

Ashley tested Size 52, and customised the fit to her body. Check how smooth that bodice is!

Kelly of @society_seams

Pink jackets with blue petticoats and blue jackets with pink petticoats were quite a theme amongst the testers!

Kelly’s stunning Amalia is made from a red, white and blue striped linen from Burnley & Trowbridge, and she styled it a la tricolore for her gorgeous photos.

She’s got more gorgeous photos of it, and some wonderful videos, on her IG.

Kelly made View A, with the long sleeves of View B, in Size 34.

Hanna of @folkdraktsprogress

Hanna made View A in a lovely pink striped fabric. I love the way the stripes show off the lines of the jacket! She like it so much she’s already planning a second version – and totally cooincidentally, from the opposite sides of the world, it turns out we’re going to be Amalia Jacket twins, because I’m also making another Amalia in a different colourway of the same fabric!

Hanna says of the pattern:

I really love this pattern! It was easy…even for me, who is a beginner at 18th century dressmaking. The fitting guide was very good and made sewing the final garment a lotta easier.

Check out Hanna’s instagram for more photos of her lovely jacket.

Gracie of @graciesews and Gracie Patten on YouTube

Gracie made View A in a gorgeous reproduction fabric from Penny River Costumes. The original dated to 1781 – perfect for the Amalia. It’s a great example of the breadth of prints available in the late 18th century.

Gracie says of the pattern:

Overall, I’m really pleased with the fit of this jacket and with the appearance. I will be recommending it to my friends who are new to costuming because of the detailed instructions, and I would like to make a version of view B in a plain silk so that the pleats are more visible

Gracie made a Size 34.

Dans l’armoire d’Élise of @danslarmoiredelise and Élise’s Closet

Élise does fabulous cosplays as well as historical costuming, and you can see the combination of those aesthetics come through so beautifully in her Amalia Jacket.

She made a View B with the short sleeves of View A. She used a contrasting fabric for the cutaway front of View B, and matched it to a petticoat she had for another costume. We love a good costume wardrobe switch up! Twice the impact for half the effort.

She made a size 42, and says of the pattern:

I really, really love it. And I can’t wait to make another jacket. It’s a very versatile pattern with the mix and match of fronts, skirts and sleeves, and it can be dressed up or down.

Dai of @this_one_sews

Dai made their Amalia Jacket in a lovely cotton in a fun stripe variant. They made View B with the View A front and sleeves.

I love the way the stripe shows the lines of the pattern, including the way they cut the sleeves with the horizontal grainline. The pattern allows either grainline.

But wait, there’s more! They even turned one of their Amalia photos into a painting!

Dai made a Size 44. They say of the Amalia Jacket pattern:

I adore the fit and cut of this garment… it is something I’ll be definitely make again.

And last, but definitely not least (true story, I pick the order these go in out of a hat because I can’t choose a favourite and want it to be fair!)…

Samantha of @pinpricksandpetticoats

Another tester who made her jacket out of Ikea fabric! Samantha made View B with View A sleeves jacket out of Ikea Sprängört.

Samantha is a theatrical costumer, and you can see the precision and professional finish of her jacket. She’s applied some theatrical finishes instead of historical ones: piping to highlight the cutaway front and to finish the neckline, and binding to outline the tail of the jacket.

Check out her instagram for some making photos. Her crisp pleating as she works on it is total sewing goals. She made a Size 36.

Thank you to all the awesome testers! We are so, so grateful for your input!