novelraw Chapter 317 - 315: The Down Jacket I Made from Rustic Cloth Made the Entire Military Compound Drool with Envy!
Chapter 317 - 315: The Down Jacket I Made from Rustic Cloth Made the Entire Military Compound Drool with Envy!
The scissors fell onto the dark blue labor fabric with a crisp "snip" sound.
Gu Lan’s heart trembled along with it.
"Sister-in-law! Is this going to work?"
Gu Lan stared at the fabric on the tabletop, twisting her hands together.
This was the only good fabric left at home. Although its color was dull and it was as stiff as cardboard, at least it was sturdy.
Yet, with Lin Wan Yi’s snip, half of the originally wide and large armhole was cut off, and a large section was taken in at the waist.
"It’s so narrow. How will you stuff it with cotton? Won’t it be too tight to wear?"
Gu Lan was so anxious that she wanted to reach out and snatch the scissors.
In these times, who doesn’t make their cotton-padded jacket bigger? The bigger it is, the warmer and more economical it becomes.
Making it this fitted is something only rich girls would do—not practical!
Lin Wan Yi didn’t even lift her head. The scissors in her hand moved quickly, as if they were dancing on the fabric.
"Who said I’m going to stuff it with cotton?"
"If not cotton, then what? Just those duck feathers?"
Gu Lan pointed at the white fuzz drying on the bamboo mat nearby, looking incredulous.
"That stuff is so light; it doesn’t have any weight. What use is it? Sister-in-law, let’s not fuss over it. If the fabric is ruined, we truly won’t have any left."
Lin Wan Yi stopped her action and patted the cut fabric pieces into Gu Lan’s arms.
"Go, bring that foot-treadle sewing machine over here."
This sewing machine was repaired by Jiang Zhou earlier and had been collecting dust in the corner. Today it finally came in handy.
Although full of doubts, Gu Lan dared not defy her sister-in-law’s orders. She pouted and moved the sewing machine to the edge of the kang.
"Join these two pieces of fabric, the stitches need to be tight, at least two lines."
Lin Wan Yi pointed at the stack of cut inner lining fabric.
It was fine cotton cloth she found, a bit old but dense, perfect for making a down-proof liner.
"Two lines? That’s going to use a lot of thread..."
Gu Lan muttered, but her feet kept moving fast.
"Da-da-da-da-da!"
The sound of the sewing machine clattered nonstop in the room.
Lin Wan Yi guided from the side.
"Here, press a topstitch to lock the duck down in the grid; otherwise, it will all bunch up at the bottom when washed."
This is the most basic "filled grid" technique of later down jackets.
But to Gu Lan, it was just a waste of effort.
A good piece of clothing was sewn into blocks like tofu, looking strange and awkward.
Two hours later.
The most difficult step arrived.
Filling the down.
Lin Wan Yi grabbed a handful of fluffy white duck down and stuffed it into the sewn grids.
"Achoo!"
Gu An, watching the fun on the side, had an itchy nose and let out a thunderous sneeze.
This sneeze was no trivial matter.
The ball of duck down Lin Wan Yi had just picked up was blown away.
The white fluff floated around like snow, swirling all over the room.
"Hehehe!"
Gu An was overjoyed.
He stretched his little hands and grabbed randomly in the air, sticking the caught fluff onto his head.
"Awoo!"
Little Grey, who was lying by the bed, wasn’t spared either.
A piece of fluff just landed on its nose.
The mighty "Wolf King" now looked like a goofy dog, cross-eyed focusing on the fluff on its nose, shaking its head furiously.
But it couldn’t shake it off.
It was so anxious it used its front paws to scratch its nose, inadvertently bringing up a bunch more fluff from the ground.
The room instantly resembled a silk cave.
Gu Lan had white fluff on her hair and eyebrows, looking like a white-haired woman.
"Sister-in-law! This is impossible! Flying everywhere!"
Gu Lan shouted frantically while spitting out fluff from her mouth.
Lin Wan Yi was a bit disheveled too, but looking at Gu An rolling in laughter in the pile of fluff, she didn’t show a hint of impatience on her face.
"Close the windows, close the doors."
Lin Wan Yi pulled Gu An out of the fluff pile and handed him over to Little Grey to watch.
"Move quickly, stuff it in and seal it immediately."
The whole family seemed to be in a battle.
Gu Lan held the bag open, Lin Wan Yi grabbed the down, and the sewing machine was ready to seal at any moment.
They toiled like this until after midnight.
Exhausted, Gu Lan eventually lay down on the table beside the sewing machine and fell asleep.
In her hand, she was still clutching a half-sealed sleeve.
The kerosene lamp in the room flickered, casting a faint light.
Lin Wan Yi glanced at her sleeping sister-in-law and son.
She stood up and gently rolled up the few unfinished pieces and the remaining fabric.
With a single thought.
She disappeared from the room.
...
Inside the space.
It was as bright as day here, with fresh air, unlike the piercing cold outside.
Lin Wan Yi spread the clothes on the grass.
Outside, only one night would pass, but here she had several days’ time.
Enough.
She picked up a needle and thread and sat by the Spiritual Spring.
The coarse labor fabric, although sturdy, was indeed too plain.
