Zip Detail Trench Coat with Storm Flaps
A knee-length women's coat in raincoat fabric with a notched collar, front storm flaps, a horizontal waist seam crossed by princess seams, zippered welt pockets and a tie belt. Fully lined, with a back vent and vented two-piece sleeves.
When To Wear
- As a rain and wind layer in spring and autumn.
- Over suits, dresses and knitwear for commuting and town wear, tied at the waist with the belt.
Key Design Features
Silhouette: Shaped by princess seams on the front and back, and a horizontal waist seam; worn with a tie belt.
Length: About knee length.
Collar: Notched collar with lapels; upper and lower collar, the lower collar interfaced.
Closure: Snaps along the front edge.
Front: Double-layer storm flaps (yokes) topstitched onto the fronts and fastened with snaps; front edges topstitched 0.5 cm from the edge.
Pockets: Lower double-welt pockets with zippers set under the welts so the teeth show; upper false pockets on the chest made the same way, with a main-fabric underlay behind the zipper.
Back: Centre back seam with a vent, princess seams and a waist seam.
Sleeves: Two-piece set-in sleeves with a vent in the elbow seam fastened with snaps; shoulder pads and sleeve heads.
Finishing: Tie belt topstitched 0.5 cm from the edge; coat hem sewn by hand.
Lining: Full lining with lined sleeves, joined around the back vent; the lining is 1 cm shorter than the coat.
Level Of Difficulty
Advanced. Four welt openings with zippers, a notched collar set between coat and facing, double-layer storm flaps, a lined back vent and sleeve vents, and a full lining.
Fabric Recommendations
Raincoat fabric.
Additional Supplies
- Lining fabric
- Fusible interfacing (facings, centre front panels, vent area, lower collar) and stay tape for the pocket openings
- 11 snaps
- 4 zippers
- Shoulder pads
- Sleeve heads
Cutter's Must
From main fabric:
- Center Upper Back – 2 pieces
- Side Upper Back – 2 pieces
- Lower Collar – 1 piece
- Upper Collar – 1 piece
- Side Upper Front – 2 pieces
- Center Upper Front – 2 pieces
- Center Front Facing – 2 pieces
- Yoke – 4 pieces
- Waistband (tie belt) – 1 piece
- Upper Sleeve – 2 pieces
- Lower Sleeve – 2 pieces
- Center Lower Back – 2 pieces
- Lower Side Back – 2 pieces
- Side Lower Front – 2 pieces
- Center Lower Front Part – 2 pieces
- Bigger Pocket Lining – 2 pieces
- Smaller Pocket Lining – 2 pieces
From lining fabric:
- Center Back – 2 pieces
- Side Back – 2 pieces
- Side Front – 2 pieces
- Center Front – 2 pieces
- Pocket Lining – 2 pieces
- Upper Sleeve – 2 pieces
- Lower Sleeve – 2 pieces
- From fusible interfacing: Center Front Facing, Center Upper Front, Center Lower Front Part, vent area, Lower Collar; straight-grain stay tape.
Sewing Instructions
- Fuse interfacing to the Center Front Facing, Center Upper Front, Center Lower Front Part, vent area and Lower Collar.
- Place the Upper Collar and Lower Collar right sides together and stitch around the outer edges. Trim the corners, turn the collar right side out and press.
- Stitch the Center Upper Front to the Center Lower Front Part. Press the seam open. Stitch the Side Upper Front to the Side Lower Front. Press the seam open.
- Overlock the princess seam edges from the hem to the waist. Stitch the princess seams on the front and press them open.
