Simplicity Dress & Coat 1197

This pattern was pretty straightforward. The instructions for the pockets aren’t very well written and the coat has too much ease if you go by body measurements, which is to be expected. I looked at the finished coat bust measurement
for this style and chose a size 10 based on that and I’m happy with the fit. The coat came up far too long on me, I’m about 165cm so I shortened it at least 6cm or more.

I used a very loose weave DKNY wool, which was so unstable I decided to use a fleece-like iron on interfacing to prevent fraying and make it easier to work with. For the lining I used a matching bright orange batiste cotton. To add warmth, I used a cotton curtain insulation as interlining and I hand sewed horse hair canvas into the collar and lapels for structure. There were too many layers for my machine to sew button holes so I went over them by hand.

It was a lot of work because of the fabrics I chose but I’m very happy with the final result so it was all worth it. I love the 1960’s swing coat style and the bright colours.