Great Coat Sew-along Timeline

This is the planned timeline for the coat sew-along. Marji spread this out over several months so we can all enjoy the summer and have a life while building our coat. Start May and finish by the end of September.

A Guided Sew-Along
for those who want to construct a winter coat.Construction will begin July 2008, but be incrementally slow enough that you can work on other projects and have a life besides.

Timeline:
May -
Gather materials
June -
Muslin for fit and style, prep fabrics
July -
Begin cutting/mounting/interfacing
Mid July-
Pockets and buttonholes
August -
finish construction of shell, sleeves
Mid to late August -
Construct lining
Sept -
Lining into coat
Goal -
Finish by end of September

Great Coat Sew-along

I will start by thanking Marji for organizing this coat sew-along, which is now closed to anyone new as there are 70 participants. I'll be updating my progress here in my blog since anyone reading, but not participating, will not have access to the coat sew-along blog.

I have made my decision on the fabric and pattern I will be using.
The stars of the show are:

OOP Simplicity pattern # 4403
View C- belted, wrap style


The fabric is a stunning, yummy Michael Kors mohair/angora mix boucle that I bought from a couple of years ago (December 2005 to be exact) from http://www.emmaonesock.com/ . I found the receipt with the fabric and now I'm afraid to cut into the yardage...gasp $45 per yard. I'm eyeing the fabric and trying to convince myself to just "go for it" and forget the price. Carolyn, I might be making a trip to see you if I get stuck. ;o) I do have a beautiful lambs wool in a light camel color, but I really want a red coat.

I ordered a Kasha lining, in black, from Vogue Fabrics and heavy-weight muslin to work out the fitting. I pulled out white flannel yardage to underline the coat. I think I'll need it to keep the fabric from stretching out. I also would like a really warm coat and underlining the mohair will make it more than warm.

My computer is down/Fitting Class/Projects.....

Talk about an oxymoron. I write my computer is down, yet I'm typing a post. I brought my laptop home so I wouldn't be cut off from the world. I would have serious withdrawal if I had to go 3 days without reading blogs and sewing sites.

I'm working on my muslin for the fitting class I signed up for on PatternReview, but I cannot post pictures from my laptop. ;o( I hope DH fixes my computer soon. He's been working tons of hours lately. Of course there is the little matter that I've been complaining about my computer for the better part of a year and he chose to fix it not that I've started my class. ;o( He is truly a darling, sweet man so I cannot get too annoyed with him. He does feel sorry for me and is trying to fix it without reformatting the harddrive since it will take him *forever* to get me back on line if he reformats.

What I'm working on:
1. Fitting Class:
The shoulder template for this Vogue dress is too big for me. According to all measurements I need to start with a 12 in the shoulder. However, the template is too large and I have to take in the front and back by about an inch total (per Shannon who is a sewing Goddess).Here is the shoulder template before taking in the inch. Luckily I already had this picture posted in PR before my computer came to a crashing halt.

I plan to make the changes today and upload a picture to PR and here later today or tomorrow to show what the muslin looks like after the change. You're probably wondering how I will accomplish this feat since my computer is down...I'm going to upload the pictures onto a friends computer since I'm not allowed to upload anything onto my work issued laptop.

I still need to do a forward shoulder adjustment, but that is done after these changes are made.

2. Cut out the blouse in muslin from my defunct fitting class and muddle through the fitting of it. Actually, if I get it cut out then I can ask Shannon for help since our class still has 2-weeks left.

3. Sew up a UFO skirt which is too long, but I think will be OK for summer since it's red & white linen and very swishy.

4. Finish gathering supplies for the June Capsule considering the start date is right around the corner. Actually, I think I have just about all my supplies.

5. Finish gathering supplies for the Great Coat Sew-along. The start date is also June 1st, but we'll be spending the month fitting our muslins. I have my fabric which is a gorgeous red wool I got from EOS a couple of years ago. I ordered Kashi lining and heavy-weight muslin. Now, to decide which pattern. Uh oh....I can hear Carolyn's voice......"just make a decision and stick to it".... I'm getting there Carolyn. I've narrowed it down to 2-3 patterns. ;o)