The Coat - For real. Plus, John's wardrobe

[jessamygriffith]

In which I cut the wool. And then I decided it wasn't long enough, and cut more. Which meant I had to do the interlining by hand AGAIN, but the Coat is not the Coat if it, A. Isn't Long Enough, or B. Doesn't swirl.


Also, decided the black satiny stuff I originally intended for lining was too flimsy, too soft, too sleazy and slutty, like a nylon nightgown or something nasty. Sherlock may be a slut for all we know, but his coat is All Class.

I switched to a stiffer dark grey stuff, more like a soft taffeta. Much better.


If anyone ever wants to know more about what I am doing on the inside of the coat, check out Tailoring - a guide to sewing the perfect jacket. It's all about support and keeping the wool from stretching out.

Also, was at Uniqlo today. Did you know John's jeans for the show came from Uniqlo? Apparently Martin recommended them, said they were a good fit on him. I assume that means he's a short-arse with dachshund legs then, as so many Japanese guys are.

Anyway, I think the BBC should just get all of his clothes there if they don't already. They had the comfy cardigan and checked shirts, look!

Comments

[mildly-neurotic.livejournal.com]

The pleating over the back I suppose is what made it look complicated. Still more garment than I could handle. Did you draft your own pattern?

[jessamygriffin.livejournal.com]

The pleating wasn't so bad, even for the top back. I did make a toile, which I ended up finishing as a test coat and gave it to a friend.

The test coat let me gauge the hang of the pleats, pocket placement etc. I blogged it as well, the test coat.

I HAD planned on adapting a pattern, only to find out I'd lost everything except the pattern instructions, the collar and sleeves bits. Sigh.

[mildly-neurotic.livejournal.com]

Losing bits of a pattern is so annoying.

[jessamygriffin.livejournal.com]

Granted, hadn't looked at the pattern in ages, but how in god's name did I manage to lose such BIG pattern pieces! It was a calf-length coat pattern!

Grumble. Being able to draft it up from the instructions doesn't help my temper. It was a Burda pattern too. I like theirs.

Prefer Vogue's though. Excellent instructions for tricky sewing. You pay more becaue they are worth the avoiding the heartbreak of Butterick and Simplicity.

[mildly-neurotic.livejournal.com]

I rarely clothes, just occasional costumes, so haven't used a lot of commercial patterns. I think I have some vogue patterns from the 80s in the bottom of my sewing box. LOL

One of the reasons tackling a coat impresses me is because I actually am not terribly good at sewing and resort mostly only out of necessity. The patterns I have are almost all from a company called Mediaeval Miscellanea's Period Pattern lines. They actually aren't that great, but the lines are closer to period than modern fashion pattern companies'costume lines tend to be.

I lose bits of them all the time. But I am a careless flighty girl.

[jessamygriffin.livejournal.com]

Medieval Miscellanea/Period Patterns are a bit hellish on some instructions. I have their Tudor ones and the German women's.

But yeah. These days for my own I'll just whack up a test garment for costumes etc. For stuff I sell, I'll use a commercial pattern (shirts or whatev) so I can have approximate sizing.