Is a wardrobe complete without a trench coat? Well, of course it is; you don’t need all that many clothes if you don’t want. But I love clothes, and I had a gap in my spring outerwear the shape and size of a classic trench coat.
A sturdy trench that isn’t made of plastic easily retails for $300 these days, and I imagine that price has only increased in the last six months with everything becoming way more expensive due to the needless war with Iran. That’s not an expense that I could justify. I did, however, have some beige cotton canvas/denim and linen already in the stash.
Before getting started, I did try on a $15 “trench coat” made of cotton from TJMaxx and it was about as thin as wrapping paper. Not going to work as a functioning coat.
Back to my fabric stash and Burda 6461, also already on hand. The pattern was a little complicated and it took me two tried to put the collar facing together correctly. The pockets are a touch low, and because there’s so many seams around the body, there’s not a lot of room for adding additional concealed pockets between the shell and lining. I did add one tall welt pocket for stashing keys.
The sleeves had an upper and a lower, so I couldn’t put them on before sewing up the side seam, as is my preference, and so it also took a few attempts to get the gathers right on the shoulders. There are shoulder pads, but I don’t know how much of a difference they make on such a heavy fabric.
The closure is six snaps which I sewed on by hand. I also hand-stitched the hems on the bottom and inner sleeves so there’s no thread showing from the outside. I’ve already worn the coat once to a party at the New England Botanical Garden and felt very posh on that sunny but brisk April afternoon.
It’s been a winter of outerwear projects. I’m realizing the other big garment that I finished this winter was also a coat/cloak. I may not get to any other big garment pieces this year! My sewing goes in seasons now, with the late winter/early spring being my one time of year for a large amount of sewing. I’ve got lots of other projects in the pipeline involving crochet, gardening, home improvement, and more painting.
