Tamarack Jacket Sew-Along

Follow along at your own pace as you sew the Tamarack Jacket with our step-by-step video guide! This quilted jacket is designed for transitional seasons, with a layer of cotton or wool batting that adds warmth without bulk. We'll walk you through garment quilting, welt pocket construction, and bias binding, plus the optional Hood and Collar Add-On for even more versatility.

Lesson 1

Introduction, Fabric & Supplies

Jen holding a green quilted Tamarack Jacket beside a flat lay of sewing supplies and the Tamarack pattern envelope on a white background

Get to know the Tamarack Jacket before you start sewing. We'll cover the pattern details for both size ranges, walk through the collar, hood, and patch pocket add-on, and discuss fabric selection — including shell, lining, and batting options — so you're set up for a jacket you'll love wearing.

Fabric Selection

The Tamarack uses three layers: a shell fabric, a lining fabric, and batting. Light to midweight cottons, linens, chambrays, and blends work well for both the shell and lining. Jen walks through several fabric combinations from the sample jackets to help you plan your own.

Choosing Your Batting

Batting adds warmth and creates the quilted texture of your jacket. Jen covers loft, fiber options including cotton, wool, and bamboo, and how batting weight affects the warmth and drape of your finished jacket, including which weights work best for layering.

Get Started

Lesson 2

Printing & Assembling the PDF Pattern

Jen holding a printed Tamarack PDF pattern page beside a fully assembled taping key on a white marble surface with a ruler and pen

New to PDF sewing patterns? This lesson walks you through the full process. Learn how to download and open your pattern in Adobe Acrobat Reader, print at the correct scale using the test square, and trim and tape your pages together by pattern piece for the most accurate results.

Prep Your Pattern

Lesson 3

Choosing a Size & Pattern Adjustments

Jen gesturing with hands beside a Grainline Studio pattern card showing Tamarack measurements, fabric swatches, and sizing information

Learn how to take accurate measurements and choose the right size for your Tamarack. Jen covers the three key measurements, how to read the size chart, and when to blend between sizes — plus common pattern adjustments so your jacket fits beautifully before you cut.

Taking Your Measurements & Choosing a Size

The Tamarack requires bust, waist, and hip measurements. Bust and hip are the most important; the jacket is lightly shaped at the waist, so you have a bit of flexibility there. Jen walks through how to take each measurement accurately and how to use the size chart to find your starting size.

Blending Between Sizes & Bust Adjustments

If your measurements fall across more than one size, Jen covers when to cut a straight size versus blending for a better fit. She also demonstrates full and small bust adjustments for both size ranges, including the Tamarack-specific technique for managing the armscye dart.

Find Your Size

Grab the Tamarack Jacket Patterns

Lesson 4

Cutting Your Jacket

Jen leaning over a cutting table with a pink printed fabric and a large Tamarack pattern piece laid out, with a quilting ruler along the selvage

It’s time to cut! This lesson covers everything you need to know before your scissors hit the fabric — pre-treating your shell, lining, and batting, laying out your fabric on grain, placing and pinning pattern pieces, and cutting all three layers including interfacing for the welt pockets.

Start Cutting

Lesson 5

Sewing the Darts

Three cut jacket front pieces including a pink printed shell, white batting, and pink dotted lining, fanned out on a wood surface showing the dart shaping on each layer

This lesson is only for sewists using the size 14–32 pattern. Learn the Tamarack's unique three-layer dart method — sewing the main fabric and lining darts as usual, then using a special slash-and-zigzag technique on the batting to reduce bulk and keep the finished jacket smooth.

Start Sewing

Lesson 6

Quilting Your Jacket

A completed quilted Tamarack jacket front piece in a mauve floral print held up showing diagonal quilting lines stitched across the full piece

Learn how to build your quilt sandwich, baste the layers together, mark and stitch your quilting lines using a walking foot, and finish each piece with a stay stitch around the edges so all three layers move as one.

Quilt your Tamarack

Lesson 7

Making Your Bias Binding

Two strips of bias binding held up, one in a light gray print and one in a pink floral print, beside a cutting mat showing fabric cut on the diagonal

Never made your own bias binding before? This lesson covers what bias tape is, how to cut strips on the true bias, and how to fold them into double-fold binding using a bias tape maker, with two different cutting methods to choose from.

Single Strip Method

This method works best when you need a smaller amount of binding or are cutting from fabric remnants. It results in fewer seams running through the finished binding overall.

Continuous Strip Method

This method can be more efficient when you need a longer length of binding since it requires only two seams to construct. That said, you will end up with more seams running through the finished binding than with the single strip method.

