I've been meaning to blog my coat since November, but just never got round to it. I've been sewing lots (and not just baby stuff), it's just I never really felt like bringing it to the blog - anyone else ever feel the need for a blog sabbatical? However, with baby almost here, I thought I'd put on my favorite wedges, some make-up and take some pics of me in all my swollen glory. Mr Szabo and I have realised we don't have that many photos of me documenting the pregnancy - so, baby Szabobobo here is what your Mama likes to get up to in her spare time.
Towards the end of last year I made a cocoon-style coat, which I've been wanting for some time having seen some gorgeous versions from Stella McCartney and other designers. I wanted something over-sized, which would work with my pregnancy and after.
For the pattern I chose the Round Coat from Burda - minus the dodgy faux fur panels at the bottom. I initially had the Burda magazine with the pattern, but I took one look at those pattern lines and thought, um... NO! So I bought the PDF, although it might be the lesser of two evils it still made me want to collapse in a broken heap.
For some time I've had this camel coloured wool coating in my stash - it's from Dalston Mill and was quite pricey at the time. Although I don't buy wool anymore for ethical reasons, I didn't want to be wasteful and decided that if I loved this coat, I'd probably keep it for a long time anyway, so it would at least be unwasted and sustainable.
Pattern wise...well...it's Burda, so after the whole nightmare of sticking together the PDF pattern and realising that certain bits were for a completely different pattern altogether, I then had the instructions to deal with.
To be fair, the coat is fairly straightforward to begin with. There's no collar, lapels or even set in sleeves to fuss about, you just sew up the panels and the raglan-style sleeves and you pretty much have a coat! Plus, being pregnant I decided against doing any grand tailoring techniques. I figured this kind of coat is supposed to be loose and slouchy - I also felt that less time sewing, is more time eating.
Turns out my only issue making this was adding the lining.
As you can see I chose a brushed cotton from Calico Laine to make the coat warm and cosy. However, Burda's instructions for inserting this made as much sense to my preggo brain as a life without grape nut flakes (I can eat a box for England) plus the lining didn't fit the neckline facing, so at that point I chucked the instructions aside and did my own thing. I trimmed the lining neckline to make it bigger and then, making sure I had both sides symmetrical, I pinned the lining to the facing and hand stitched it in place, leaving two pleats at the bottom near the hem for ease. It seems to have worked well and the coat hangs nicely without being pulled up at the bottom. Huzzah!
Another step I added myself was to use nylon horse hair in the coat hem. I tried without first but the hem really lacked structure - with the horse hair it has a far better shape, plus is a tiny bit weighted.
To finish, I used medium sized poppers from Ray Stitch, which I self-covered with lining fabric. To do this, cut out a big circle, sew a large running stitch around the edge, make a tiny snip in the middle to push the 'male' part of the popper through, and then gather fabric around the popper. I'm still wondering whether I should have left these silver, but I haven't really felt arsed to change them!
Um, wind.So, that's my coat! I've worn it lots and it's super warm. If I made it again (which is unlikely) I would probably add more structure to the inside of the two 'button plackets' to stiffen them up. Burda do not make any suggestions for this, but I think it would help the look of the coat when buttoned up.
If you like the style of this, I would definitely recommend you check out Jane's amazing blue coat and Jo's super delish 'coat of many compliments' for similar pattern/fabric options.
Currently on the sewing table is a denim shirt with poppers for easy nursing access - I'm hoping to finish that before the big arrival. However, if I go quiet again, you know why. See you on the other side!
