How To Make A Reversible Travel Vest – With Phone Pocket

In today’s post, we’ll learn how to make a reversible travel vest from fabric scraps.

This project ended up being the perfect thing to wear when riding on motorcycles all over the countryside of Perú during the summer. It’s lightweight, so I wasn’t burning up, easy to put on, and I never had to worry about losing my phone or wallet.

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Approximate time put into this project: 7-9 days, with 3-4 hours put in each day

Disclaimer: I am trying to teach myself the Metric System. I will try to always include both measurements in my tutorials, i.e. centimeters and inches, meters, and yards. I have been using them interchangeably in my everyday sewing life lately, sorry if I switch between the two too often or forget to include them both. Thanks for understanding!

Cutting Your Pieces

When it comes to creating a custom reversible travel vest, starting with the right size is essential. If you have a similar shirt or vest on hand, use it as a reference to gauge the dimensions of your new vest. Today, I’ll be making my vest from scrap fabrics and leftover zippers I had on hand, but you certainly could use larger fabric pieces and not have to worry about patchworking.

I’m currently on month 14 of my six month #UseUpYourStashChallenge, so I opted for the former, in an attempt to make something pretty without spending any additional money on it.

Originally, I tried making my reversible travel vest from two types of corduroy, but the scrap pieces from one of my corduroy’s were too small, resulting in a bubbly and unattractive patchwork. Instead, I opted for a mix of corduroy on one side and lightweight denim on the other.

To trace the pattern, whether using scraps or full fabric pieces, essentially all you need to do is lay your reference garment on top of your fabric and cut out your pieces around it, using your vest/top as a pattern. Make sure you cut an extra 1″ (3cm) os seam allowance around all sides to ensure the fit and an extra 2″ (5cm) in length to the bottom.

Remember to cut around the neckline to match the curve of both your front and back pieces.

Since the vest will be reversible, make sure you cut a total of four pieces. Two for the front and two for the back, in each their own respective colors.

Note: If you’re making your reversible travel vest out of fabric scraps, make sure you add extra seam allowance to account for sewing all the pieces together again. Each piece will need an extra .50″ (1cm) on each side that it will have another piece sewn to it.

You’ll also need to cut some fabric for a pocket, side straps, and possibly ties for the neck closure.

• The pocket will be center front on one side of your reversible travel vest, so cut something nice and wide to fit across your stomach, kind of like a kangaroo pocket on a hoodie. The height of this pocket needs to be a little taller than your zippers.
  • Mine was about 11″ x 9″ (28cm x 23cm). Cut two pieces.
• For the side straps, cut four pieces of each fabric (eight total pieces). The width and length will depend on your size and desired fit, mine were about 7″ x 1.5″ (18cm x 4cm). These ties get sewn into the vest on both ends and create a very loose fit with a pullover design.
  • If you want a side tie instead you’ll need to cut your straps much longer, so you can tie a nice bow, and I would recommend half the width if you’re using a thicker fabric. You’ll also need to cut twice as many pieces.
  • When sewing the ties into your vest, you’ll want to finish one end on each tie, then simply sew the other side into the vest following the directions below.
• If you need ties for the neck closure, cut them as long and wide as you’d like. Mine were about 1″ x 11″ (3cm x 28cm).

Patchwork and Design Elements

After cutting, if you have any scrap pieces, you’ll need to patch them all together to make your full pieces. Remember to zig-zag or overlock the raw edges during this step.

This is where you can get creative! I added swirly topstitching to one side of my vest, which enhances the look and draws the eye away from the irregular size of my scrap pieces.

When topstitching, especially on thicker, textured fabric, like corduroy, it’s helpful to use two spools of thread on top and if you have leftover thread in a bobbin that needs to be used up, just chuck that in the bottom. This helps the colors to show through better – and as an added bonus, it uses up leftover thread! Also, FYI – topstitching swirly designs is quite time-consuming.

If you did any decorative stitching, you’ll want to copy that same design onto your side straps as well. Once they’re ready, pin all four strap pieces of your one-colored fabric to the four of your other colored fabric, good sides facing.

Then sew along the sides and turn your pieces right sides out. Press with your iron, then change out the thread in your bobbin and on the top so you have a thread that matches each side of your fabric, one thread for each. Next, sew along both sides to hold everything in place.

You should now have four strap pieces each with one color of fabric on one side and a different color of fabric on the other side.

Adding an Invisible Zippered Pocket

Note: If you have an overlock machine, it’s not a bad idea to overlock all the raw edges in this step before you start.

Pick which side of your vest you want your pocket to be on. I opted for my denim side because I didn’t want to mess up the design that took me two days to sew, and I felt like adding a zipper in the middle of all those patchworked seams may be difficult.

We’ll want the pocket to be in the middle of the garment, like a kangaroo pocket on a hoodie. To do this we’ll need to create a seam to sew the zipper into. Grab the front panel of the piece you want to sew the pocket into, a ruler, fabric chalk, and scissors.

Measure and mark where you want the pocket to begin. The pocket should be aligned with where your hand would naturally rest. I found it best sat at almost halfway through the shoulder seam. To mark the placement of this I grabbed my ruler, and marked the halfway point along the top with my fabric chalk. Next, I made a mark .50″ (1cm) over toward the neckline.

