And boom! It is here! My last sewing project! The Cascade Duffle Coat from Grainline Studio is finally finished! Balloons! Confetti! Alcohol! (ups, maybe this one not now 🙂 ). As you can see I am just a bit happy, hehe! It is my first handmade coat and couldn’t like it more. But hey, don’t think everything was unicorns and rainbows… It has been challenging! Here is a list of what I have learned while making it:
1. Name all parts while cutting the pieces of fabric, lining and interfacing by pining a little piece of paper on each one of them. There are LOTS of parts on this pattern so it helps a lot. And read the instructions twice (or three) times. Make notes and check the posts on the Grainline Studio page if you need to learn/clarify/understand something better before starting.
2. Working with slippery fabrics such as rayon IT IS TRICKY, very tricky. I think my mistake was using it also for the zipper bands. I should have chosen a thicker material to make all that area stronger, as it is the one that suffers the most when using the coat. The fabric was very difficult to handle so the next time I use it again might be on 2030! 🙂
Front view with the coat opened and some lovely tulips 🙂
3. Toggle buttons need to be secured, several times. I hand stitched them and maybe that was not the best idea as I had to do that a couple of times with each of them.
4. Lined hoods are easier to make than what I thought and using a contrasting fabric makes them look super cute!
5. From now on I am also going to line all pockets I make with a contrasting fabric. I am addicted!
Another one with little drops of confetti!
6. Sewing the inside lining correctly it is an essential part of the final fitting of the coat. Don’t be careless as some parts like the sleeves and the hem can look weird (very weird).
No, don’t usually carry a panda hidden on my coat 🙂
7. The ‘bagged’ method looks like what the H*** are you talking about, but trust me, in the end, it works.
8. For me, the zipper was a bit short. When I was stitching it to the coat I double-checked the length but it was the correct one. For me it would do better with a 3cm or 5 longer zip.
This is what I usually think when walking down the street (haha!)
Some mini umbrellas to cover from the rain (and a hood!)
9. There is no limit as to how many times can you injure yourself with a pin. I repeat, there is No limit.
10. I want to make this coat another hundred times in different colours and with different linings (not rayon, please). It is much easier to make than what I ever thought (even with all the challenges ) and you may even discover, like I had, that your hands (and you) are capable of anything!
Hope you like the post ladies and gents, see you here again next week and don’t forget to suscribe to our monthly newsletter filling up the form below! (discounts, all the posts published that month, products updates and more 🙂 )
xx
Ana