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Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Clare Coat Muslin...and Moving On...

I was VERY excited to sew my black and gold Clare coat.  I bought the pattern very soon after it was released and splurged on black wool coating.  

And then a long time passed without seeing any reviews. I don't mean tester versions...I mean reviews!! And THEN I sewed the Nettie. Twice. And that's when I started looking for an alternative pattern. The shoulders/armhole/sleeve fit on the Nettie was really bad on me. After version 2, I scrapped the pattern. 

But I really like this style so I decided I'd go forward. And here we are, approaching the very end of February, and this was my February outerwear project, and I hadn't done anything. I went back and looked at every version I found. I saw LOTS of sleeves that gave me pause. I read LOTS of comments about uncomfortable or tight sleeves that people felt that needed to size up or sew smaller seam allowances to fit. 

I knew deep down inside that this pattern wasn't going to be it.  I was hopeful though! I suspected it was not at all a size issue but a drafting issue. I buckled down and got the necessary pattern pieces cut out for muslining. I went to try it on and suspicions confirmed. 

I don't have photos on me because I *literally* could not lift my arm in any meaningful way to take a pic. 


I posted on IG and several people chimed in that it looks like it may need to be redrafted. Here is the complete armhole shape:

I am not a professional pattern drafter and don't even make attempts to draft my own patterns -- 
But man that is one weird set-up. 

And because I don't have that skillset, I wasn't about to try to redraft the front, side panel, back, front sleeve and back sleeve. That is the kind of thing that makes a pattern get the boot for me. I don't pay $18 for a pattern and expect to redraft it.

I immediately remembered my raglan-sleeved S2508 coat and of course, I sewed the Sewaholic Minoru which also has a raglan sleeve. In comparison, here are those garments:


But, I had already gone on the hunt for an alternative when I put this coat in queue for February.  I found and ordered a copy of the 9/2011 Burda magazine for this pattern:

ignore those sleeves...they used faux fur on the sample...so crazy.

There's also a version of it sewn as a duffle with a hood and it is ADORABLE. When I went back to plan out mods to #114...I stumbled on #103:



I really like the magazine version of this pattern! It just isn't what I want for *this* coat. So I thought I could draft the funnel collar onto this coat, leave off the flaps on front and possibly the sleeve tabs and of course sub a zipper for the snaps and welts for the patch pockets. Not much work actually.

This A-line shape more mimics what I liked about the Clare and the back vent is a bonus! 

Another thing...in making the muslin I realized I didn't actually like that the zipper was attached to the front raglan. I like the look of that side zipper but not the functionality of it. This style still works and this coat should also look just as good partially zipped or open as it does closed. 

So I was torn...overall style or possible slight improvement in fit with the set-in sleeve? Decisions, Decisions...

I posted a poll in my IG stories (that was fun!) #114 with the funnel drafted onto the neckline or #103 with the body flared a bit to be an A-line.

When I posted I was CERTAIN I was going to make #114. And it won the poll too! 71% for 114 and 29% for 103. But there's a vibe I'm getting from the raglan - very mod, 60s like - that I am digging!

I really LOVE the look of the Clare! I wish it had worked out for me!! But life is too short and sewing time too precious for me to exert that much energy. I'll just never be the person to work and rework and rework the actual technical aspects of a pattern. THAT'S WHY I BUY PROFESSIONALLY DRAFTED PATTERNS! I'm a sewer, not a pattern designer/drafter thankyouverymuch.

I don't know that I'll get the Burda done before February is out...stranger things HAVE happened :) But I'm going to get started on it tomorrow!