Winter Coats, Part 1
12. Jan, 2010 
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This winter has been very very cold and my ability to sew cold weather coats is really quite challenged. I actually didn’t even sew up a new coat. Instead, we used the one I sewed the year before. I can sew up warm coats, but not below zero, frigid as the North Pole, coats. But maybe next year I’ll give it a try using heavy weight wool or something. Anyone got links to some fashionable winter coats for girls?
This was coat for 2008. This is No. 31 of the 06/2007 Issue of Ottobre Magazine.
The coat has a velvet shell lined with costume fabric, interlined with cotton flannel. All fabric was purchased at JoAnns. The total cost of the coat was $44.00 but that’s because I had to buy an extra yard and a half of Velvet for failing to remember to cut a part WITH the nap. The velvet was $10.99 but I got it at 50% off.
What I liked: This is a very trendy design. I saw similar types of winter coats in stores like the Gap. I loved the elastic on the wrists, although I wasn’t sure if I put it in correctly. The instructions say to sew the elastic at the seamline of the wrist. Instead, I simply surged the 5/8″ elastic to the edge of the sleeves, all three layers and it seemed to work fine. You can check my photostream for a closer look at the sleeve and the interior.
What I changed: I interlined it. The interlining gave the coat great body and it feels like a soft blanket. I sewed the interlining as completely the same pieces as the shell except for the sleeves. I used the lining sleeve pattern for the interlining instead of the two piece shell sleeve.
I went with 1 1/8″ covered buttons. I also quilted the collar which is a detail I saw on a coat in the Baby Gap store. I like the quilted look a lot better than the fluffy one I saw in the magazine. I used polar fleece as the batting for the collar and the puff in the shoulder/sleeve area. I probably could have used another layer of polar fleece to pad out the shoulder/sleeve area.
What I didn’t do so well: the lining. I didn’t quite understand how the lining fit at the bottom. I think I eventually figured it out but it doesn’t look perfect inside. I also wished I had done bound buttonholes but by the time I was done, I didn’t have the energy for bound buttonholes.
What I would change in the future: The problem is that this is warm enough for above 30 degrees, but not below. I’d like to give it another try with a much warmer fabric. Further, it needs pockets. There’s a little rip in the color, but when the winter is over, I’m sending it to Angie for B to use.
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Holy Hell. You are amazing talented. I’m receiving word from my fashion-sensitive uterus that it’s willing to try for girls if only for the hand-me-downs from Planet Runway where you live!!
Beautiful coat!
To make a coat warmer, try adding another layer inside. Line either the outer fabric or the lining fabric with flannel, polar fleece, something windblocking, etc (treat the two fabrics as one–baste them together as necessary for ease in sewing). There are also some warmer lining fabrics on the market that are heavyweight, satiny on one side and flannel-like on the other. I think they’re normally sold as “coat lining”
I would guess that this pattern would not be well suited to either a heavier fabric or an extra layer–too many ruffles. I would look for a plainer coat without the gathering. This is a nice dressy style anyway, and seems designed for wearing just long enough to scamper from the coach-and-four to the castle door
I used to subscribe to Burda Magazine, and they always had dozens of coat patterns every fall/winter (mostly women’s sizes, but a few childrens as well). They always have beautiful styles.
I’ve never thought to attempt a coat. Yours is beautiful. It makes me want to make one too. I LOVE red!