From there I drew a straight line down to the bottom of the vest as shown in the left picture. Repeat the same measurement on the other side of the vest, then cut the piece straight off. Place the smaller pieces to the side.

Now grab your zipper and place it good side facing down to the edge of one side of your vest.

Note: Make sure you leave at least .50″ (1cm) of space on the bottom of your vest if your garment is super cropped. You’ll need the extra space to finish the hem. i.e. don’t copy my placement in these pictures, I should have left more space.

Before you sew the zipper in place, pin one side of your pocket to your zipper. For this step, you’ll want the good side of the pocket facing down, on top of the face-down zipper, creating a zipper sandwich.

With a zipper foot, sew along the zipper edge as shown in the left picture.

Next, open the panel up and tuck the sewn piece out of the way. On the other side of the zipper pin the piece of the vest we trimmed off. Make sure the piece lines up perfectly with the shoulder seam before you pin anything in place, I recommend placing a few pins here to keep it in place during this whole process. Then pin the good side of the vest to the good side of the zipper.

In the picture on the right, you can see that we’ll need to pin the other pocket piece here as well. Before you sew, you need to confirm if when all the pieces on the front panel of your vest are sitting the proper way, is the zipper facing outward? You don’t want it on the inside of the vest, you’ll never be able to open it. You’ll also want to see if the good sides of the pocket pieces face each other.

Once you’ve confirmed the above, sew the second side of the zipper sandwich.

To install the second zipper, you’ll have to do a little turning and wrapping around of the pocket and panel pieces to make sure everything sits in the right place before you sew. The installation steps are the same for how you want to sew the zipper in place, but you really have to double-check that they’re sitting the right way, even if you have to wrap it around the vest in a weird way just to sew it. After everything is sewn properly it will turn out the correct way after you unwrap it.

For example, the picture on the left here shows that one piece has to be wrapped around the back before it can be pinned and sewn properly to the zipper on the right. Whereas the picture in the middle shows how the other piece is simply folded over and stretched straight across to the zipper on the right.

Right Picture:

Once both zippers are sewn in place and everything is sitting properly, align the shoulder seams and any fabric you may have below the zippers. Pin the pieces together, ensuring the zippers are tucked out of the way and the seams align perfectly, then sew up the panels, attaching them fully back together.

Please let me know if you have any questions about this zipper installation process for the reversible travel vest and I’ll record something for you!

Assembling the Reversible Travel Vest

To assemble your vest, start by pinning the shoulder seams together of your front and back pieces. Matching each color fabric with itself. Pin them good sides facing. Before you sew, double-check the neckline to ensure it fits comfortably. If you can’t pull it over your head easily, cut a small slit at the center back. I cut about 1″ (3cm) at a time until I was sure I could comfortably pull the vest over my head. Once one side of the vest fits comfortably, I cut the other fabric pieces to match.

You’ll need to prepare some ties for this section. Simply cut a strip of fabric as wide and long as you desire. You’ll need two pieces of each fabric. Then pin your pieces together good sides facing. Make sure you’re pinning one piece from each fabric so the tie can be reversible.

Next, sew the ties along both sides and across one of the ends to close it off. Turn it right sides out, press with your iron and top stitch. Remember to switch out the thread in your bobbin so you have a thread that matches each fabric when you sew.

Now that you’re sure the vest will fit over your head, sew the shoulder seams together and finish the raw edges.

Open your two vest pieces and lay them flat together, good sides facing. Pin along the neckline, starting with the shoulder seams. Before you sew, grab your ties and sandwich them between the two layers at the corners where the neckline opens. Then sew around the neckline. Snip the curves of the seams and into the point, but don’t cut through the stitches.

Before you move your reversible travel vest, pin the armhole seams together, good sides facing. Everything should still be in the same position from the last step. Then sew the armhole only, stopping at the side seam. Like in the picture on the left, except that that’s the step right after this when everything is turned right side out.

Now turn everything right side out, pushing one piece to the inside of the vest. Press it with your iron to make sure everything lays flat. Pin around the neckline and top stitch, then do the same with the armhole as seen in the left picture. Again, remember to use a different thread in your bobbin than on the top.

To close the side seams, fold the edges to the inside and pin them in place. Before you sew, insert the side straps between the layers. Measure and mark where you want the straps positioned, then match the placement on the other side. Sew the side seams closed, but leave the bottom .50″ (1cm) open. When sewing the side seam here, I like to sew a row of stitches close to the edge, then a second row to secure everything in place and match the topstitching we did in other steps.

Finally, to finish the bottom hem. Fold the bottom .50″ (1cm) open edges to the inside, and pin them in place. Once everything is sitting nicely and no raw edges are sticking out, top stitch to finish the bottom hem. If your vest is on the smaller end, be careful when you sew around the spots where the zipper is sitting. I did two rows of stitches here as well to match the design of the rest of the top. remembering to swap out the thread in my bobbin before sewing.

Finished Results

If I make another reversible travel vest, I’ll absolutely sew another zipper pocket situation – I love how that turned out! Although I would make the length of my overall project longer. It is a little too short for my taste, but that was all the fabric scraps I had.

Where would you wear your travel vest? Let me know in the comments!

If you make this project, tag and DM me on Instagram @doorsandfloorsblog so I can see what you make! Remember to use the hashtag #DoorsAndFloorsBlog

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