I Can See the Finish Line!

Everyone coming down off the Christmas gifting/food/sugar high yet? It usually takes us a few days in our house to get back to normal. Today was planned to be the massive clean-up until Lilly woke up at 5:30 AM throwing up all over her bedroom floor. Poor baby. So, I let her off the hook for one more day. Santa hit our house hard, so she'll need to be in full health to tackle the mess. :)

I, on the other hand, have been working furiously on my coat for the Pattern Review Winter Wear Contest that ends on December 31st. I'm pretty sure (barring any unforeseen emergencies or snafus) that it'll be done with time to spare.... days, even.

Many thanks to my sweet hubby for taking on post-Christmas children solo for a few hours yesterday afternoon, so I could have some un-interrupted coat time. I got the sleeves set-in beautifully and smoothly using Gertie's method. Definitely worth a try if you've never used it before, especially on thick unwieldy fabrics like wool. They look great and the sleeve caps are supported, too.

 I got the lining completely cut out and the body seams finished and sewn to the facings. I had a really hard time deciding what color to use for lining. I wanted to use the Kasha flannel-backed satin for warmth so that I wouldn't have to underline. But, it only comes in a few solid colors. Hubby suggested ivory, which would have indeed looked gorgeous, but I worried about how easily white-ish colors can begin to look dirty and settled on navy instead.

It feel absolutely spectacular! If I ever make another winter coat, I'll definitely be using it again. If you could see close enough, you'd notice that where I attached lining to wool, I actually changed bobbin threads to match. I know, I'm an anal-retentive perfectionist. I can't help it. 

I do have the upper collar attached and the facings sewn to the coat (although it's still inside out). But, alas, I had to call it an afternoon when I ran out of thread. I should've known better and bought two from the beginning. I used heavy thread for the wool, so there's significantly less of it on the spool. It's okay, though, I need to get my shoulder pads, too.

The best is yet to come. After the lining is attached, I have all the hemming to do (ugh) and then... the buttons! Oh, I cannot wait for the buttons. They are, hands down, my favorite part. You'll see. I promise you'll love them, too. :)