Anorak - Part Trois

I made a second Rain Shed Cacoule-type anorak, this time I modified the pattern to fit The Boy. His jacket is made from some bright yellow oilskin I bought from a local canvas repair shop.

Although the arms are long enough that he can tuck his hands which proved handy today, as it's tightly woven cotton fibres successfully blocked the stiff damp breeze blowing off the Bay.  Today's daytime temp was -4, but felt like -14 with the winds.  I fear the jacket won't fit him for long, as my modification was a hair smaller than I wanted.

For the third anorak, I purchased a surplus piece of Canadian Forces modular tenting.  I think this will be my fabric of choice for several reasons - it's locally available, made in Canada to CF specifications, 10oz cotton-canvas material impregnated with a safe, non-toxic water-resistant coating. Additionally, the material is affordable, wide enough, re-purposes large swaths of non-serviceable tentage and possess a rather attractive, weathered patina.

Because the tentage is a slightly lighter-weight canvas than the brown tarpaulin of the first pullover, the hood on this model will lay flat and away from the neck.  The hood on my brown jacket is quite stiff and often interferes with any hat I might be wearing.

I made this one for a friend, but have plans to take it out and show a couple other people who expressed an interest for themselves.  Unlike the two previous iterations, this one has a velcro-closing front pocket which also serves as a muffler, of sorts (arms are tucked behind in this photo).

I also modified this hood slightly. I found that no matter what size hood was made (three sizes are available), the face opening was quite tight - even I had trouble with the large, and I have a notoriously small head!  So for this prototype, I cut a medium neck opening with a medium hood but extended the hood length-wise.  Hopefully this will allow the wearer to pull it on and off with no discomfort.

The only possible downside of this fabric is the odour - if you've ever been in the military, you'll recognize it immediately! I happen to like the smell of modular tenting - it reminds me of long summer nights on radio watch, hot rations and the relative comfort of field accommodations.

So for anyone who may want one of these, there are now options!  Brown tarpaulin (made in China), bright yellow oilskin (made in Canada), or CF Olive Drab modular (also made in Canada).