Skip to main content

Coat Progress - Part 1

It feels like it has taken me awhile to get to this point, but I'm finally moving forward with my coat. This is a strange time of year to start making a winter coat, since we're so close to spring. Right? Spring is coming, isn't it? Actually, right now it is very windy and snowy outside my window and the temperature is well below freezing. Maybe it's a great time to start a winter coat. Sigh.

I mentioned this awhile ago, but the real reason I'm starting a coat now is that The Preacher and I are going to New York City at the end of March and I'm hoping to bring this coat along and have the buttonholes professionally done at Jonathan Embroidery. I haven't actually tried it, but I suspect that my machine wouldn't be very excited about doing buttonholes on a coat.

Initially, I was going to use Simplicity 2508 - specifically the view made in white on the right side of the envelope. I made a muslin to check the fit and found it to be okay, but after thinking on it for a few days, I decided that it wasn't really what I wanted. It is a beautiful coat when it is buttoned up, but the collar and double-breasted front would look odd if left open.

So, the search for a new pattern began. And it ended when I found BurdaStyle's Talea.

The line drawing looked interesting to me, but I was hooked when I looked at the coat made up and at all the  versions people have posted on the site.


Ironically, the directions suggest using snaps as a closure. I think I'm still going to go ahead with my buttonhole plan.

The pattern is free (as long as you consider 43 pieces of paper and ink needed to print it out negligible) and other than a few oddities in the instructions, it's good. I made up a muslin and all the pieces fit together great. The sleeves practically eased themselves in. Hopefully it goes as well with the wool coating. The major drawback is that it doesn't include pattern pieces for a lining except for the sleeves. A lining seemed pretty important to me, so I drafted those pieces. That isn't something that I've done a lot of, so it took awhile for me to figure out. The cut-on front facing style seemed to make it a little more complicated for me.

I've started sewing some of the small pieces and I'll report about that soon. The further I get into the project, the more excited I am.

Comments

  1. I've looked at that coat many times too - I love all the cute decorative features on it - the only thing that puts me off is the giant collar which, depending on the fabric, may or may not sit well.

    I'm sure you will make a splendid job of it - even if Spring is just round the corner, I'm sure your Spring is still quite cool for a while, right? Our spring is cool for several months and then snap! it's summer.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Love the details of this pattern and I think the style will look great on you.

    ReplyDelete
  3. do you mind uploading the pattern again? Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The pattern is at the BurdaStyle website and can be downloaded there.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Grocery Bags

More gifts! These are just like the still-all-too-ubiquitous plastic grocery bags, but they're fabric.  I followed this tutorial and you actually use a plastic bag as a pattern.  The instructions are very good and include a pocket so that the bag can be folded up and is easy to keep in a purse or a car's glove box. Mostly for the sake of the gift recipients, here's how to fold up the bag.... 1.  Lay the bag pocket side down and fold it length-wise using the edges of the pocket as a guide. 2.  Fold it in half, aligning the top of the handles with the bottom of the bag. 3.  Fold in half again and then reach into pocket with your hand and turn the whole thing (pocket included) inside out. Happy shopping!

Shopping Bags

Most stores in our town charge you a nickel for a plastic bag when you check out. I love this practice and the way that it encourages people to bring their own cloth bags or reuse their plastic ones. My habit of bringing along bags to the grocery store is well established, but I used to find myself stuck at places like the drug store or farmer's market or other impromptu stops. Then I picked up a bag at an upscale kitchen goods store that rolls up quite compactly. Now I keep that in my purse, so I always have a bag with me. I like my bag so much that I wanted to replicate it for the art sale. The final result is a hybrid of the bag I purchased and these that I made last year. The bag is a little bigger than the average plastic grocery bag. The velcro tab is used to keep the bag rolled up, but also can close the top of the bag when it is full. Most of the bag is a single layer of cotton, but the handles are faced. There is a double row of top-stitching around both edges of

The Burda Skirt Again

I'm not sure what prompted it, but awhile ago I decided that I needed a green skirt. The last time I was at Fabricland I saw this green wide-wale corduroy. I wasn't really looking for the skirt to be corduroy and the color was a little different than I was hoping for, but since I had my eyes peeled for awhile and hadn't seen anything better, I thought I'd try the corduroy. After looking for a suitable pattern, I settled on the Burda 2/2010 skirt that I've already used three times . Because of the weight and bulk of the corduroy, I didn't want to try to mess with too many details. I'll use another skirt pattern soon. Really, I will. One of the things I really like about this pattern is the pockets. This time I made the pocket facings and part of the pocket bag out of a cotton woven solid to reduce bulk. Since I'll be wearing this skirt with tights I added a lining. Adding the lining was really simple except that I cut the lining exactly the sam