| Somewhere recently I saw a picture of a brightly colored trench coat that instantly sparked The Crazy in me--I needed to make a skirted, bright Trench coat. ASAP. First, I needed a pattern. Thank You, HobLob for perfectly-timing your 99-cent Pattern Sale and having just the one I was hoping would exist. First of all, you'll notice the big bold "EASY" description. Um. No. At least not for me it wasn't. I actually got through the pattern without ripping out any seams, but the thing took probably 5 hours, had tons of Hand-stitching (my nemesis) and didn't even factor in the button or tie-belt detail. Both finishes I had to make up myself. (Not that hard, I realize, but it made it that much longer.) "EASY" in my book is fast to put together and all on the machine. So word to any sewists out there: Beware. You can do it, but it'll take a heck of a lot longer than you expect an "easy" pattern to take. (I made version C). |  |
Then, Fabric. Thank You, Denver Fabrics for your amazing selection, at wholesale prices. (And thank you to you gals who helped me decide colors via text message while I was in the store-- you know who you are ;) )
The Red is a Poly Poplin and the Lining is a super-soft silver something-or-other (I didn't even look, I was sold at the softness). All for 17 bucks. YES.
Here's a few images of it in process...
The Red is a Poly Poplin and the Lining is a super-soft silver something-or-other (I didn't even look, I was sold at the softness). All for 17 bucks. YES.
Here's a few images of it in process...
 Top Front |  Love that gorgeous Lining! |  Top attached to bottom. That rough Lining edge had to be hand sewn shut to keep the seam hidden from the outside (I hand-stiched using a Blind Hem technique-See below) |
 I should have slip-stitched the armholes with the liner to cover the seams, but I hate sewing by hand. So I said, 'Forget it, I'm serging that closed. And I don't feel like changing the thread color. No one will see it.' Well now it drives me nuts. Serves me right. |  |
 | Because the pattern didn't include a waistband tie, I ran out of fabric. Instead of driving 1/2 hour to DenFab for more, I crossed my fingers and went on a hunt at Joann. Thank goodness I found a matching shade of red (the hardest color to match, by the way) in a similar-weight, slightly ribbed fabric. Can't even tell, right?! (I also scored Buy One, Get One Free Buttons in a iridescent kind of Grey to match the liner.) I put a belt loop in the back center and one under each arm on the side seam, then tacked the belt in place a few times to keep it from folding or twisting. |
I also omitted the shoulder pads. For obvious reasons. (the primary being that it's not 1993 anymore. Enough said.) Because of that, though, I had to gather the top of the sleeve a little bit to fit-no biggie. Looks good that way.
Aaaaand....TA-DAA!!
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 |  Possibly my favorite part of the whole thing? The hidden pockets! Made even better by contrasting fabric (just used the liner, obviously). I actually put these in backwards and had to try again--whoops. |
And just because: how gorgeous is the area we are so blessed to live in?! These hills never cease to amaze me with their beauty all year long. Seems like I should be twirling in my fancy new coat singing "The Hills are Alive" or something. Ahh, God is Good.
So, end of story: McCall's Pattern #6442 is decent. A little tweaking here & there and you can make a store-bought look & quality Trench. Who's gonna give it a try?!
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