Paletot De Fourrure

1908 #2 Fur Coat -- Paletot de Fourrure

Here is a garment which arrives just in time. It is not necessary, however, so that it is quite warm, to make it in fur. In also a small size, this would be even difficult; but one will choose from the cuddly toy plush or curly, or from the breichwantz [a felt?] kind of fabric with long hair lying down and silky.

Lastly, if you do not have anything from all that, take wool or velvet, and ask your mothers if they have some leftovers of fur to trim it.

To make this garment, six patterns are needed: Moitie du devant [Half of the front] Moitie du dos [Half of the back] Dessus de manche [Topside of the sleeve] Dessous de manche [Underside of the sleeve] Revers de la manche [Folded back cuff of the sleeve]

Col [Collar]. – Since we give you the patterns to the size wanted to dress Bleuette, these patterns fit a rather large space. We will not be able to thus give you all six in this issue. Today, you will cut out and sew the body of the coat; next week you will make the sleeves and the collar.

Drawing #1 shows you the whole of the garment. It is the coat finished.

Drawing #2 is the pattern of moitie du dos [half of the back]. After having traced and cut it out, you will place it on a piece of fabric having 20 centimeters height, 18 of width and folded in two so that it will not have more than 9 of width. You will place the pattern on this fabric folded in two, such as it is put on the image, that-is-to-say edge to edge with the fold of the fabric. Maintain in place with two or three pins, and cut out level with the pattern [that is, do not add a seam allowance, it has been included], all around, except for the side of the fold of the fabric that the scissors should not touch. Remove the pins, open the fabric; you have the back of the pattern which is a single piece.

On the following page, you have the pattern of moitie de devant [half of the front] (fig.3). The other half being the same, you will cut it the one on the other, but while observing well to put the two fabric layers either wrong side against wrong side, or right side against right side; without this precaution, you will have two pieces for the same side.

To joint together the back and the front, you have four seams to make: both of the shoulders, and both under the arms. The coat not having to be lined, you will make these seams with a closed backstitch by hand or with the machine, and you will open well the seam on the wrong side, while slightly wetting it and by ironing with an iron fairly hot. This ironing is also done on the wrong side. Finally, to prevent the seam allowances of these seams fraying themselves, you will edge them with a ribbon known as extrafort, or with a small ribbon put straddling on each edge. At the bottom, you will fold up the fabric and you will maintain this fold by a stitching. If you can do it with the machine, that will be better.

One of the sides of the coat carries the buttons. On the other, you will not make buttonholes, this would be too difficult. Besides, one abandons the idea more and more for clothing. Under the edge, you place elastic the width of a narrow flat soutache, and you sew this elastic from top to bottom of the coat, but while leaving free four spaces intended to fasten the four buttons. This is very simple and holds very well. As for the buttons themselves, if you do not have any, you will take simply a button of china or mother-of-pearl, that you will cover with taffeta or velvet. The fabric is brought back underneath by twisting the thread around, which makes the button a shank useful to sew it.

You will be able to even use these small flat buttons in gilded metal that one sees frequently on men’s gloves and even on women’s gloves. You father will readily abandon to you his old gloves.

Since we have supposed that you chose the wool or velvet, or velvet thick enough to make this overcoat, we did not speak about lining. However if you want to line it, here is how it is necessary to proceed:

First of all, cut out and sew the coat as it is said above, that-is-to-say as if it were not to be lined. Then, on the same patterns, cut out the lining while keeping it very slightly a little larger than the top.

This seems astonishing to you, since it will be inside; it is however thus. This little trick of cut will prevent the top from pulling at the seams and to become deformed.

The lining once cut, you baste it to the wrong side of your coat and turn back one side on the other with hemstitching without affecting the drape. The cloth and its lining will be held together only by the neck, the armholes and the outline of the coat. To line a garment, a slippery fabric is employed: silk, satin or lustrine [a glossy silk cloth, also known as lustring]. In any case, this is a requirement for the sleeves.

If you line the coat, I advise you to trim it, at the bottom and along the two sides of the front, with two or three rows of stitching of which the first will be made at one half- centimeter from the edge. This embellishment will prevent the lining slackening and from making a bag at the bottom of the garment.

Next week we will finish the coat.