The Making of The Penelope Red Jade Winter Coat

I am so excited! I wanted to introduce my very latest style to my Penelope Red range. This is the Penelope Red Jade Winter Coat, and I absolutely love it! This is a one-off, completely unique garment, and the lady who will eventually own this will truly have something special!

The photos included here with me as the model, have been taken today... they are, of course, not professional photos, but I couldn't wait for the real photos before I revealed this to you, so for now... these will have to do.

I am so happy with the colours, styling, finish and fit of the coat- I am really starting to see that tailoring and suiting is truly where my passion lies...

I decided on this style through many ways. I wanted a glamorous, classic silhouette, so I created a fuller hem. The subtle pleating in the arms, bust and waist area, tied together with the fuller hem also allows for comfort and ease.

The contrasting jade panels were created for two reasons. I always like to try to balance out a woman's body. So If I have a wide hem, I like to create the optical illusion of wider shoulders too.

The second; both of these fabrics are recycled, I only had very small amounts in each, so I needed to divide the fabric anyway.

I have spent over a week creating this coat, and for those of you who have no idea how much work goes into creating something as special as this, I will share with you some photos to illustrate exactly how much work is involved.

I have added a 100% cotton interlining to this coat. The main outer fabric is a beautiful bouclé, and I wanted to stabilise it with an interlining. It gives more body to the garment, keeps it warmer and soft.
Each and every seam has been layered as well as pressed.


Above is the lining, once I had attached the black faux fur.The lining is 100% black silk. To create a bit of interest to the inside of the garment, I decided to place a jade detailed stitching around the facings- even the inside is beautiful!


I love it when coats have welt button holes- it just finishes off the coat perfectly. It is quite a fiddly procedure, and takes many steps, but it is always worth it!



When I am creating a beautiful garment such as this, I like to use interfacing, rather than fusing. This means the garment will be more durable, will hold its shape for longer, and will look better than any fused garment..... It also means more work, but again, it's worth it!


I tried to match the check lines as much as possible.


As mentioned before, I like to place subtle pleats around the bust/waist and arms. This is a photo of one.


There are two side pockets included.

Some of the seams have been hand stitched down to make sure they stay completely flat.




Well, I hope this has helped to give you a clearer picture of how I create my designs, and the kind of work involved.

Below are a few photos of the coat on the dummy.





The Penelope Red Jade Winter Coat will not be available to purchase until September 09. Meanwhile, please take a look at the Penelope Red Etsy shop, or the Penelope Red official website for more information.