Finished Le 809

The Le 809 is an oversized, partially lined coat, with two length options (both are pretty long), welt pockets and, the selling point for me, the option of having an 'incorporated gilet' with View A. It helped that I already had the perfect fabric in my stash - a soft, grey leopard print wool (mix I think?) bought at the Harrogate Knit and Stitch Show in 2016. I had been considering using it for the Orgageuse Riga Coat but I knew that the DP Studio Coat would work perfectly with the print as soon as I saw it. The fabric requirements for the Le 809 were confusingly listed as 3.15m on the cover and 3.25m in the instructions, but either way, I managed to squeeze it out of the 3m of fabric I had.

Supplies for the Le 809 (with button options)!

I thoroughly enjoyed all aspects of this project, but I must admit, I did have a few frustrations with the instructions, the first being the poor listing of required notions. The zip length isn't specified so I had to measure the pattern pieces to work it out - I made the size 42 and found a 40cm zip to be just right. I also used nearly 5m of fusible bias tape - not mentioned until the instruction to apply it - and I was most shocked of all that the requirement for nearly 10m(!!) of bias binding was nowhere to be seen. I've never done so many trips back and forth to town for one project. I think I rinsed the haberdasheries of Leeds of all their black and grey bias binding, so FYI, buy in bulk!

Worn open with a zipped gilet

A note on the instructions... If you've used a DP Studio pattern before, you'll know that they favour large and quite simple illustrations, usually with fairly short descriptions of how to complete each step. I got on with this format really well for their Knit Asymmetric Dress which is quite an easy make, but I was surprised to find that more detail wasn't included in the instructions for a project as complex as a coat. Perhaps some of the struggle came from trying to understand the translated instructions which don't always read too clearly, but I also found myself having to do a lot of thinking beyond the pattern.

Camouflage welts!

Total confusion over the length/hemming

The hem lines were really confusing, so it might be that I did something wrong at the cutting stage, but the pattern seems to direct you to cut out a square at the bottom of the centre front. It quickly became clear that the rest of the front was much longer than the front facing and back pieces when they were all joined together (see picture above). Even more bizarrely, when I compared pattern pieces with fellow maker Jess, hers seemed to have different cut/hem lines!

Back view and wind-blown vent

The slit facing for the vent was also too long, so I cut off the excess on that and the lower front, before winging the rest. I attached the hem to the front facing loosely based on how I remembered doing it on previous jackets (I shortened the front facing by a couple of inches and sewed it to the right side of the bottom front, so that some of the front flips to the underside with the facing) and stitched the rest of the hem by hand.

Pre-gilet insertion

Thankfully the gilet was really fun to construct and quite easy to attach to the rest of the coat. It's essentially a backless zip-turtleneck, made up of 2 layers of the outer fabric (one of them is interfaced) so it's really warm to wear. The collar is a little restrictive when fully zipped up - especially with a wardrobe-staple roll neck underneath - so I would probably shave 1cm off the depth if I made it again.

Strangely, the coat is only half lined - a design choice I guess, but after all of the effort with binding the edges (as neat as they look) it may as well be fully lined, and I wish it had been an option. If I made the coat again, I'd consider extending my lining pieces, as my intention was to fully make a statement with my contrast lining (not just a half of one)!

Half lining and insides

After all of the work that went into the coat, I couldn't spoil it with normal buttonholes, so I made my first ever bound buttonholes following a tutorial from Colette. I had to finish them by hand due to the bulk and weight of the coat, but I''m really pleased with them. I wish I'd budged each one up by an inch - you know once you notice something is a bit off and can't stop thinking about it?! - but I can live with them as they are! I bought 3 different sets of buttons to pick from, and eventually went with these cool silver mirrored ones from Duttons for Buttons.

Buttons from Duttons for Buttons

I finished up the coat with a lot of hand stitching to secure the different layers of facing/collar/outer together. I'm not sure if this is standard practice for more experienced coat sewists, but the coat does look better to wear for it and is easier to put on without loads of straightening and adjusting. It still sits a little off sometimes (you can probably notice the gilet is a bit bunched up in some pics) but I did the very best I could with it.

Layers of collar and gilet

I feel like I've complained about the pattern quite a bit in this post, but I have to stress that I'm absolutely thrilled with my finished coat! DP Studio is in a league of its own in terms of offering such impressive, fashion-forward designs, and although the instructions were a bit sparse in parts, they encouraged me to slow down and flex the skills I already have. Focusing on the step in hand rather than the end goal really did make the process of sewing the coat much more enjoyable. I surprised myself with what I was able to work out and whilst I might not have followed each step exactly as intended, the end result looks exactly as it's meant to, which is pretty satisfying.

