Bilbo Baggins Patchwork House-robe: A Step By Step Guide
If you’re familiar with how to sew, feel free to skip large portions of my explanations, as this is what I would consider a beginners guide.
I took great inspiration from Shannon's house-robe on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=856Jlcu3RqI), and Brielle's house-robe on her own website (https://www.briellecostumes.com/hobbits).
Photo references:
Skill needed: none. I had never used a sewing machine or overlocker before, and had never used a sewing pattern nor sewn a garment. I did, however, receive a lot of advice from family members. This project was a brilliant introduction to sewing and quilting.
Time taken: 1.5 years, but that was with a massive hiatus. Probably <1 month if you knuckled down.
Cost: ~$40 AUD. I got my patchwork material from a lovely woman on Facebook who had it as scrap, so it cost me nothing. The thing it cost me the most was time lol
Glossary:
Patches: the small pieces of fabric that will make up each patchwork ‘square’, ranging from 5-15cm
Squares: the 30x30cm squares made by overlocking the ‘patches’ together.
Materials needed:
4m squared of patchwork material
4m squared of lining fabric
2m squared of velvet
Tools needed:
Everything you’d normally need for sewing (pins, thread picker, thread etc)
Sewing machine
Overlocker
Pattern
Patchwork:
1. Find a pattern. I chose to use Burda Style 6094 Size 18 (A) because of three factors: the inclusion of a hood (which is not movie-accurate but I love me a big hood), the availability in my area, and the price. Basically, it was cheap and what I could get fast, but it did the job well. My normal US clothes size is 6, but I wanted the robe to be comfortable and baggy, and it ended up fitting me perfect after the addition of darts along the sides.
2. Choose your fabric. For the patchwork, you’ll roughly need 50 different patterns/colours, each with roughly 50x50cm of fabric to ensure you won’t run out. Very roughly, I used 14 different reds/burgundies, 3 dark oranges, 2 yellows, 10 greens, 4 blues, 10 browns, and an assortment of different floral patterns. I would recommend avoiding whites, light colours, and bright colours, and black. All colours should be autumnal and muted for best accuracy to the original. Lay all of your fabrics on the floor to see which ones stand out and don’t look right. For the lining, I chose a nice cotton with a repeating floral pattern. Patterns are good because they hide stains and irregularities. For the velvet trim, I used a burgundy/dark red velvet, though I can’t remember what kind. All I know is that it did not stretch, which was brilliant.
3. Cut out your patches. I needed roughly 700 patches for 4m squared of final patchwork. Yeah, it sounds crazy, I know. But if you knuckle down, you should be done cutting them out in 3-7 days. It has been recommended to me that using a roller cutter would be more time efficient, however, I used scissors due to personal preference. I made these patches in four different sizes to offer variety and visual interest: 7x7cm, 7x12cm, 12x12cm, and 7x17cm. When overlocked together, the theory was that it would use up 1cm of bias on each side of each patch, making them easy multiples of 5 to figure out (e.g. 7x7cm became 5cmx5cm because 1cm on each side was used up). This allowed me to more accurately make each square 30x30cm. I made templates for these patches out of a stiff and durable cardboard. Start out by cutting 3 of each different size patch from each fabric pattern (e.g 3 of the 5x5cm, 3 of the 5x10cm etc). This will not be the last of cutting patches, but it will give you a good starting point from which you can judge how many more you might need.
4. Prepare the patches. Run the patches through the washing machine on cold wash to avoid uneven shrinkage once overlocked together (I put them in a bra bag to avoid a patch induced disaster in the washing machine). Hang them out individually to dry on an airer, though I suppose you could stick them in a dryer if you have one. Iron them flat once completely dry (yes it’s tedious, yes it’s necessary), which will make overlocking them together more seamless.
5. Arrange the patches in squares. Toss all of your patches on a flat surface and clear a large space (preferably on the floor or large table) where you can start assembling your 30x30cm squares, which will be joined to make the final patchwork fabric. When deciding which colours go where, I would recommend grabbing about 20 patches of varying sizes and dimensions (no two with the same pattern), and with at least one yellow patch (it just looked better for some reason). Then just start laying them down, interlocking them and deciding which colours look best together in whichever orientations, making sure to not have two of the same pattern touching, or preferably, within ~20cm. This will make the placement seem spontaneous and natural. Keep going until there aren’t enough patches left to make another whole square. Take lots of photos and number the squares, ensuring you have a reference for when you overlock them together. Put them in bags or some other form of storage, and number them clearly.
6. Overlocking the patches to form squares. Finally, the part you’ve been looking forward to. Compared to the previous steps, overlocking the squares together feels like sprinting 100m after crawling 500m. When overlocking the patches together, try to create straight lines to join them along. See below for an example. Follow actions 1-14 to make this particular square, but it’s just an explanatory example. There are many different orders in which each square can be put together, and sometimes you’ll need to rearrange the way each square is organised to make it easier to overlock together. Make sure that each join uses almost exactly 1cm of bias on each side. Precision is key to a neat product and hassle-free assembly!!
7. Arranging the squares. After making my 45 squares (one of which was omitted because it was terrible), I put them all on the floor and organised them into large panels from which I would cut my pattern. The main body panel required 24 squares arranged in a 6x4 shape, the hood required 6 arranged in a 2x3 shape, and the sleeves required 12 arranged in a 3x4 shape. These dimensions and number of squares required will, of course, be different for everyone, depending on which pattern you use and the size of said pattern. Try to evenly distribute patterns and colours so no two patches of the same colour/pattern are touching. Once you’ve decided you like the look of the arranged squares, take reference photos and stack them in three piles, preferably in order of which ones to overlock together first.
8. Forming the panels. When joining the squares, I found it was easiest to line up the horizontal lines of each square, mostly ignoring the borders on the top and bottom of each square. These will more of less even out by the time the panels have been fully assembled. Below I’ve demonstrated how I assembled the squares into lines. In terms of which panel side to start from, for example the main panel is 4x6 squares, I decided to make four, 1x6 lines out of the squares and then join those to form the main panel. I suppose you could do it any way you wish, that’s just the way I chose. Once you’ve formed your main panels, congrats! No more quilting!
Assembly
9. Cut out your pattern. The pattern I used did not include a lining layer, so I just doubled the pattern and made one set out of the patchwork and velvet, and the other from the lining. When cutting out the patchwork pattern pieces, try and keep everything straight. I cut the main body panels as one piece and added darts on the inside instead of cutting them individually.
10. Follow the pattern to completion. There’s not much more I can say regarding the pattern, as everyone’s will be different to assemble. On the topic of pockets, before I attached the outer to the inner layer, I cut two horizontal, symmetrical lines through the patchwork where I attached my pockets on the inside, between the layers. It was impossible to get the sewing machine in there, so I had to hand sew it. Quite frankly, the top of the pockets looked horrendous, but it was easily covered by adding some red velvet trim over the top, which I also had to hand sew. I also hand sewed three belt loops, which I did before I sewed the bottom hem up. Continue on to completion, making sure to adjust the length and sleeves to fit you best.
Ta da! You’re done! Go forth and enjoy a nice cup of tea on your little armchair and read a book, in true Baggins fashion. Please feel free to ask questions, I’d love to help. :)