Burda 105 02/2019 Trench Coat

Modelled photos of Burda 105 02/2019

It seems like ages since I finished making this coat. I posted about it at the time but didn’t manage to get photos of it on me. Now it’s had a couple of months of wear so time to see how it’s held up. The pattern was originally Burda 105 02/2019 but I have shortened it and given it a lot more waist shaping. The fabric is a very heavy cotton/acetate blend denim.

I don’t wear it every day, but it’s getting a lot of use at the moment. The fabric isn’t intended to be waterproof but it’s sufficiently heavy and tightly woven that light rain bounces off. It’s also nicely windproof. I thought all the structure and the very stiff fabric might make it a bit awkward to wear but it’s actually very comfortable. I do slightly regret putting the buckle on the end of the belt. It looks great – it’s really solid hardware and the perfect shade of pewter – but it’s also rather a liability as I keep knocking into things with it. If I wear the coat open I have to be careful to arrange the belt so I can control it.

Here’s a back view. I’d been sitting down just before we took these as you can probably tell from the creases. Let’s just call it keeping things real.

The storm flap sticks out more than on the original because of the adjustments I made to the back to give myself some arm mobility. With hindsight I should have put a couple of darts in the bottom edge of the flap to control the volume, which I’ve seen done on RTW.

The collar works well worn up as well as down. I definitely should have added sleeve heads because the shoulder seam hasn’t come out totally smooth despite removing all the sleeve cap ease.

The fabric is holding up well. I was a bit concerned it would show wear quite quickly as it’s slightly shiny, but so far so good.

The pockets are good; roomy enough for things like gloves and nothing falls out of them.

I’ve been surprised how much I enjoy wearing this coat. I thought it might end up in the category of garments which look good in photos but are just slightly too much fuss for every day. But it’s very easy to throw on, goes with everything, and still makes me feel like I’ve made an effort to be smart. Sadly we had our first really cold morning of the autumn this week and the coat is clearly not going to be warm enough for winter weather, so the hunt for a winter coat continues.

Thanks to my husband for the pictures, and my brother for toddler wrangling duty while we took them.

Three views of Burda 105 02 2019 trench coat

Finished at last

I finally finally finally finished my coat. It got a bit frantic towards the end when I came to sew the lining in and realised I’d seriously messed up. I went to pin it around the back vent and realised it was impossible to attach the lining to the coat on the overlap side because the vent facing wasn’t wide enough to reach the lining stitching line. Cue puzzlement as I tried to work out what had happened and how to fix it.

I eventually discovered I’d cut off almost the entire overlap facing by mistake at a much earlier stage in proceedings. I was supposed to just trim it a bit. I can’t even blame Burda because their pattern instructions weren’t wrong, I simply cut on the wrong line. That’s what comes of being lazy and using the same pattern piece for the left and right back instead of making separate ones.

After some swearing I cut a rectangle out of scraps, ripped out the vent stitching, sewed the rectangle on to the edge I should not have cut along and put the vent back together. It’s not perfect but can’t really be seen from the outside. If you squint there’s a tiny ridge where the seam allowance of my repair lies, and that’s all.

Inside is another matter, but at least it’s neat.

Luckily everything else has gone pretty smoothly. I’ve been following a sewalong for Ready To Wear Tailoring from Pattern Scissors Cloth for this project and it’s been a huge help. My coat’s a little bit different to the one in the sewalong, not least in having the nearly fatal vent, but thanks to Sheryll’s advice about adjusting the pattern in advance the potentially awkward steps like the collar and lapels were easy to sew. It gave me a new appreciation for Burda patterns too; I noticed that several of her suggested pattern adjustments to allow for turn of cloth were already drafted in. It’s Burda 105 02/2019 although I’ve shortened it from the original length and reduced the ease at the waist.

With perfect timing I’ve finished this just as the UK weather goes insanely hot, so I haven’t worn it even once yet. Normal cool and cloudy service is expected to resume next week though. But in the meantime here it is on the dressform.

Trench coat progress

It’s been a while but that’s because I’ve been sewing a coat. Only a summer coat, but it seems to go on forever. I’ve almost finished the collar and lapels. Just top stitching left to do on those.

The pattern is Burda 105 02/2019 which is a simplified trench coat pattern. It has storm flaps and the traditional collar, but just wraps to close rather than having buttons. Here’s the line art.

