My Denim 3 Quarter Coat (and pillarbox patch pockets!)

This post has been a ridiculously long time coming. I actually made this last summer….JUST before I launched into the craziness of The Refashioners. Meaning to blog it when The Refashioners finished, then finding myself hitting the buffers and screeching to a halt energy wise. (That’s why it’s been pretty quiet around here of late). Now I’ve just dug this denim lovely out again in preparation for spring, it seemed the perfect time to share some details.  Mostly THESE giant pillar box pockets…

They really are the standout feature of this make so the main focus. The rest is pretty standard. I used the pattern hack I did for this jacket as the base, but with wider 3/4 length sleeves; and traced the opening and neckline to create a facing (below) rather than the bound edge with zip fastening.  So it’s an open jacket if that makes sense. The denim (here) is LUSH and has washed and worn beautifully. So far have tried 2 different denims from Sew Essential and both are da bomb!

The facing gives a really simple and clean finish around the neckline and opening….

The cuffs are also faced to add a bit of weight/structure and echo the neckline finish…

Just a band, sew RS together and raw edges aligned with the sleeve hem…

Then flipped out and pressed away from the sleeve (That raw edge will get enclosed in a minute)…

Understitch….ALWAYS understitch…

Then turn and press to the inside….and topstitch from the outside.

Now the pockets. I kinda accidentally did this for the first time while trying to learn how to do a welt pocket. I decided I really liked the effect (Basically a welt pocket without the welt, and a patch combined) and it kinda sat in my subconscious for almost 2 years (!) until I made this.  Essentially, GIANT rectangles with all edges pressed under and machine basted in place. Place a narrow rectangle of fabric RS down and mark and stitch a box as pictured. Mine is about 1cm wide. You could make it wider if you wanted a wider “pillarbox opening” on your pocket. snip down the middle and into the corners….right up to the stitching but not through it…

The fiddly part is flipping that facing through to the wrong side and getting it to lay flat. Lots of steam, pressing and wiggling!

Here’s how it looks from the outside. Like a postbox opening!

I topstitched right around the opening close to the folded/pressed edge. Then another line of topstitching outside of that to echo the twin stitching I had done on the rest of the garment…

The whole “patch” pocket is then pinned in position and all four edges stitched to the garment. So whereas a normal patch pocket would have the top edge open, this one has the top edge sealed and the pillarbox “slit” as your means of accessing the pocket…

A little bit of  subtle “quirk” on an otherwise simple coat…

Also added a little label action to this one (you can tell when I’m pleased with a make, lol!). The scrap of leather can from a sample swatch from a sofa manufacturer…labels from The Dutch Label Shop…

All that’s needed now is some warmer weather here in the UK so I can switch from my winter coat to this beaut! C.mon Spring!!