Checking Off My Must-Have List: McCall’s 6800

Guys! Have I mentioned that I write blogs professionally nowadays? Ridiculous, right? Especially considering what a terrible job I’m doing here… But you’ll get no apology from me! This is my blog and I will post as irregularly as I damn well please. Except that, you know, I’m sorry and I’m working on it. 😉

Let’s chat about this year’s winter coat. It was on my must-have list for quite a while before I finally got around to it – much like my Minoru jacket, which I mentioned very briefly in my last post. Anyway, here it is: McCall’s 6800.This is M6800, view D: a princess seamed coat with a full circle skirt and a detachable hood. I got the pattern way back in September and pondered for the longest time which version to make. I was going back and forth between view B, with a high-low hem and a detachable faux-fur collar, and this one. But when I asked for advice on Facebook, my friends told me to make view C – the shorter version, which I’d never even considered.

Choices, choices, choices. The shorter version was never really an option in my mind to be honest: the big question was between the super cool collar (how classy!) and the cosy, functional hood. And here’s a fun fact about a change I made in 2014: I chose functionality. In a lot of rather more major life choices, but also in this coat. So there you have it: I chose the hood.

The fabric I used for this coat is a very heavy-weight wool. I like to call it a Parisian coat fabric. Something about the tan colour and twill weave remind me of my Parisian aunt who would wrap herself in cosy, warm but oh-so stylish coats come winter; it exudes a kind of comfortable elegance to me.

Instead of using batting, I underlined the entire coat with a simple wool knit. It was totally uninspiring by itself, but it gives this coat so much warmth. Downside of that technique: weight. This is one super heavy coat. I don’t necessarily mind, but this is not something I’d like to wear for long winter walks.

Overall, I’m quite pleased with this year’s coat. The pattern came together quite easily and without adjustments. I bagged the lining as usual and attempted a blind hem – which is only partially successful due to the weight and thickness of the double fabric layer (shell and underlining). All in all, a great success. There’s only one real annoyance… this:

THAT DAMN CORNER DRIVES ME CRAZY. Something to look out for in next year’s coat, I guess?

Oh, and those pants? Hudsons. They are the. absolute. cosiest. They are my second pair of Hudsons, made up in a slightly quilted, jeans-like jersey fabric. Like wearing a cloud, I tell you. A cloud that I can go out with and wear to the shops without feeling like a slob.