Kids Clothing Week (what have I gotten myself into) Coat

I call this my "kids clothing week( what have I gotten myself into) coat" because I think I NEVER would have completed it if I had not been motivated by this sewing challenge.  I began two weekends before the challenge cutting out the pattern and reading in my sewing books about matching plaids.  When the sewing book says "to be realistic, we must admit that sewing with uneven plaids is not for the novice" (The Vogue Sewing Book) it can make you pause and wonder if you really should have bought all that beautiful wool. And when your realize you're going to have to cut out one piece of the pattern then use that cut piece of fabric as your pattern for the mirroring piece you start to wonder what you've gotten into!  Here's a picture of what I'm trying to explain.   This is one front piece being used as a pattern piece for the opposite side.

So here's the coat in its- some of the plaids match and some don't- glory.  Now a warning, there are quite a few pictures here, but I am SSOOOO proud I finished this coat and that she actually LIKES IT!

 Here's a personalized proud Momma tag and you can see the snaps that I used instead of button holes.

 This is the hem of the wool.  I thought she'd enjoy "secret" pink lace hidden behind the liner.

 You can really see some of the plaid matching on the front.  See those vertical purple stripes on either side of the buttons and the black lines that go horitontally,oooohhhh yeahhhhh!

 Here's a shot of the houndstooth flannel I used on the "skirt" portion of the coat.  A side note, she's really just learned how to lean into swinging to get momentum....one of those things you hope they eventually figure out!

And just because he is always our comic relief this is Buster trying to get away from the camera...he's kinda quirky like that, but he always makes me smile.

So for some details about the coat...
The fabric: The main outer fabric was a Wool/Polyester blend from Hancocks.  I think it was the "Nesa Fab" winter collection.  It was quite thick and fuzzy on one side.  I used tips from this post and this post to help me figure out how to cut the pattern out.  The lining was a combination of flannel and thin lining fabric.  I lined the top part of the coat in the thinner liner because after a test fit (and a word of advice from my Mom-thanks Mom!) I realized the flannel would make the chest area too bulky.  The flannel is in the lower part of the coat because I wanted some extra warmth in that area.

The pattern: Simplicity 2534.  This pattern is great.  I can see myself going back to it in the future.  Its not easy per say but very well constructed and the directions are as clear as I think you can expect for a coat like this.  I read all of the posts from Angry Chicken, one found here about this pattern to glean any tips she had.  I used her tip to use large snaps instead of buttons and buttonholes so that the coat could be easily repaired in the future.  I always appreciate Amy Carol's blog whenever I visit it.  She has such a relaxed and organic feel to her makes.  A note about sizing, my daughter is 5 years old and I made the size 5.  It fit perfectly but probably won't have enough wiggle room for next season.

Grade: I would give this pattern an "A" if you're an experienced sewist but maybe a "B" for a novice since the directions might be a little hard for a beginner to navigate.  I think if I'd used a solid color fabric it definitely would have taken me about half the time to make it but I really think I stretched myself as a sewist to use this crazy plaid. Its meets my 5 year old's approval apart from some complaints that "its hot" when she tried it on, but that's kind of the point of making a coat like this!  This is definitely one of those garments that make you proud that you can sew when you complete it.  So here's to KCW and it being the push I needed to challenge myself!!