Check the oversized style

It's definitely a statement coat, both in silhouette and print, and I'm really happy about it - it feels unusual and very 'cool' to wear! I think I benefitted from having made a few bits of outerwear in the past and would've probably been in tears if not, so I wouldn't recommend the Le 809 for a first attempt at coat making. It is a great make though, and a good challenge if you're willing to put a bit of thought into the construction. I'm sure there are also plenty of sewing tutorials out there to help with some of the trickier bits - the welt pockets, finishing the vent and the front facing/hem.

Thanks Erin for taking super profesh pics :)

Named Clothing Isla Trench Coat

Do you think ankle length denim will catch on?

Approaching this project is not for the faint-hearted. I technically started it in spring, but got no further than sticking the MASSIVE PDF together. As you can see, the finished thing is pretty long, so some of the pieces are huge, and the jacket is made up of more individual pattern pieces than I've ever seen - 24 in total, many of which you have to cut out multiple times in the outer fabric, lining and interfacing. Some of the pieces are overlapped too, so you still have to do some tracing, and I really hate tracing. One positive though, and a bit of myth busting here for some of you who asked: seam allowances are included in the PDF version of the Isla (phew)!

Pinterest inspiration, particularly the middle image!

Supplies!

Inspired by some amazing denim trenches I came across on Pinterest, I bought this mid-weight blue denim (sorry I don't know the exact weight!) from my local haberdashery, Samuel Taylors in Leeds. It's not the cheapest project to embark upon; requiring 3.5m for the outer alone, plus lining fabric (I bought cheap khaki lining to try and even out the expenditure!), over 2m of interfacing and notions. Having seen some great versions online (I love this one by Le fil à la gratte) I knew that it would be well worth the cost.

Flash of khaki lining

Cutting and marking up the pattern pieces took me a day, and then there was prepping the pieces with interfacing, but once I was sewing the whole jacket came together surprisingly fast! The instructions are very clear and methodical. I felt like could approach the make one element at a time, the first being the welt pockets. I've never done a welt pocket before, but they weren't nearly as difficult as I'd imagined. It's crazy to think how much effort went into them for them to sort of blend into the background, but it's the little details that seem to count with this jacket and that definitely appeals to my inner perfectionist.

Welt pocket!

Coming together quickly with the cape

Side view/silhouette

The collar/collar belt was a nice chunk to construct in one go and the details make it look so professional in finish. It's a shame the collar belt and loops are mostly hidden away under the collar itself, but I made sure to get some pictures below to show you all!

Collar belt detail (buttons from Textile Garden)

Under-collar details

I was on a bit of a roll and made just one mistake: sewing the sleeve bands on at the wrong notch, meaning they sat way too close to the sleeve edge. I'd almost finished the jacket before realising and although it didn't look too bad, I had to go in through the lining and correct it or be forever annoyed.

Corrected sleeve bands!

Other than that, the whole sew was smooth, even the lining/bagging out stage, which I had expected to be difficult based on previous bagging out confusions with the Waver Jacket and Yona Coat. Joining the inside of the vent to the lining was probably the hardest bit to sew neatly, but luckily is hidden away on the inside. It's also worth mentioning that I skipped the shoulder pads, which hasn't made much of a difference to the finished jacket. With or without shoulder pads, the style is very much 'power dressing'.

Lining flash!

I found the most beautiful imitation tortoise shell buttons from Textile Garden that work perfectly with the denim, with matching small ones for the collar and sleeves. If I made the Isla in future, I'd consider doing bound button holes for a better finish as the regular ones don't quite cut it, particularly as the rest of the jacket is finished to such a high standard.

I'm absolutely thrilled with the finished jacket, and I'm so glad I stuck with it. If you've stuck with the saga on here/Instagram and read this far, thank you! I've sewn a couple of jackets/coats in the past, and more recently the Linda Wrap Dress which has a lot more technical elements to it, but I'd built this up to be something else entirely. It's actually turned out to be my favourite jacket sewing experience ever, and I credit a lot of that to the fab instructions - thanks Named! Don't be put off by the 5-scissor difficulty rating, just give it a go. When I eventually got started, it took me a little under 2 weeks of evening/weekend sewing to finish.

Back view

Should have smoothed out that squiffy cape!

I don't think I'll be sewing another trench any time soon, but if anyone else wants to, here are some other great trench coat patterns:

Londres Trench Coat and Jacket by Orageuse
Luzerne Trench Coat by Deer and Doe
Tracy Trench Coat by Style Arc
Robson Coat by Sewaholic
Vogue 8884 (great one here by Diane at Dream.Cut.Sew)

Hi mum if you're reading! Thanks for the pictures :)

I'm just getting over a bit of sewing fatigue and then I'll be returning to my backlog of sewing plans. I have a few skirts (including another New Look 6418 in more faux suede I picked up at Sew Brum), a Kyoto Sweater and the Lander Pants in the pipeline. But in the meantime, I'm very much enjoying wearing my finished Isla Trench.

Is anyone else feeling like braving a trench or coat this winter? Which pattern will you be sewing?