- Mark the position of the lower pocket on the front. Reinforce the pocket opening with straight-grain fusible stay tape. Check the position of the lower pocket. Cut the welt strips. Fold the welt strips in half, wrong sides together, and press. Mark a stitching guideline on each welt strip parallel to the fold. Mark guidelines parallel to the pocket opening for attaching the welt strips. Stitch the welt strips to the front, ending the stitching exactly at the parallel marking lines. Check from the wrong side that the stitching lines are parallel. Cut the pocket opening, making diagonal cuts into the corners 1–1.5 cm from each end. Turn the welt strips through the opening to the wrong side, straighten the edges and adjust the ends. Secure the pocket ends on the wrong side with a double row of backstitching across the base of the corner triangles. Place the zipper under the edges of the pocket opening so that the teeth are visible. Stitch in the zipper and stitch the pocket lining pieces to the welt seam allowances. Stitch the pocket lining pieces together and overlock the edges.
- Cut an underlay from the main fabric. Mark the position of the upper false pocket on the front. Reinforce the pocket opening with straight-grain fusible stay tape. Make the upper pocket in the same way as the lower pocket. After stitching in the zipper, stitch the underlay to the welt seam allowances.
- Overlock the inner edge of the Center Front Facing. Place the facing on the front, right sides together, pin and stitch along the marked line. Stitch with the front uppermost, from the hem up to the notch that marks the end of the collar seam. Mark the hem and press the hem allowance to the wrong side of the coat. Stitch the lower edges of the facings to the front exactly along the marked hemline. Trim the seam allowances at the upper and lower corners of the front edge. Turn the front edges right side out and ease out the seams. Baste along the front edges, rolling the seam slightly towards the facing along the closure and towards the front along the lapels. Press the front edges and topstitch 0.5 cm from the edge. Remove the basting.
- Place the Yoke pieces right sides together and stitch along the outer edge, leaving the shoulder, side and armhole edges open. Turn the yoke right side out and press. Baste the yoke to the front. Topstitch the yoke onto the front.
- Stitch the Side Upper Back to the Lower Side Back and the Center Upper Back to the Center Lower Back. Press the seams open.
- Overlock the princess seam edges from the hem to the waist. Stitch the princess seams on the back and press them open.
- Overlock the vent edges. Stitch the center back seam down to the vent. Press the edge of the under vent 1 cm to the wrong side. Press the center back seam and the vent to one side, towards the center of the back. At the top of the vent, topstitch diagonally through the center back seam along the marking, catching the vent allowance.
- Overlock the side seam edges from the hem to the waist. Stitch the shoulder and side seams of the coat. Press the shoulder and side seams open. Remove the basting that holds the yoke to the front.
- Stitch the elbow seam of the sleeve and the vent corners on the Upper Sleeve and Lower Sleeve. Press the elbow seam open, clip the allowance at the top of the vent and press the vent.
- Stitch the front sleeve seam and press it open. Press up the sleeve hem.
- Stitch the Lower Collar into the coat neckline.
- Set the sleeves into the armholes, matching the notches. Attach the shoulder pads and sleeve heads.
- Mark and attach the snaps on the sleeve vents, the yokes and along the front edge.
- Stitch the seams of the lining pieces and set in the lining sleeves. Overlock the lining seams from the hem to the waist and press. Stitch the lining to the inner edges of the facings and to the Upper Collar. Press the collar seam allowances open and tack them together close to the seams.
- Turn under the lining sleeve hems and stitch them to the sleeve hem allowances of the coat; fold the excess lining down and press. Turn the coat right side out. Smooth the lining, pin the lining side seams to the coat side seams and carefully cut the lining along the vent edges, 1 cm further towards the center back seam. Stop 1 cm below the top of the vent and make 1 cm diagonal cuts to both sides. Turn the cut edges in and pin them to the vent edges. Put a hand between the coat and the lining, take hold of the pinned edges and pull them out one at a time. Stitch the edges and fold the hem down. Straighten the vent edges. At the top of the vent, turn under the lining corner and sew it to the vent allowance. Turn up and stitch the lining hem so that the lining is 1 cm shorter than the coat.
- Press the coat hem allowance to the wrong side and sew it by hand.
- Fold the Waistband (tie belt) in half lengthwise, right sides together. Stitch it on three sides, leaving a small opening for turning. Turn the belt right side out and press. Topstitch around the belt 0.5 cm from the edge.
