Leopard Coat Update or "Meet Me in Miyake"

With all the celebrating this week, you might think I've neglected my Miyake coat project, Vogue 2038.  Well I haven't.

Even a coat like this one, which doesn't call for a lot of interfacing or require much hand sewing, takes a long time to put together.  There are seams to bind, topstitching to add just about everywhere, and changes to make to the original design.  Yes, I've made a few changes -- minor, but significant.



First, I decided not to include double welt pockets in front.  I didn't want to cut into the knit fabric, however stable it may be, and since the coat is only half lined, I didn't want interfacing visible where the pocket was reinforced.  I toyed with the idea of oversized patch pockets, but I didn't have enough fabric for that -- I literally have nothing but scraps left over.

Did I ever show you a close-up of this fabric?  It has a surface texture reminiscent of old-fashioned carpet padding.

An early stitching test.

In the end, I decided to put the pockets in the seam between the front and side pieces, which is only slightly further back than the welt pockets would have been.  Naturally, I had to reinforce the seams so they wouldn't stretch out, but I was able to do this invisibly; most of the important seams in this coat are reinforced with stay tape because I'm working with a knit.

The pocket back -- the side you see if you open the coat -- is made from my fashion fabric.  The pocket lining is black cotton sateen.







They came out really well and they're exactly where I'd want them on the coat.



The version of the coat I made has a narrow shawl collar (that doesn't fold over).  Rather than use intefacing, I interlined the collar with the same wool melton I used for my front facings.  It adds the right degree of strength, and the added thickness helps to highlight the topstitching.





As I think I mentioned earlier, for the half lining I used a thin wool plaid remnant from my toggle coat project of a few years back.



An ongoing issue is closures.  I originally planned to purchase buttons (and have buttonholes made at Jonathan Embroidery), but now that the coat is nearly finished, and given how cape-like it drapes, buttons don't seem right.  I have an oversized gunmetal gray snap that would work well enough and not stand out against the black and gray of the print.  If I wanted, I could get a few more too.



I may explore other options.  I think less is more though.

When you see this coat next week, I think you'll agree that it's half Elton John and half Joan Crawford, but it is fabulous, which is not a word I generally use to describe the garments I sew for myself.  Because it's so oversized, it's perfect to wear over a suit.  Actually, I could wear it over five suits.

I still have hemming to do this weekend, but other than that, I'm pretty much done.

Readers, I do hope your sewing projects are going well, and that you didn't overindulge on pie yesterday.   If you did, you may want to join Freddy and Willy on the treadmill...



Have a great day, everybody!