Final Version, Bilbo Blue Coat

I finally found some motivation and finished my 3rd attempt at Bilbo's blue coat. All the attempts have been successful, but I'm particularly pleased with how the latest one turned out. I only wish I had better lighting for photos. The current lighting tends to wash out the colors. Le sigh.

Anyway, my process for making this warm, ragged beauty began with altering my pattern. I originally had a tunic pattern I used for all my tunics, but I decided at the last second that it simply didn't get the sleeves right at all. I found a pattern for men's pajamas (!) that was much closer, and altered it accordingly. 

The dog's like, "Someone please kill me."

Anyway, I altered the medium size men's top because it had very wide, roomy sleeves with the arm hole very much off the shoulder. Perfect for Bilbo's blue coat (that's one thing that is very important to do before beginning patterning: study the pictures of the original like you'll be taking an exam on them!) . 

My alterations are evidenced in the following pictures. I altered the back neck cutout, the front neckline, lengthened the sleeves (they need to be folded up, remember), lengthened the lower "panels," and split the front and back at the waist, adding 5/8" on each piece to accommodate the seam.

I cut out all the pieces, first sewing all the panels back together, then sewing the center back seam and the sides down to the waist seam. I did this for both the main, cotton velvet fabric and the linen/wool blend lining fabric.

When I'd finished and set the sleeves in, I set about making the trim. Bilbo's coat trim is allegedly "ratted up grey faux fur." I opted to use raw wool because it was frizzy and fuzzy, much like the "fur" they used, and would look more real than a synthetic fur trim. It wasn't easy, but I think the end result was worth it.

First, I washed the raw wool (got it from a seller on etsy), let it dry, and then basically sandwiched each individual cut strand in between a piece of bias tape I'd opened out and then pressed in half.

I used a bit of fabric glue to tack the ends of the pieces down, waited for that to dry, then sewed along the edge to hold the wool strands in place. After I'd completed enough trim to do the center front and the sleeves, it was time to dye it. The trim on Bilbo's coat is a grayish-biege, and since I didn't have any grey dye, I opted to use a solution of water and acrylic paint. I heated a cauldron of water, added a healthy bit of paint, stirred it up, and then added the trim. I let it sit in the black water for about 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, and then removed it, rinsed it, and let it air dry. 

To finish the coat, I first sewed the lower panels of the main fabric and lining together, leaving the center back panels open for turning purposes...

Then I hand basted the trim into the center front seam.

And sewed the seam at the precise measurement so none of the bias tape would be visible once the coat was turned right side out. That, of course, was the next step (after trimming the seams, corners, and clipping the curves). 

Once that was done, I had only to sew up the back panels using a slipstitch, then sew the remaining trim to the outer side of the lining fabric of the sleeves, turn it so the trim was outwards, and then slipstitch the velvet over it to cover the seam/bias tape, and press the seams.

Not the real belt I'll be using. I don't think so, anyway. Now I just need a cravat. I plan to create that through silk painting, and I have most of the correct colors already.

If anyone finds this not-quite-a-tutorial useful, I'd love to hear from you. Or if you have any questions about how I accomplished a particular technique, I am more than happy to elaborate/clarify. :-)

In case you're wondering, the coat is very warm, and very comfy. I may end up wearing it for daily outings and/or around the house, as I need to break it in a little. Bilbo's, as you may have observed, has a lot of the velvet pile shredded and missing. I may do some of that later on (I'll probably use sandpaper and a cheese grater), but for now, I intend to enjoy a newish version of the coat. 

Bilbo Cosplay, Part II: Undershirt and Waistcoat

Alright, me beauties. I have returned once again, after several days of work. The Bilbo cosplay is coming along, which is good, as I really, really want to work on Thorin 1.0, version 2.0. I'm sure that makes perfect sense.

So. The Bilbo cosplay outfit where it stands right now, minus trousers (which I have):

The color in this picture is totally wrong. It's definitely not greenish brown. It's a very nice, bright olive. I hate my iPad camera sometimes. I'll try to get a picture in daylight later on.

Conclusions I have come to after making this shirt and waistcoat? Plackets and welt pockets are evil, evil, EVIL. No matter. I have conquered. They picked the wrong seamstress to tangle with.

The base pattern for both of these was really unhelpful most of the time, as either the seam placement was entirely wrong, or the sizing, or the shape was off and required adjusting. There's nothing like pattern modification to make a project take at least twice as long, and I felt every second of that extension in time and effort. 

The Shirt

The undershirt was partially completed in my last post, so I won't spend too much time on it. Basically, I attached the sleeves (check out that amazing sleeve design!), did the placket and collar, and hemmed it. 

It works. Not particularly accurate, since this isn't the shirt Bilbo wore on his journey, but whatever. Any men's dress shirt would suffice for that, anyway, and I'll probably buy one at some point.

The Waistcoat

The simple, wool waistcoat gave me a lot more hell than I thought it would. Firstly, welt pockets. These guys are mean. The amount of measuring and marking required makes me shudder, and you have to place everything really accurately, or you end up with a mess, some of it quite possibly irreversible. Terrifying, I know. Anyway, being the smart person I am, I decided to make a mockup first. 

The pattern instructions might as well have been in orcish, and the pictures were drawn by a neophyte, so my first attempt was disastrous. Unsurprisingly, I found what amounted to a support group online for people traumatized by this particular pattern. My second mockup was much better, and actually worked, so I finally finished the welt pockets on the real waistcoat. 

"Shiiiiiire.... welt pocketssssssss..."

Then I could actually move on to constructing it, which went relatively quickly. Sewed together the main pieces, sewed together the lining, fitted it to the dress form. Altered and adjusted shape of the lower front, lengthened neckline in front, sewed lining and main fabric together and turned. Top-stitched, and then sewed button holes. Since I've decided this cosplay will be "post-Goblin Town Bilbo," that means there's only one button. One glorious, brass, acorn button. I ordered it from Weta, straight from New Zealand, and I swear a choir of Elves sang all around me when I opened the package. ;)

Beautiful button. Beautiful acorn button. Currently obsessed with acorns for no reason at all. *whistles innocently* I sewed it on the waistcoat, and it brought it all together beautifully. Now I just need better pictures of it. 

Fancy Cloak, Original Design:

I also made a lovely green linen cloak over the past few days, which began as a demonstration for a friend and then proceeded to take way longer than it should have. I opted for a gold brocade for the hood lining, a gold web trimming for the front, and a very blingy buckle for the clasp. It actually looks pretty good with Bilbo's costume. *grins* (Horrible pictures, I know. *sigh* Must use better lighting next time.)

Up next, we will have a beauteous blog post concerning everyone's favorite burgundy corduroy frock coat. So iconic. So amazing. So Bilbo. *squee* Can't wait.