Made By a Fabricista: The Seven Day Coat

Hi Fashionistas!!!

I have missed you. I have been a busy little sewing bee. Earlier this year when I started thinking about my bucket list, making a winter coat was one of the items on my list. And that is what I have been working on for the last seven days....

When I started thinking about coat making, I had a structured coat in mind. I have always been fascinated with the structure that goes inside a tailored jacket or coat, so I decided I wanted shoulder pads, I wanted hair canvas and pad stitching, I wanted sleeve headings, I wanted it all!!!

I chose to go with a design that was a bit millitary-esque. I exaggerated the neckline for a more dramatic look and used custom-made shoulder pads to add structure to the garment. I also used hair canvas throughout the neckline to make sure it would stand up. The fabric is a yummy 100% wool melton coating fabric from Fabric Mart. You can check out their gorgeous selection of wool fabric HERE.

I really am in love with this neckline...It's oh-so-majestic!

If you look at my inspiration pic, you will see that my version is very similar to it, with minor variations. Since time was of the essence, I decided to take a ready made pattern and modify it instead of making my own pattern from scratch.

The pattern I used as a base is Vogue 8346 view A, and modified the pattern accordingly to match my inspiration. The main pattern alterations I made included changing the front bodice, and the collar. I also lengthened the coat by an inch and a half. Of course I made a muslin. I actually ended up with three alterations.

Moving on to one of my favorite things about this coat... Not only does it have the gorgeous stand up collar that I wanted, it also converts into a gorgeous shawl collar. I mean... two looks in one?! That's what I'm talking about!

I styled this coat with one of my favorite cowl neck chunky sweaters, a classic double stand of vintage pearls, My favorite skinny jeans and the boots with the furrrrr!!!!!

And the coat looks just as nice with the buttons undone. It's such a classic pointy shawl collar. It's not a true shawl collar because I did preserve the original collar from the center back seam to the shoulder seam.

But no coat is complete with a fabulous lining..... so I lined this coat with a pretty silky fabric just like I did on my wool cape last month!

This was my first time making in-seam pockets. In-seam pockets are actually really easy to sew! I am not sure why I was shying away from them!

I am just loving the back of this coat. The seams pressed beautifully. The fabric was a dream to work with. The lining was so beautiful, it made me want to get up and dance and sing. (And y'all know I cant sing.)

One of the reasons I love sewing so much is that you never stop learning! Here are the new techniques I learned while working on this project:

How to set in a fabulous sleeve (I combined 3 techniques to get the perfect set in sleeve)

How to create custom shoulder pads

The hybrid method of tailoring that combined fusibles and padstitching.

I need an industrial machine (Honey, are you listening?!!!!)

Overall, this was a really amazing project. I hope that you enjoyed reading this. Leave me a comment and let me know what you think about it! I will be doing a "Behind The Seams" blog post on the making of this garment, so you can come into my workshop and take a virtual tour of all that went into making this coat!

And until next time, happy sewing!

-XOXO

Vatsla at Fashion Behind The Seam

Made By A Fabricista: A Tipsy Martini Transitional Three Piece Look

Hello Sewing Friends! It’s Sharon with Sharon Sews with my latest Fabricista make – a three-piece set I can wear as the weather transitions to fall here in Texas. It may look like a summer outfit but there will days filled with sunshine and high temps well into November. At first glance it looks like a nice, lightweight jacket, top and pants. But look closer – it’s sewn from the designer Tipsy Martini cotton sateen that was originally used by the designer for a pajama set. Now I could have sewn myself a pair of pajamas using the Closet Core Carolyn Pajama pattern (available at Fabric Mart) and replicated the designer pajamas. But if I had gone that route the only ones who would have seen this adorable kitschy fabric would be my family. This print is much too cute to hide out at home. This Tipsy Martini cotton sateen fabric was lovely to sew. I used black thread, an 80/12 universal needle, and Palmer/Pletsch Perfect Fuse Medium interfacing (link here). Note that this is a rayon fu

Made By A Fabricista: Hooray for Cozy Fall Sews!

Greetings, all! I am in such high spirits with the best-of-all-seasons just beginning and change is finally in the air. I always rejoice when the sweatiest time of the year passes and we can all take a deep breath and gear up for cozier times. Neighborhood Patterns is a new-to-me designer, and I came across them on Instagram in late summer and fell in love with the Plain Jane Skirt. This is such a simple A-line skirt, but with nice details like large inseam pockets and an optional drawstring, and though I’m sure I could draft this style myself, the appeal of having it all done for me was too tempting to pass up. A sew such as this is a lovely palate-cleanser and this was the first project I sewed after returning from a cross-country trip. Perfect! The gorgeous plaid flannel is exactly what I want to be wearing in the fall. The fabric is SO soft and a pleasure to snuggle up in. Because flannel does not have much body and is prone to stretching or shifting with all its mechanical give,

Made By A Fabricista: Quilted Jacket Chronicle

What do you get when mixing the best things about apparel sewing and machine quilting? A quilted jacket! It's funny that I elected to sew myself a quilted jacket for this Fabricista blog because I don't consider myself much of a quilter. I can count on my hands the number of quilted projects I've made over the last few years. While I fully appreciate the end product of quilting, I don't normally gravitate toward starting quilting projects. That's why making a quilted jacket is a new and exciting project for me! It gives me the fun of making a quilt on a much smaller scale. If you are an avid apparel sewist and are new to quilting, this is the perfect project to take for a quilting test drive! For my quilted jacket, I used the Seamwork Easton Jacket pattern. I decided to stick with a solid-colored fabric for the jacket's exterior and ordered 4 yards of Dark Umber Brown Lycra Stretch Canvas Suiting from the Fabric Mart website. I wanted a contrasting color for the

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