Comments on Gertie's New Blog for Better Sewing: Why Are Coats So Complicated?

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2011-12-23T03:38:50.212-05:00

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Wow, I should have known, looking at your wonderfu...

2009-11-10T03:04:27.716-05:00

Wow, I should have known, looking at your wonderful choices at Burda, that you would choose the very same pattern and coat view in it that I did! You have wonderful taste, I wish we lived closer, I think we'd have fun sewing and creating up a storm together!

Ariana is correct the challenge is the extra weigh...

2009-11-01T20:59:34.995-05:00

Ariana is correct the challenge is the extra weight and fabric to deal with while sewing. Pressing is a big issue too.From looking at your projects, you can do it. The right fabric makes all the difference. Consult the Singer Sewing Library Tailoring book or any of the Palmer Pletsch books or patterns for help. I have made several using the traditional methods and the quicker methods. Both hold up just as well. Buttonholes are also an issue. But if you are able to get to Jonathan Embroidery in NYC they will make them for you. If not, locate a tailor in you area that will make them. They have buttonhole industrial machines that a home sewer can't duplicate. Bound buttonholes are an option though. Good luck with this new project!

I CANNOT WAIT to see which pattern you choose, and...

2009-10-30T16:57:31.095-04:00

I CANNOT WAIT to see which pattern you choose, and what the finished project looks like! And oh, that fabric sounds delicious.

Gertie - have you seen the We All Sew website for sewers? There's tons of links to great sewing stuff, projects, and other sewers - you may find something useful there.

Holy cow, I was JUST looking at that pattern the...

2009-10-29T18:43:37.457-04:00

Holy cow, I was *JUST* looking at that pattern the other day!

I thought it was super cute....but then I realized I have far too many coats already. :(

A coat is a big project. When making one as long a...

2009-10-29T12:04:43.202-04:00

A coat is a big project. When making one as long as you plan on making out of wool along with the additional materials, lining, interling, etc... it is literally a big project and very heavy. I honestly think that is the most challenging aspect of making a coat, dealing with the weight and additional pull of the materials while sewing.

I really don't think it is going to pose any challenges you aren't capable of handling. I'm sure you know this but just watch out for those Vogue instructions, sometimes they want you to do the strangest things, especially on the patterns they mark easy.

Ok one last thing, if you aren't particularly sensitive to wool one of the ways I like to get around the whole lining/interling issue is to use a really tightly woven but lightweight wool suiting for the lining (many fine suitings are slick enough to use as a lining). Then you get your added warmth and lining in one (plus the entire coat is then more breathable.)

I have made a winter coat. And it was a challengin...

2009-10-29T07:50:08.091-04:00

I have made a winter coat. And it was a challenging experience, but a huge part of that for me was that I can't wear wool. So I had to go with a suedecloth for the outside and then do this really heavy quilted lining in order to get the warmth I need, and that ended up being so stiff once I got it all layered and quilted that it made the coat difficult to assemble. But since you can wear wool, it won't be nearly so hard, so don't give up!

I tried making a coat and I've made one comple...

2009-10-28T19:08:36.430-04:00

I tried making a coat and I've made one completely the wrong size and screwed everything up... it was really awful.

That being said, I started a new one and I'm following all the instructions as best I can and it's turning out very nicely. Just take your time and don't get in a hurry. That is always my problem...

In the interest of full disclosure, I've never...

2009-10-28T08:57:30.981-04:00

In the interest of full disclosure, I've never made a coat.

I agree with kbenco. Compare a ready-to-wear coat with the instructions and you'll see what has been left out of the instructions.

But I still think you should go for it. :)

That Coat is beautiful! Too bad it doesn't get...

2009-10-28T00:14:47.822-04:00

That Coat is beautiful! Too bad it doesn't get cold enough around here for me to even begin to contemplate such a complex project. I wish you the best in this. It will look awesome!

I'm sorry to disagree with the "just go f...

2009-10-27T19:54:17.944-04:00

I'm sorry to disagree with the "just go for it" vibe here, but I think your Modern Vogue pattern is deceiving you. IMO the instructions should start with "Consult a good tailoring reference". The blog ejvc suggested would do. If you make a coat without fiddly interfacing and lining etc etc, you will be able to wear it, but will you be happy with it? I threw out my first real jacket, made from the instructions in the Vogue pattern envelope, after I had made one from the same pattern, using tailoring references, which I liked about a thousand times better. A nicely made coat would be worth all the work.

This may be a dumb question, but what kind of fabr...

2009-10-27T19:08:43.979-04:00

This may be a dumb question, but what kind of fabric would you use for interlining?

I have an OOP Butterick retro 6758 pattern (1944) from 8ish years ago that I still think is darling but never did anything with; I eye it every now and then but it still raises more questions than longing, so remains shelved indefinitely. It doesn't call for any special construction materials, though, just fusible interfacing (would that even stay stuck to a woolly coating?). I wonder if the original was more complicated.

I have that exact pattern to make my winter coat!!...

