Trench coat: progress and details

The hardest part of making anything, especially something made up of many complicated parts, is, actually, making the decision.  And decisions.

In this case, stuff like:
 topstitching:  single pass or double?  single.  Self or contrasting?  darker than self but not in your face contrast.  Normal thread or jeans/heavy weight?  I went with extra strong, which thinner than jeans weight, but some small fiddly things like belt loops are stitched with self coloured regular weight thread - the heavier thread didn't seem appropriate on the very small stuff.

Aside from choosing to make two piece sleeves, one of the more interesting questions I had posed myself was the construction of the yoke and gun flap.  It occurred to me that it would be sort of cool if this piece could be simply free floating on the coat itself, with neckline and armscyes  being the only seams where it's attached to the coat.  To that end, I added a "mini gun flap" to the left side:



I deliberately cut the lining a little larger than the FF, to allow for potential fraying during handling. 

The order of construction was, stitch left and right front flaps to the yoke, press shoulder seams to front and topstitch them, add the epaulette carriers, and only THEN attach the lining.  This way the lining smoothly sits between the yokes and the coat itself.   The shoulder seams of the coat itself are pressed to the back which minimizes the thickness at that point.

There are no buttonholes on anything yet; I usually do those as the very last step.  That button is just sitting pretty pretending it's attached.

A word on this fabric.  (aside: is this really what Bur6erry uses in their trench coats? it seems heavier than what I saw in stores recently).  This fabric is like milled cast iron, it's that tough and strong.   It's so ......um, stiff, yeah, there, I said it - when it comes right down to the nitty gritty it's pretty much stiff as a board, and I do hope it softens in wear.  See that epaulette below? It isn't even interfaced, and doesn't it have super legs?

So, after dithering for a bit (decisions, decisions), I decided not to interface the facing.  I was afraid I'd feel I was walking wrapped in cardboard if I did.  Instead, I added a wedge of fusible hair canvas to the lapel area of the CF, pinked off at the lapel fold diagonal line. Should I tape it?  Any advice on that? (I didn't)

Things are coming along.  I'm almost at the point of cutting the facing and lining layer.

Jan 2015 update:  a few detail shots of the finished coat.

Collar tab buttonhole is non-functional, so I left it uncut.

Shoulder tab:

 Left gunflap:

 Sleeve and belt buckles, pocket, topstitching details:

Two piece lower collar, cut on the bias for a nice chevron pattern:

And, note the nice high collar stand.  Great for keeping the wind off my neck!

Cut!

So I did. All of it. I had JUST enough for the pattern plus the trenchy yoke and a three-piece hood. I freehanded the yoke, but am going to muslin the hood before making the final cuts, as there's no room, er, fabric, for making mistakes here. Not bad for 2.4 meters, eh? Being vertically challenged has its benefits.

A confession: I didn't muslin it - but it's an unfitted coat, and I did measure bust & hip circumferences pretty carefully first. Size 76/12UK/8US has 45" across the bust and 46" at the hip. More than sufficient, still I cut the SA's a little wider, just in case I'll want more ease over my nethers. I added 8 cm for the hem fold and 6 cm for the sleeve folds. The collar-shawl as drafted is so high I'd need a periscope to get around, so I lowered it by 1" - it now clears my eyeballs. I'm not too crazy about pocket linings playing peekaboo with the public - a little too your slip is showing, ma'am - so I widened the SA's at the pocket openings. Oh yes, and I added a half-raglan seam in the back so I can sew the trenchy-yokey-thingy into it.

That was yesterday. Today I started quilting the underlining to the ff. Cashmere is warm, it's light, it's a pettable delight, and it's delicate - so it needs support.

I found the perfect fabric in my stash - a wool-poly blend, lightweight, very flexible, stable in both directions, adds a little warmth, totally ideal for the job. I knew I'd never use it for anything else because - no offence, underlining! - it's the ugliest shade of dark dingy grey imaginable. Must've been an internet purchase or a freebie, 'cause if I'd ever come nose to nose with it in real life I'd have turned my nose up at it faster than a sneeze. I already tried to fob it off on hubby, offering to make him a pair of garden worthy trousers, and even that didn't sell. But as underlining, this ugly fabric rocks!

Here's the underlining quilted onto the centre front piece. I sneakily put selvedge at the facing fold line to make it do the job of tape. You can see me changing my mind as to the length of the stitches along the edge, and then revising my approach to the quilting. The straight basting with a tiny backstitch every 3 or so forward stitches is much easier to control, and to hide on the front side. All other panels are, or will be, quilted that way. With chalk lines to keep the stitching straight.

Parting shot: my freehanded trenchy-yoke.