Adding stud fastenings to The Utility Coat

This is my latest version of The Utility Coat. The fabric is a waterproof coated cotton in a sand colour accessorised with matching tape and elastic and gold snap stud fastenings and eyelets.

When using these metal fastenings, instead of buttons and buttonholes as suggested in the original pattern, the eyelets and pocket fastenings need to be attached in advance.

The eyelets for the waistband gathering and hood are attached first before making up any of the garment. I’ve altered the gathered waistband on this version by only gathering part of the back; 12cm in from the side seam on either side. To do this I chalked the line for the tape to encase the elastic, stopping 12cm from the back edge. I fixed an eyelet at this point prior to stitching the tape in place. I used my zipper foot to get the stitching to the side of the eyelet.

For the hood I added a drawstring, threaded through the 2cm turned edge. I positioned the eyelet close to the folded edge as shown here. 

For the pockets, attach the fastenings to the pocket pieces before they are stitched to the coat front, as it is too tricky getting the fixing tools inside the attached pocket bag. Follow steps 1a, 1b and 1c as instructed in the pattern, then place the pocket bag flat on a table with the flap positioned on top. Pin the two together and turn over to the reverse and mark the position of the stud fastenings. Make sure there is enough margin at the side to be able to stitch the bag to the coat front, and at the top of the flap to attach it to the coat without stitching through the top of the pocket. Fix the fastenings to each piece and stitch the pocket bags to the garment fronts. Before attaching the flaps, fasten these to the pockets and then stitch along the top to secure.

For this version I also lengthened the coat by 10cm for a finished length of 112cm for the size 12.

Waterproof fabrics are available from pennineoutdoor.co.uk, croftmill.co.uk and britishmillerain.com

The stud fastenings and eyelets were bought at the Knitting & Stitching Show.