2009-10-27T18:16:52.334-04:00

I have that exact pattern to make my winter coat!! I was going to go with vintage but I wanted something double-breasted and shorter -- and that one was just too perfect, I stopped looking at vintage when I found it. I have to make the little one's coat first though (since I have coats, and she grew out of all of hers), so I haven't gone whack whack into my wool melton yet.

I turned some coats of mine inside out and upside down and yeah, even some of the really nice ones have very little of the supposedly necessary details -- my favorite has nothing but shoulder pads and a lining.

Of course you can do it!

I recently made my first coat: Vogue 1128, very vi...

2009-10-27T17:25:14.585-04:00

I recently made my first coat: Vogue 1128, very vintage-inspired, out of a Ralph Lauren hunter-green
wool. The welt pockets were the only (slightly) difficult things, otherwise it was like making a really big wool shirt! I LOVE it. It could easily be interlined/pad stitched or otherwise gussied up, tailoring-wise.

This is the second season I've been staring at...

2009-10-27T16:12:53.222-04:00

This is the second season I've been staring at a Vogue coat pattern, too scared to follow through. Even bought the purple velvet to make it from. Looking to you for inspiration please!

I've made a coat for our Wisconsin winters. I...

2009-10-27T15:29:30.068-04:00

I've made a coat for our Wisconsin winters. I chose an artsy but simple design, lined it and interlined it and altered the pattern to attach a hood attached to a scarf. If that makes sense - I HATE a cold draft down my neck. It was WORK lugging that thing back and forth from table to machine. But it was SO worth it to see the looks on faces when, people would compliment it and I'd calmly reply "Thanks - I made it." So do it - if for no other reason then you will impress the heck out of people.

Plus I'm so jealous about the fabric from Paro...

2009-10-27T14:27:18.727-04:00

Plus I'm so jealous about the fabric from Paron's! Nothing close to me but JoAnn's!

Do it!! I'm sure you will do it great! I have ...

2009-10-27T14:24:54.182-04:00

Do it!! I'm sure you will do it great!
I have never done a winter coat BUT I?m gonna do it next month, I laready have the fabric and the pattern, as you I want to do a vintage one but I ordered a modern pattern that looks like vintage.
I can imagine your coat, red color is great! Good luck with that project! =)

Go for it!! Coats really aren't as complicate...

2009-10-27T13:52:43.813-04:00

Go for it!! Coats really aren't as complicated as you think! I can't post a link to it, because it's down at the moment, but I made the Nancy coat from BurdaStyle last winter. Only materials were my wool outer, I used a quilted satin lining and some interfacing. The beauty of it is that it is one of the few winter coats that I have had that the sleeves are actually long enough for me.
It was a bit of a time consuming project, but it wasn't difficult - and definitely very rewarding.

I say take the plunge! :) Albeit, I haven't ma...

2009-10-27T13:40:34.327-04:00

I say take the plunge! :) Albeit, I haven't made a coat yet (just short jackets), since most of my coats end up being vintage thrift store finds that fit the bill. That being said, making a coat from scratch is still on my sewing list for the future!

I guess, my only piece of "advice" (and this is just what makes sense to moi), would be to follow your intuition about what components of coat making are important to you. I know I've read a lot of articles on the subject, and they really do tend to make it seem like this big, scary ordeal that you must do x, y, and z, otherwise the coat won't be "good enough". Big, fat whatever. ;) lol! You have a natural knack for sewing already, and I daresay anything you attempt will turn out lovely! :)

You can do it! A couple of years ago I made a woo...

2009-10-27T13:28:05.975-04:00

You can do it! A couple of years ago I made a wool coat for my little girl--it's the Vogue pattern, the only one for girls, but a real long winter coat with lining--and even though it was quite a lot of work, it came out beautifully. I got a zillion complements on that project!

(However, living in CA, I didn't have to worry about warmth all that much.)

It's so exciting! Starting a new project with...

2009-10-27T12:11:43.923-04:00

It's so exciting! Starting a new project with new techniques and things, I mean.

I've been meaning to make a coat for a while now, myself, but I just can't justify it. I already have a lovely warm wool coat.

But I love that pattern you have picked out. I think it would be marvelous worked up in red!

Garnet

I'm with most of the other commenters - Don...

2009-10-27T11:49:13.907-04:00

I'm with most of the other commenters - Don't give up! I've made a few coats, and this is something that just takes a bit more patience but if you've sewn a jacket you can definitely do a coat. Vogue isn't lying to you that there doesn't have to be any hair canvas or other complications... I took apart an old J Crew coat a few years ago and discovered that there wasn't even any interfacing in it (it was a melton coating), which made sense to me when I thought about it that the heaviness of the fabric would preclude the need for additional structure.

Of course you're going to make the coat! After...

2009-10-27T11:42:42.658-04:00

Of course you're going to make the coat! After the other pieces you've made, this will be a snap!

I want to make a coat this winter too. Mine will...

2009-10-27T11:23:07.272-04:00

I want to make a coat this winter too. Mine will be a boring charcoal grey cuz I love that color on me. Still trying to find the pattern, the one I want is an oop Burda magazine. Melissa over at Fehrtrade made a great interlined coat last year and has many blog post detailing her work. Check that out for a reference, http://www.fehrtrade.com/gallery/195/the-warmest-winter-coat-ever.