To make it stunning, the details had to be well-crafted.
Lin Wan Yi’s fingers flew rapidly.
On the maroon collar and cuffs, she embroidered a few subtle orchids with black thread.
This was the technique of Su Embroidery.
The patterns were small, hidden in the folds, looming indistinctly.
Not ostentatious, but exuding an indescribable sense of elegance.
Next was the waist.
She added a drawstring inside the waist, and with a gentle pull, the originally straight garment could immediately highlight the waistline.
This design, even decades later, would be a classic, and in the present time, it was a game-changer.
Time passed by, second by second.
There is no fatigue in the space.
Lin Wan Yi finished making two coats in one go, and with the leftover scraps, she fashioned a little one-piece down suit for Gu An, and a pink small quilt for Gu Ning.
All done.
She looked at the clothes in her hand, light yet fluffy, and gave them a satisfied pat.
"This is what clothes should be."
...
Early the next morning.
Gu Lan was woken up by the cold.
The fire in the stove had long gone out, and the room was as cold as an ice cellar.
She sat up drowsily and sniffed.
"So cold...sis, are the clothes done..."
Before she could finish speaking, she froze like someone pressed a pause button.
In front of the mirror, there stood a person.
It was Lin Wan Yi.
She was wearing a dark red coat.
Not the kind of bulky cotton-padded jacket like a barrel, nor the stiff military coat.
That coat reached to the knees, and the color was a true red, like a flame in winter.
The most extraordinary part was the waist.
Such a thick coat, yet it was cinched at the waist, perfectly accentuating Lin Wan Yi’s already good figure.
A fluffy fur collar at the neckline (which Lin Wan Yi had modified from an old scarf) encircled her neck, making her face appear palm-sized and glowing white.
Both warm and stylish.
Just like a movie star walked out from a magazine.
Gu Lan opened her mouth wide, nearly drooling.
"What...what is this?"
Lin Wan Yi turned around, holding another coat in navy blue.
"Awake? Try yours on."
Gu Lan scrambled up, not even bothering with her shoes, and grabbed the navy blue coat.
It felt extremely light.
Light as a cloud.
"Sis, is this really warm? Feels like I’m wearing nothing."
Gu Lan was skeptical, but couldn’t wait to put it on.
As soon as she slipped it on.
A warmth enveloped her whole body instantly.
That sensation wasn’t the heavy heat from cotton pressing down on you, but a swift and light warming.
Like crawling into a sun-warmed blanket.
Gu Lan fastened the buttons and, imitating Lin Wan Yi, pulled on the drawstring at the waist.
"Ah—"
She looked at herself in the mirror, gasping.
Was this still the broad-backed, stout Gu Lan?
The girl in the mirror stood straight, with a slender waist, and the navy blue coat made her skin appear several shades lighter.
Especially the few faint orchid embroideries at the cuffs and collar, which instantly elevated this rustic coat’s class by a thousand miles.
"Oh my!"
Gu Lan covered her mouth, her eyes wide open.
"Sis! Is this me? Is this really me?"
She twirled twice in front of the mirror, the coat hem flaring slightly like a blooming trumpet flower.
"This coat is too pretty! It’s even better than those hundred-yuan woolen coats at the department store!"
Lin Wan Yi was dressing Gu An in the specially made little one-piece suit.
Gu An was turned into a round little red ball, only revealing a tender white face.
He was overjoyed.
He toddled over with short legs, and hugged Lin Wan Yi’s leg, rubbing his face against the smooth fabric of the down jacket.
"Mama! Soft! Fragrant!"
"Warm!"
Gu Lan was still admiring herself in the mirror, unwilling to take it off.
"Sis, are we really going out in this today?"
Gu Lan was both excited and a bit scared.
"This is too eye-catching, no one in our compound has worn anything like this before. If Aunt Wang and others see us..."
Lin Wan Yi straightened her collar and picked up Gu Ning, placing him in the specially made down quilt.
She opened the door.
The cold wind whistled in.
But this time, she didn’t shiver.
The excellent windproof and warmth feature of the down jacket kept the cold firmly outside.
Lin Wan Yi turned back, looking at the hesitant Gu Lan.
"What are you afraid of?"
"Good things are made to be seen."
She picked up the backpack from the ground, containing her materials for reporting at Beijing University.
"Let’s go."
"Today, going to Beijing University, we’ll wear this outfit."
Gu Lan looked at her sister-in-law’s upright back, and all her timidness vanished instantly.
Indeed.
Having such beautiful clothes, it would be foolish to hide them away!
Let those who gawked at them collecting duck feathers stare their eyes out!
Gu Lan raised her head, proudly following along.
...
From the military compound to Beijing University, they needed to take two buses.
It was the rush hour for work.
The bus station was crowded with people wearing bulky black cotton coats and green military uniforms.
Everyone huddled their necks, stomped their feet, breathed white mist, all freezing like quails.
Just then.
Two figures approached.
The crowd fell silent.
All gazes, as if drawn by magnets, swiftly turned towards them.
What kind of clothes were those?
Why were they so red? So bright?
Why were they so light, yet looked so warm?
Why was that woman’s waist...so slender?!