Make Your Binding

Lesson 8

Inserting the Welt Pockets

A quilted jacket front piece in cream fabric held up showing a completed welt pocket with a pink patterned welt insert on a wood surface

Welt pockets have a reputation for being tricky, but taken one step at a time they're completely manageable. This lesson walks through prepping and assembling the welt, marking and basting the placement area, inserting the pocket, and finishing the edges and sides for a clean result.

Insert Your Pockets

Lesson 9

Creating the Patch Pockets

A hand slipping into a large quilted patch pocket on a Tamarack jacket front in a deep mauve floral print on a wood surface

Choosing patch pockets for your Tamarack? This lesson covers assembling, quilting, and binding the pocket before attaching it to your jacket front, with a stitching technique that secures the pocket and encloses all raw edges at the same time.

Make Your Pockets

Lesson 10

Back Hem & Shoulder Seams

A quilted Tamarack jacket body in pink floral print held up showing the fully assembled front and back with completed shoulder seams

With the pockets complete, it's time to start assembling your jacket. This lesson covers applying bias binding to the lower back hem, sewing and pressing the shoulder seams, and finishing the seam allowances so the jacket is ready for the collar, hood, or original neckline finish.

Start the Jacket Assembly

Lesson 11

Attaching the Collar

A quilted Tamarack jacket body in pink floral print held up from the neckline showing the inside lining and shoulder seams on a white background

This lesson is for sewists adding the collar from the Hood and Collar Add-On. Learn how to pin and baste the quilted collar to the neckline for both Views A and B, apply binding to conceal the seam allowance, and finish the collar stand for a neat result inside and out.

Assemble the Collar

Lesson 12

Attaching the Hood

A smiling person wearing a sleeveless quilted Tamarack jacket in pink floral print with the hood up on a white background

This lesson is for sewists adding the hood from the Hood and Collar Add-On. Learn how to assemble and finish the hood seams using binding for a neat interior, then pin and attach the hood to the neckline for both Views A and B, with binding to finish the neck edge.

Assemble the Hood

Lesson 13

Finishing the Front Edges

A quilted Tamarack jacket front in pink floral print held up showing the lining side with binding pinned along the front opening edge ready to be stitched

With the neckline complete, it's time to bind the front edges and hem. This lesson covers applying binding from the hem notch up and around the front opening, navigating the corners and internal angles for all three neckline options, and finishing the mitered corners by hand for a neat result.

Bind Your Front Edges

Lesson 14

Setting the Sleeves & Side Seams

A smiling person wearing a completed quilted Tamarack jacket with hood in pink floral print with arms outstretched on a white background

Your Tamarack Jacket is almost wearable! This lesson covers binding the sleeve hems, setting the sleeves using notch matching and the walking foot to handle all those layers, then sewing up the side and underarm seams in one continuous pass. After this lesson you'll have a complete jacket body ready for closures.

Set Your Sleeves

Lesson 13

Hooks & Eyes and Setting Snaps

A person wearing a completed quilted Tamarack jacket with hood in pink floral print standing with hands on hips on a white background

We’ve made it to the final step! This lesson covers both closure options for the Tamarack — hand-sewn hook and eye closures and hammer-set snaps — so you can choose the finish that works best for your jacket. No closure at all is also a completely valid option if you prefer to wear it open.

Hook & Eye Closures

A classic hand-sewn option that gives a clean, flat finish. This lesson covers placement, spacing, and how to align the eye accurately with the hook so your jacket closes evenly.

Setting Snaps

Hammer-set snaps require a snap setter tool and a few pieces per closure, but go in quickly once you have the hang of it. This lesson covers marking placement using the pattern piece and the snaps already set, punching the holes, and setting both sides securely.

Finish Your Tamarack

Extras

  • A denim fabric swatch with Sashiko hand stitching on a cork board beside two skeins of navy Sashiko thread and a package of needles

    Our Top Quilting Tips

    New to garment quilting? This guide covers the basic tools and supplies you'll need, how to build your quilt sandwich, basting methods, and several straight-line quilting design options to try — plus a look at free motion quilting and Sashiko as alternative techniques.

    Explore Quilting Tips 
  • A collage of four pre-quilted fabric samples in floral and abstract prints including a yellow stripe, teal floral, and pink speckled design

    Using Pre-quilted Fabric

    Thinking of using pre-quilted fabric for your Tamarack? This guide covers yardage, which pieces to cut from your pre-quilted fabric, and how to handle the welts, pocket linings, and bias binding, including which components work best in a single layer fabric instead.

    Skip the Quilting 
Button label