Corduroy Coat - The Preliminaries

What better way to start the year than with a new sewing project?

When I acquired a huge stack of very cheap fabric due to a connection my mother had, included in that haul were 6 yards of gorgeous blue corduroy (the tag indicates that it was purchased from Kmart, of all places, for $6, probably in the late 1970s or early 1980s). I have decided to make it into a coat. One problem: there are strange bits that look like the dye was more concentrated or it somehow got water or sun damaged or something.

Into the washer it goes to see what it looks like clean. (Unfortunately not a whole lot better, but we will work around it. I'm not wasting that much fabric, even if it was super cheap.)

Also from the stash is a green and purple batik I got free from a church member's hoarder sister-in-law who was told by her husband that some of her fabric had to go. There were bins and bins and bags and bags of fabric to go through. Now, I like batiks, but I've never worn one and I just wasn't sure if this particular print was just too out of my comfort zone. I considered doing a long summer dress, but it seemed too beachy and mid-Michigan is lacking in beaches.

So I got the crazy idea that I could dye the batik just a bit more blue and use it to line the coat, because the fabric is very soft and would make a very comfortable lining. And I'd be killing two stash birds with one project stone. Huzzah! Into the washer it goes to see what it looks like blue. (After dyeing it, I'm not sure there is a huge difference but I'm telling myself that the green has been "toned down a bit." This sort of reminds me of a recent hair dyeing experiment about which I guest blogged at Mabel's House. Do go take a look at it when you're done here for a chance to win a copy of Liz's new book!)

And this coat will be my first foray into Project Runway patterns. I'm planning on doing the long coat (seen in a fairly hideous orange on the pattern envelope). I've been wanting a long coat and needing to replace a couple in my closet.

This coat will be my primary sewing project for January. My other January priorities? Finish my novel manuscript (very, very close now at 76,558 words) and stick to my diet/exercise regimen.

Best of luck to all of you as you clean up your houses, get your lives in order, start projects, work on resolutions and goals, and look forward with a sense of anticipation to this brand new year where anything is possible.