Oslo Coat

I’ve got my laptop back! It only took six weeks… Happily it seems to be fixed, my tracking pad isn’t freaking out and opening random windows or menus or zooming instead of moving the cursor, so that’s a definite improvement! I have quite the backlog of projects to blog, including a bunch of sewing I’ve done for our upcoming trip (than you to everyone who has given me trip suggestions, either here or on Instagram, I really appreciate it!), but I’m hoping to get a lot of those projects photographed and blogged while we’re away. but first, I’m going to show you my end-of-winter coat, before it gets to unseasonable!

This is the Oslo coat, a recent release from Tessuti. Emma and I were messaging about winter coat patterns the day this was released, and we both decided it was the one to make! it was nice to have a sewing buddy to troubleshoot with! Emma also took these photos, we visited the Parkin Drawing Exhibiton at the Academy of Fine Arts Gallery, and got some photos. The piece I’m standing in front of was my favourite, it’s by Jae Kang and is called 4000 Stains of Breath.

I really like the silhouette of this coat, I don’t have anything like it in my wardrobe. I was a bit worried about the size of the shawl collar, I thought it made my head look disproportionately small, but it looks ok in these pictures! I used a reasonably fine wool in an interesting not-quite-black colour for the outer, and a blush pink silk/cotton blend for the lining, both from The Fabric Warehouse. The coat looks black in these pictures, but against a true black or grey it looks deepest green, or even inky navy in some lights. Whatever colour it looks, it’s a nice neutral. I really struggled to find a button I liked, until I had a good rummage through the stash and came up with this geometric wooden one. I think the matte black stain on the wood looks really nice against the wool, and it suits the modern, minimalist look of the coat. Unfortunately, being black on black, it was really hard to photograph!

I have to admit, I was a bit confused about some of the instructions for the Oslo. I’ve made a couple of Tessuti patterns in the past, so I was prepared for photos instead of illustrations, but I did struggle a bit with the fabrics they had chosen for the sample. the right and wrong sides of the fabric were very similar, and the lining fabric was a similar colour too, and I just found that I had to concentrate a bit more than usual to get through this one without unpicking too much! It was good to be able to message Emma to see if she had any insight into the bits that tripped me up. The pattern itself is really nicely drafted, it all fits together beautifully and the shaping in those raglan sleeves is particularly nice. I was also worried that it might swamp me a bit, as it has no shaping in the back or sides, but I like the oversized, nearly cocoon shape that it has. My measurements put me in a couple of sizes, but based on the finished garment measurements I went with a straight size 10, which I think was a good choice. The main thing I would change if I was to make it again would be to raise the pockets by a couple of inches. It was really stupid of me not to check the height before sewing up most of the coat, and they’re low enough and deep enough that my arms are pretty much straight when my hands are in them!

I made this coat as part of my #summerofbasics entry (obviously mine is a Winter edition) over on Instagram. The challenge was to make three basic pieces which could be worn together for the appropriate season, so my pieces were this coat, my Ginger jeans, and the as-yet-unblogged Melilot shirt that you can see peeking out of my jumper in these pictures. I’m really pleased with all three garments, and I think they work nicely together. I’ll certainly get plenty of wear out of the jeans and shirt, but I don’t really want to hope for lots of opportunities to wear the coat! There have been some hints of Spring around Wellington this week, I can’t wait…