I’m making it in a dark grey denim which I was worried was too heavy for the style but it’s working out OK so far. Its reluctance to crease made it surprisingly easy to sew the collar and welt pockets without getting any puckers.

Here’s a longer view. The side seams aren’t sewn yet. I’ve made the belt though. Most patterns have you do that sort of thing last but I prefer to get it done right at the start.

There still seems like a very large amount left to sew. What’s making it easier though is my new gadget: a very bright clip-on LED light that I can attach to the shelves by my desk and position to shine right on the sewing machine needle.

I don’t know if I’ve just been unlucky but out of my three machines, two have light bulbs which tend to slip out of their fittings if I sew quickly, plunging the work into darkness. And even when the bulbs shine reliably none of them are all that bright. The LED light makes a huge difference. It was a present from my husband, so thanks!

Trench coat toile take two

Thanks everyone for all the advice on fitting my coat. I’ve made some adjustments to the toile and it is vastly improved already.

I’m making Burda 105 02/2019, a single breasted trench coat style. Here’s one of the model photos.

Burda 105 02/2019 trench coat model photo

My first toile came out looking oversized on me. This was a particular problem because the fabric I am making the coat from is on the heavy side for this style so it was going to look very bulky indeed when pulled in with the belt. I went off and did a bit of browsing for images of trench coats to see what sort of shape would work better for fabrics without much drape. Burberry have some good ones in leather and metallics (the gold crocodile leather was a particularly spectacular version). The hem on theirs tends to be mid knee rather than mid calf and they are much more shaped in the body, having front and back princess seams. They often style them with the collar turned up too.

I didn’t really fancy adding princess seams, but I shaped the side seams and the centre back seam on my toile to nip it in at the waist, and took a whopping five inches off the hem. I also shortened the sleeves slightly. My husband wasn’t available to take photos so excuse the awkward mirror selfies.

It definitely still needs shoulder pads – unfortunately I didn’t have any handy when I was fitting – and I think the back vent needs to start a little higher now I’ve shortened it so much. But it looks a great deal better already. That odd wrinkle on the sleeves seems to have gone too, but I’ll look at those more closely once I have the shoulder pads.

Trench coat toile

My next project is the coat that I was talking about back in December. Only now we’re coming into summer I’m making a trench coat rather than an overcoat. Years ago I had a cheap, bright red cotton trenchcoat from H&M which I loved; it was so easy and fun to wear. I wore it out many years ago and now I want to make something similar but hopefully a bit more durable.

The H&M coat was slightly unusual for a trench coat in that it was single breasted and so avoided the widening effect of the usual double breasted button closure. The closest design I’ve found in my Burda collection is 105 02/2019 (model photos below) which hasn’t got a closure at all. I can live with that as long as there’s an overlap to keep the wind out, which there is.

I also looked at 103 04/2018, which is a similar wrap over style but with the addition of an asymmetric drape at the front. I love that style but eventually decided that the fabric I have for the coat (a grey denim with a subtle shine) has too much body for it.

I’m not normally one for making test garments but a coat is a large commitment so this time I made the effort. Here it is. I’m three different sizes in Burda from 36 at the bust to 40 at the hips, so I’ve blended between the three and added my usual 5cm length on the bodice and sleeves. Otherwise this hasn’t been adjusted at all yet.

Burda 105 02 2019 toile close up front view

It seems a blousy above the belt at the front compared to the model photos. The black and white sample in particular looks much slimmer fitting than mine. The shoulders are OK and I have a reasonable amount of arm mobility. The sleeves are a bit long but I prefer them like that.

It also blouses at the back.

I’m not sure about the hem length here. The hem hasn’t been turned up yet but it is going to end at the widest part of my leg when it is. Not the most flattering length. I’ve looked at a few Burberry trench coats online and they are generally hemmed at the knee.

The side seams are hanging straight. There’s a wrinkle on the arm I don’t understand and am a bit reluctant to try to remove in case it results in not being able to reach forward.

Here’s an action shot of sorts. It stays closed fairly well when walking.

I am tempted to take darts in the front and back to slim it down a bit, otherwise I fear it’s going to look very bulky when belted. Thoughts welcome!

Catherine Daze's Blog

sewing my own clothes