The Victorian Frock Coat with Shawl Collar Brocade Vest A single breasted frock coat in brown wool herringbone.  Worn over a polyester brocade vest of black, bronze and gold.  Both garments fastened with antique brass buttons.  Pattern by Laughing Moon Mercantile #109.  A day in the country or a day at the grocery store.  It's [...]

What the hell is going on here, you may ask?  This is the shoulder pad being pad stitched into the chest canvas.  While these stitches look huge, only a small amount of the canvas is caught with each stitch.  It's at this stage that the Cabrera book really starts to get confusing, so in a [...]

After cutting out the lining I held the larger pieces up against the wool to get a feel for the eventual weight / substance of the finished coat.  My impression was that it was a bit flimsy, especially considering that I will primarily wear it as outerwear.  I also hate being cold, so I decided [...]

I haven't posted any progress for awhile, but believe me I've been hard at work.  I continue to use my Cabrera book as a guide, just using the techniques that make sense for this project.  I decided to add flap pockets on the seam where the upper coat attaches to the skirt.  The pattern as [...]

I've launched into the Edwardian frock coat, Laughing Moon Mercantile #109.  As you can see below, there's a lot of work to do.  Eeeeeek!The size 40 vest fit perfectly so I cut the 40 coat.  Sadly, there's nothing "perfect" going on here.  The jacket fits fine in the front but is way too tight across [...]