Blueberry Swirl progress, and my first wool coat

OK, so this is how its looking now.

I realise it looks like the most enormous blueberry doughnut in the known world, but it will be a cardigan. The book promises it will be so.

This is it up to welt 18 and the photo was taken on Thursday night. I've added three more welts since then. The collar part is the section between the needle tips. I think you can just about make out that the rest of the cardigan is deeper already than the collar section.

The gap between the needles is the section that is bound off for the neckline area and from the part where I am still knitting, will arise a body section and eventually two sleeves. I am aiming to complete the remaining three welts of the first stage of the garment, which we might call the skirt, collar and lapels, tonight and hoping to move on to the first section of the body tomorrow evening.

Tomorrow's daytime tasks will be photographing the SWAP garments (weather permitting) and working on my latest sewing project, Marfy 1984, the coat shown in the photograph above. I've wanted to make this coat for ages but never had the courage to do it, until now. I am using a fabulous dark raspberry/wine tweed with a lighter purple tweedy wrong side. It was a gift from RuthieK and is perfect for this pattern. I think this is my first ever attempt at a wool coat. I've done trenchcoats before but never a wool coat.

The coat is cut out and most of the interfacing has been applied. I just need to do the lapel interfacing and shaping, which is not a task for late at night. I shaped the undercollar this afternoon and that is sat on the ham drying after I steamed it into shape. I must admit that I have not used the proper canvases but rather have used fusibles. The fabric is very thick and doesn't need any more weight. So the fronts and facings are interfaced with stitch reinforced lightweight fusible, as are the patch pockets. The pocket flaps, collar and cuffs are all interfaced with fusible cotton underlining which gives quite strong support. The under collar has one layer on the bias, then the collar stand area has a second layer of the same interfacing cut on the straight.

All seam allowances are one inch. A two inch box pleat has been added at the centre back to give extra reach room and accommodate my very wide back. The wrong side (lighter side) of the fabric will be the face side for the collar/lapel, the cuffs and the pocket flap. The pocket itself matches the coat body.

The lining is duchess satin in a lush purplish wine. Rather expensive but perfect for the coat.

I tacked one side of the coat together this afternoon, including the sleeve, to check the fit, and I think its going to work very well. I was surprised to find that those huge sleeves don't drown my petite frame. I will try and photograph the sleeve piece for you. Its a very interesting shape and I think its this unusual shape that allows the large sleeve to fit so well without overwhelming the figure or creating too much bulk at the underarm. Another triumph from the pattern drafting wizards at Marfy.