For this, I decided to go all the way: styling and make-up!
You may remember how it all started with this image in a 1953 issue of sewing magazine Marion.
I showed you the proces from trying out the original pattern, dismissing it and drafting and developing my own. I explained how to create ease at the armscye without limiting range of movement, and I showed the sewing work in progress. Now, the coat is finished and I've worn it out for the first time...
As discussed before, it has half raglan sleeves end on mid-shoulder where they meet the bodice princess seams. Those princess seams flare out from below the fitted wiastline to form a full skirt. On the side front pieces, there are stick-out pockets. The collar I finally decided upon creates the same high neckline as the shawl collar in the original design. This allowed me to stick with the original button placement: One at the waistline, one below it and one at the collar. With diagonal bound buttonholes. It's short of a convertible collar (if I add a little button and loop, it could be worn closed) with four little darts at the back.
The fabric is a blue-grey wool which has been in my stash for a while, underlined with grey wool, the bodice is interfaced with horsehair canvas and of course the whole thing is lined.
Interestingly, according to the stern editrix of 1951's Libelle, blue-grey is an excellent colour for a coat because it can be worn with black and with brown... Although the redingote is always a dressy style which makes it less versitile...
And a dressy coat it is... I accesoirized with black for the photoshoot, mostly because it's the only colour in I have all pieces.
The hat is vintage and was bought in London (at Portobello market, if I remember correctly), the gloves are vintage and from my local market and the purse comes from the same place but was very tired-looking and missing a strap so I did some DIY on it with bits of leather left over from one of my jacket projects. The shoes are the ones I often wear in pictures for the blog and were bought new.
