McCall's 6657 In Red

Hi

I've realized that it is getting cold outside and I've decided that a coat is in order.  This Summer, the idea of a coat was all I could really think about.  I kept putting it off and for good reason, I had never made one.  Of course you have blazers and light jackets, but when it came down to it, if you haven't gone to the attack of an actual "Coat", you haven't really delved into "fabric".

A few weeks ago, I made the jump, but before I even dared to tackle the fabric, I took a look at different online courses that would help guide me in the right direction.  Because I subscribe to Patternreview and Burdastlye I felt those two should be the starting point for more information.  Here's the kicker,,,just as I was finishing my coat Burdastyle came up with a cute quiz that helps you decide which courses to take according to the direction that you want your sewing skills to go.  That little nudge of direction would have been very helpful to me last month.  However, I began my project with a look at a blog I found last year, Ten Thousand Hours of Sewing.

Last year this young lady (Known to me as) Victoria, went through a personal experience with James McFarland and his dynamic tailoring techniques.  Her blog made me feel as if I were taking the courses with her, only I wasn't actually present to get the real deal.  Boy was I green, but now I have the opportunity to have a similar experience with Gentleman Jim because he is now teaching Master Fit: Advanced Tailoring on Burdastyle.

Needless to say that with this project I didn't have his help, but I will definately be having him next to me on some of my future projects.  So, here is my very first COAT!!!!

For this coat my daughter chose McCall's 6657.  I've had this pattern in my stash for a while because it is now OOP.  Believe me when I say that when I purchased this pattern my intentions were to make it right away, but the idea of a coat was more powerful than the will.  I had a piece of wool that I really didn't want to part with on this particular coat, but hey, it can only cut once, right?
I love the color of this coat and once finished my daughter was in love.  As I was putting the pieces together, she kept saying that I was making her a robe.  The fur collar kind of changed her mind.

The Review

Pattern Description:  Misses unlined/lined coast with different variations.

Pattern Sizing:  Y (XSM - MED)

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?  Yes.

Were the instructions easy to follow?  The instructions were easy, but applying the lining was a bit tricky. (honestly, I started the lining before I read the lining instructions and ended up redoing another set of lining pieces, which makes that my fault. oh oh).

Fabric Used:  Wool

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:  I had to make a pattern specifically for my daughter and I used muslin as a guide for the fit.  With my daughter being a lot of different sizes in 1 the sizes ranged between the medium, small, and extra small. (as reference not numbers).

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?  Yes, Yes.

Conclusion:  This pattern would make a really good pattern to use with a less bulky fabric (poplin, flannel, or brushed wool).  I liked that this was an easier pattern that I had first thought.  It was similar to making a robe, but with more detail on the collar.  The front facing and the front panel had to be lined in order to get the collar to line up for tacking.
I used a heavy weight interfacing and a lot of steam and dry ironing to press this particular fabric to make it workable and to get the seams as small as they would go,  The pins are in place because the idea was to run a seam along the lines and omit the fur collar (here is where the robe look happens).  With my daughter the shoulders were way to long, so I had to cut 1 1/2" off both shoulders and the sleeves.  The S sleeves were too tight and the MED sleeves were too big.  So, I used her arm measurements to make a sleeve that fit between the 2 and added 1/2" for seam allowance.  The bodice of the MED was way too big from the waist down.  Here I had to take her measurements and adjust the muslin to suit her.  I had to take a complete 1" off the back at the top and graded down by 3" from the waist and 4" at the widest hip area.  For the front (without the attached facing and lining) I continued with 1' taken from the top, 3" at the waist and 4" at the hips.  With the lining and front facing I took 1" off the facing that attached to the lining side and used the same 1"- 3"- 4" for the lining piece that connected to the lining back.  I also used those measurements for the lining back.  The sleeve lining was made using the adjusted sleeve muslin minus 1/2".  

Once I had completed all of this it was time to try the coat on again and here is were my young lady says,,,,,,"It's too long".  I can't agree with her on this, but she kind of wanted an above the waist jacket.  I wished she had told me this earlier.  I knew that if I had left the coat as long as it was, she wouldn't want to wear it, so I went back into  the coat lining on the inside left side and cut away 5" from the bottom.  Then cut 1" off the lining and stitched it close all the way across the bottom, closed the side opening and now it is ready for the cleaners.  

Overall, I liked this pattern, but making this coat again is not at the top of my "to do" list.  My daughter has expressed to me that she wants more collars since the fur one is removeable and I do see those in the future, so as I complete those, I'll keep you up to date with that.

Well, that concludes today's post.  I hope you enjoy it.  Thank you for joining me.

Lots of Love 
Dellia

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