Straight from the Maureen of Made By Marzipan comes this tutorial on how to refashion a coat!
I bought this classic wool peacoat from a consignment shop. But plain black is a little boring, so I decided to make it my own with a pop of punchy color. In this tutorial I’ll show you how to refashion a coat by adding new lining panels, colorful cuffs, a bright belt, and pretty patterned pockets.
First, I should warn you that this project requires quite a bit of hand sewing. That’s because we want to sew all of our new pieces directly to the old lining, without having any stitches show through on the front of the coat. A basic running stitch works just fine for this.
Lining Panels
1) Let’s start with the lining panels. I decided that lining the entire coat with my floral pattern would be overwhelming, so I only cut two panels. However, you could cut panels for the entire lining, and machine sew those together before hand sewing them to the lining.
2) Cut the panels so they are 1 inch wider and longer than the current panels. Lay the cut panels face-down on the ironing board. Fold the raw edges inward ½ inch and press.
3) Pin the new lining panels to the old lining, matching the panels to the old seam lines.
4) Hand sew the new panels in place, being careful to only sew through the lining layers. (You don’t want any stitches to go through the outer fabric of the coat.)
Cuffs
1) Measure the inner circumference of the coat cuff, then add ½ inch. Cut two rectangles of fabric to that width, by about 6 inches high.
2) Lay the fabric face down on the ironing board. Fold the long edges inward ½ inch and press.
3) Fold the rectangle in half width-wise, right sides together. Sew along the short raw edge with a ¼ in. seam.
4) Turn right side out and press the seam.
5) Turn the arm of the coat inside out. Slide the sewn cuff piece onto the arm, aligning the edge of the cuff with the edge of the lining.
6) Hand sew the top and bottom of the cuff in place.
Belt
1) Cut the fabric for your belt. You’ll need two strips about 3 inches wide, and approximately 6 inches longer than your waist.
2) Cut the interfacing to 2.5 inches wide, and the same length as the fabric belt pieces.
3) Iron the interfacing to the wrong side of a fabric belt piece.
4) Layer the two fabric belt pieces and sew right-sides together. Leave a 3-inch hole in the center of one long side for turning.
5) Trim the corners, then turn right side out and press. Fold the raw edges of the hole inward and press.
6) Topstitch the hole shut with a ⅛ in seam, then continue topstitching all the way around the belt.
7) You’ll need a belt ring or D-rings for the belt closure. Slide one end of the belt around the center prong of the belt ring. Stitch the end of the belt in place, close to the center prong.
8) To wear, slide the loose end of the belt through the first opening, over the center prong, and out through the second opening. Pull to tighten.
Pockets
1) Finally, we’ll make a new lining for the pockets. Turn the pocket inside out and trace the pocket on the wrong side of a folded piece of fabric. Be sure the fabric is large enough that there’s room for a ¼ inch seam around the drawn line.
2) Stitch the layers of fabric together by sewing directly on the traced line. Remember that the straight edge is your pocket opening, so don’t sew that shut. In fact, stop sewing about ¼ inch away from that edge so that you can fold the raw edge back easily.
3) Trim around the shape of the pocket with a ¼ inch seam. Repeat for the second pocket.
4) With the pocket still inside out, fold back the raw edges of the pocket and press. Leave the pocket inside out, and slide into the coat’s pocket, matching up the edges of the new pocket with the old lining.
5) Hand sew in place, going through the pocket layers only.
My coat has a fresh new feel, and I love how it adds a bit of color to snowy winter days.
Do you have a coat you want to refashion?
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Yes! I have a beautiful roomy cape with sleeves (I know, I have a thoughtful husband!). The problem is, it is very difficult getting in the car without being bound by the sleeves so it’s hard to drive, not to mention, slightly dangerous. I have a 2 door Camry Solara, so it’s even hard to get the door closed. And did I mention, I’m not a small person, so once in, it’s pretty close to impossible to make the needed adjustments. Is it time to totally repurpose the fabric while apologizing profusely to my husband?