Burda Style For people who sew

Description

I found some bargain Melton wool at Spotlight for $5/metre in January this year and bought the rest of the roll. Thankfully, there was 2.4metres left so I knew there would be enough for a jacket or coat. I thought the fabric would be perfect for a duffle coat for my husband*, so I went in search of a suitable pattern.

In some ways, it was more difficult finding a nice men’s coat pattern than sewing the coat itself! I looked through the Vogue/Burda/Simplicity/McCalls pattern books etc. etc. to now avail. I scoured garage sales, op shops, flea markets, online and finally… jackpot: a Japanese pattern book on etsy. A Book of Men’s Coats by Ryuichiro Shimazaki. I had never sewn from a pattern book before but I thought it might be fun to try. Although the book was all in Japanese, the diagrams were easy enough to interpret (with a little help from my Japanese friends.) It was a lengthy process though, firstly tracing the pattern pieces and then adding the seam allowance or hem allowance, which was something that I was not used to. My only criticism was that the length of rope listed at the beginning of the pattern (1metre) was shorter than required (20cm X 8 loops = 1.6 metres) sending me to the haberdashery once again.

The toggle duffle coat is mostly unlined, only the pocket, pocket flaps, sleeve tabs and yoke are lined. The seams are finished with bias binding and then top-stitched and enclosed to one side. I found the wooden toggle buttons on ebay and my husband wanted the sleeve tab buttons a chin flap buttons to be of a similar walnut-brown wooden appearance.

I had lots of fun sewing this project even though it took me a while to finish… and there’s still 1 month of Winter coldness here for this coat to be worn.

*Thanks husband for agreeing to model your new favourite coat

Material Notes

Melton wool, Charcoal, 147cm wide, 60% wool, 40% polyester/other ($5/metre – clearance pile!); cotton lining (for pocket, pocket flaps, sleeve tab, yoke); cotton bias tape; string; wooden toggle buttons; buttons for sleeve tabs and chin flap; thread.

Difficulty

Advanced

Categories

Season

Fall, Winter

For

Men

Garment Type

Coat/Capes

Style

Casual, Classic, Preppy

Material

Cotton, Blends, Wool

Credits

Ryuichiro Shimazaki

A Book of Men’s Coats Japanese pattern book