Butterick 5471 & M5527- A Little Back Tracking

I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend. Like so many sewists, I planned to do a lot of sewing over the weekend. But I was only able to finish one of the two red dresses on the sewing table.

Today I won't post the dress as I plan to wear it this weekend and want to post a photo of me wearing it. So for now, I'm back tracking. In April I made three pants, a dress, and a jacket using Butterick 5471.

My first thought was to use this pattern to create a wardrobe: jacket dress and pants. But that plan changed after I purchased the fabric for the jacket and dress. So I only made a coordinating jacket and dress. Then I used the pants pattern to complement a modified version of M5527 (View B). This review is mainly about B5471.

Pattern Description: MISSES' JACKET, TUNIC, DRESS AND PANTS: Loose-fitting lined jackets A, B have princess seams, side front seam pockets, yoke and notched collar, top stitched hem. A: turned back cuff. B: long sleeves with stitched hem. Semi-fitted tunic C or dress D have front seam details, top stitched neckline and back zipper. Semi-fitted pants E have darts, mock fly closing, side seam pockets and waistband.

Pattern Sizing: Sizing 6 - 20. I used size 16 and ended up taking it in and cutting off the excess. More on that later.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? No and yes. In the photo the dress appears to be more tapered than it is in real life. Maybe it's me. The jacket is boxy like the line drawing.

Were the instructions easy to follow? No problems with any of the instructions. Pretty standard.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I liked the princess seams on the front of the dress and on the jacket. The jacket is a little too boxy for my figure and/or taste. For me, I need more tapering at the waist.

Fabric Used: I used home dec fabric from JoAnn's (cotton blend) for the green and white ensemble. For the pinstriped pants I used a polyester from Vogue Fabrics. I brought it in three colors for three pairs of pants and one jacket.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: I made quite a few alterations and design changes.

Jacket -

• FBA and Prominent Shoulder Blade Adjustments
• Contrast Pocket lining, under collar, and back yoke(lining)

Dress -

• FBA and Prominent Shoulder Blade Adjustments
• Omitted the facings
• Lined the dress
• Lengthen by three inches

Pants -

• Decreased crotch length and Adjusted crotch depth
• Lengthen by four inches
• Added flap to right back

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? I think I'm done with this pattern. I have many in my collection to try. But I do recommend it to others with modifications to suit your personal style.


Conclusion: This is a nice wardrobe pattern that is great for beefing up the spring/summer wardrobe.

To add some variety, I made M5527 (View B) jacket to match one pair of slacks. I've used it before. This time I extended the length of the jacket. When I extended the length I forgot to take into consideration that the mid section is fitted and does not fit over the upper hip area easily. To save the jacket, I made a loop for the closure instead of the buttonhole. This worked just fine. Hopefully the next time I try this design change, I'll remember to add more width across the hip area. Below are pictures on the pants suit.

More pictures on this project can be found here.