Moscow Wool Dress Coat

This coat was three years in coming. 

 My aunt gave my little sister and I all her fabric a few years ago and we split some red wool.  Lynette made herself a wool coat, and I have been hoarding my red wool for three years just trying to get the courage to cut it.  Making a coat has been intimidating, but using a nicer fabric like wool made it even higher stakes.  So the month we spent staying with Lynette, I decided I would jump in and sew it with her supervision available throughout the project.

Being red and a little military looking, I thought it reminded me of Russia and initially I kept thinking of it as my "Stalin" coat, but that doesn't have the nicest connotations.  So I thought it would be a good coat to wear if I ever went to Moscow.  So I called it my "Moscow" coat.

For this coat I actually followed a pattern the entire way through, although I did have to lengthen the sleeves a few inches, which is kind of the whole reason I make coats for myself.

I used McCalls M5759 jacket version B.

The element that caught my attention to this coat pattern initially was of course the large collar.

It's all one piece that wraps around and kind of serves as a scarf at the same time.

 The under collar and lining are this red and silver striped fabric I found for $1.00/ yard.

The angled front is kind of tricky to button, but I like the lines it creates and I think it makes it a flattering cut in addition to the princess seams.  

The pockets are faux tabs sewn on.

I had these buttons which I thought would go well, being large and metallic.

They're actually roaring lion heads if you look closely which I thought was kind of cool and different if anyone ever really took time to notice.

So far I have loved it.

It's one of those projects I look at it and feel shocked I was actually the one who sewed it together.

It was my first time sewing with wool and making a nicer dress coat. 

I thought it would also be a fun holiday coat to wear this season! 

I'm glad I finally got the courage to make it after holding on to it for three years and I wonder if I could have managed it earlier had I just had the guts to cut into it and make it happen.

Maybe it was better to wait and get a little more experience before now, who knows.