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Oh, I made a DIY soft trench coat with wrist ties. This is a fun one to have in my wardrobe, I do admit.
The fabric is dreamy, drapey, and flows when I walk. Like a classic trench, it’s versatile and can be the statement piece of an outfit.
Simplicity S8554 Coat Pattern
Simplicity S8554 is a coat sewing pattern… I want to call it a jacket… that’s unlined and easy to sew. I made the short length, and there are variations to make a knee-length or long coat too.
It has a tie belt and front or inseam pockets. You can make the long sleeves with ties around the wrists.
There is a front overlay variation that you’ll often see on classic trench designs. It has a relaxed fit with a lot of ease.
Materials
Here are the fabric and notions I used to make this trench. Oh, and not many notions are needed.
Fabric: I think my fabric almost matches the model’s coat on the pattern envelope. When I bought this Tencel twill at Joann, they had a lot of it.Â
It’s made from natural fibers (semi-synthetic), which I love. It’s flowy, yet still holds some shape, so it’s not too drapey.
This fabric has a soft hand and a nice weight for light jackets and bottoms. The color is a light green, and I wish I had more in other colors!
To make my mockup, I used muslin. It’s made of medium-weight cotton and has a little drape too.Â
Suggested fabrics include challis, chambray, soft lightweight linen types, and silky types.
Notions: I used lightweight fusible interfacing on the collar and lapel.
Sewing the Trench Coat
Making this coat was straightforward, but handling the fabric was another thing! It likes to move it, move it.
When I made my mockup, I made the overlay because I wanted to know how it looked.
At the time, I had sized down, but I was on the fence about sizing up. I had bought the sewing pattern in the medium range, so I had to grade it down a size.
The actual sewing of this coat was not very difficult.
I made front patch pockets on my coat. If you make the long version, you can make side inseam pockets instead.
Sewing the sleeves wasn’t difficult, but I added ties around the wrists. Just make sure you keep them on the outside of the sleeves and pin them out of the way.
And you don’t want to sew them into the wrong seam… like I did!
After fixing that fiasco, I made the tie belt that goes around the waist. And that went well!
When I make this pattern again, I’ll size down. The ease is generous.
I actually ended up resizing it after wearing it. I took off a bit on the sides.
Instead of the ties around the wrists, I might use buckles or snaps next time. The ties come undone and flop around when wearing them, and this becomes annoying.
Otherwise, I really like how they look. I might make them more functional by tacking them in place.
Notes
To make this trench, you’ll want to choose a more flowy fabric for the soft look. And I’d make a mockup to check sizing.
I love how my trench coat came out. It pairs well on casual days when sporting some jeans and a T-shirt.
It’s perfect for layering and to throw on for spring, summer, and fall. If you live in a nice, toasty area, it’d be nice for cool evenings!
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