Alright, let's get into it.
Back and Back Stay
Assembling the back and side back pieces posed no problems. I sewed the center back and side back seams, serged together, and topstitched. Easy peasy.
To make the back stay, I followed the instructions from Gertie's Lady Grey sew-along (Tailoring Your Coat Back) posted in 2010. There are some good tailoring tips in this series that I find very helpful. When I made my version of Colette's Lady Grey coat, I followed the sew-along carefully and since then, I refer back to the techniques when needed.
using the assembled back to trace the stay
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| traced back stay |
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| used pinking shears along the lower curve |
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| completed stay ready to attach |
Front Inseam Pockets
This was the first sign of trouble and the beginning of a series of errors. First, the lining I chose was frustratingly shifty and unwieldy. (I've since abandoned this lining for reasons you'll see later.) Second, I seemed to completely forget how to install inseam pockets. I sewed the side front and center front seams first, then tried to attach the pockets with the tiniest seam allowance. I stood there wondering what in the entire hell went wrong.
Then...it hit me. SIGH. Attach the pocket pair to the front and side front before sewing the seam. Reader, I *know* this. I swear I do. I...just forgot? I unpicked miles upon miles (okay not miles but you get it) of serging, topstitching, and seaming to do this the right way.
very wrong
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| much better |
Those pocket pieces were actually cut the same size. Deep sigh.
Front Yoke
Having finally wrangled the pockets into submission and properly sewed the front & center front seams, it was time to move on to the front yoke. Dear reader, how many front yokes do you think I cut? Two? Three?
Seven. Sept. Siete. Sieben. As in more than six, but less than eight. SEVEN. That extra yard of fabric I bought for potential future facing issues is no more - and I haven't even sewed the facings.
Mistake 1: This wasn't a huge mistake, but it was the first domino to fall. The instructions call for two of the shell pieces to be cut, sewn right sides together, turned out and topstitched. I actually didn't realize this the first time I made the coat 10 years ago and cut one of the pieces out of lining.
Originally I was going to go with an off white rayon Bemberg, but I changed my mind and opted for the awful green rayon shape-shifter. When I placed the second yoke on the right front, something seemed off.
left: first yoke with off-white lining
right: second yoke with green lining
The second yoke had less flowers near the front edge and was very noticeable when placed on top of the right front. There was this weird void that I could not unsee.
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| second front yoke with green lining |
No problem, right? I had extra fabric to cut a new pair of yokes (this time following the instructions) and still have enough for the facings just in case. Yoke count: 2.
Mistake 2: I was so focused on making sure that there were enough flowers covering the entire yoke, that I neglected to cut mirror images [insert all the swears here]. Yoke count: 4
Mistake 3: Determined to get it right this time, I slowed down and paid careful attention to what I was doing. I cut a single yoke, mirrored to one of the two from before, sewed them together, and topstitched. Yoke count is now at 5.
Next was the buttonhole.
I don't know what happened, but the measurement was way off and the buttonhole ended up far too close to the front edge. Because this is a double-breasted coat, the button on the yoke lines up with the other buttons on the right front. So this placement was not going to work.
Oy vey. I cut ANOTHER pair of yokes (6 and 7) and finally got it right. Here is a picture of the front now:
I like the weight of the self-lined yoke and don't know why I never noticed this before.
Collar
The mistakes didn't end with the yoke. I assembled the front and back and sewed the shoulder and side seams. As I am constructing the collar, I think to myself: 'huh, this collar looks really small. Nah, it's probably alright.'
It was not alright.
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| top: new collar with seam allowances bottom: old collar without seam allowances | |
I checked the pattern piece and saw that I'd written "includes SA (seam allowances)." It most certainly did not include seam allowances.
I have no idea why I wrote this when it wasn't true. Maybe it was a note for me to include seam allowances? I don't know. Anyway, I used the last bit of that extra yard to cut two new collars.
Lining
For the lining, I chose this really nice green medium-weight rayon fabric that matched reasonably well with the fabric. The weight was heavy enough to give the coat some body and still maintain fluidity.
It was an absolute nightmare to handle. It was soooooooooo shifty. The slightest movement would distort the fabric in way that made it difficult to recover.
These are pictures of the left and right front lining pieces. In the picture on the left, I had to really work to get the one piece to match the paper pattern. The picture on the right shows the amount of distortion in the other piece. I've worked with slippery fabrics plenty of times, this was next level madness. Suffice it to say, I am not using this lining because I don't feel like fighting with each piece. Unruly fabric is the quickest way to end a project and I am not giving up on my vision.
***
So where are things now? The front, back, and yoke are completely assembled. I've not attached the collar because I am actually considering...(deep breath)...redoing the front.
Okay, hear me out. The front pockets are in, but are green and the fabric I intend to use is orange - bright orange with dragons on it. No one will ever see the pockets, so it shouldn't matter. But but but, I will know and I'm not sure it won't bug me.
I bought two more yards of the floral fabric and will think about what to do over the next few days.
That's all for now. In the meantime, I've pulled another slip from the Garment Grab Bag (Burda 5853) and will trace a shirtdress (9-2006-017) from a Burda magazine. More updates soon! As always, thanks for reading.
L
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