Raincoat Revamp!......... Do it like Audrey

Welcome, frugal fashion followers! Thanks for having a read of my blog.


As you probably know by now, this year I'm looking for ways to look fabulous without resorting to a trip to the shops. I've made the pledge (I must be mad) not to buy any new clothes for the whole of 2012 and I've been busy researching crafty ways to achieve the looks I want.


It's during these winter months when we're all wrapped up, that my mind starts to wander towards my spring wardrobe ... I'm looking forward to casting off the sheepskin coat and layers and lightening up a bit! When it starts to get milder and April showers call, my trusty friend is a beautiful mac..... ahhhh how long have I loved thee?

£600 for a raincoat??? You gotta be kidding!

Listen very carefully, I shall say zis only once

From Audrey Hepburn to Michelle of Zee Resistance, to Alexa Chung ...every style icon worth their salt has rocked a lovely raincoat as a staple of their wardrobe at some point over the decades.


Both Burberry and Aquascutum lay claim to the invention of this heavenly garment and they both still do the most eponymous (if expensive) versions to this day. 
Some history on the origins of the raincoat to be found here on Wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trench_coat

So this Aquascutum mac is the one that's got my attention, I love the strong contrast buttons and buckles, but even if I wasn't going cold turkey for a year, I'd never be prepared to spend £600 on a coat......!


So, I'm going to revamp my mac!

Here's the lucky candidate .. my £8.00 Charity Shop Dannimac raincoat!!

For those of you not familiar with the good old Dannimac, to the best of my knowledge it's a Manchester (of course!) based company that started making macs about 100 years ago. The 70's macs are particularly good... very similar to the classic Burberry and Co's raincoat and a lot cheaper. Put it this way, if you can't make a raincoat in Manchester then you need to find another job!

Here's the 70's label design to look out for

It's got everything you need in a classic mac, from the double breasted fastening to the signature check lining and the fit is very flattering indeed. You can find these vintage treasures in Charity Shops all over the place for next to nothing. So look out for those 70's Dannimacs ..they come in all kinds of colours and lengths ...I've managed to pick up quite a few over the years as you can see here!

All you have to do then is customise them with those hand finished touches that make a garment that bit more luxurious and expensive looking. Simples!


I've got a few different buckles, buttons and trim ideas here ... hmmmmm....which one to choose?

I'm gonna plump for the dark brown leather look buttons and buckle I reckon ... it'll look most like the Aqua one. So, what do I need?

I've got a belt buckle for the front, buttons of different sizes but there's one item I am missing.... I haven't got any small buckles for the sleeves!

I haven't got a small buckle for the sleeve ...what to do?

Hmmmmmm.... I have a cunning plan, I'm going to remove the original buckles from the sleeves and paint them with nail varnish to match the Large buckle at the front! 

Ta Daaaaa!

Start off by removing the original buttons using a seam ripper from the front, leave the bobble of thread from the original in place as you can use this to mark your button placement.....

Carefully remove the buttons

Here's a link for you if you're not sure about sewing on Jacket/Coat buttons, it's important that you don't sew them on too tight, if you do, then the coat won't sit cleanly when you fasten it.

http://www.ehow.com/how_2302827_properly-sew-coat-button.html

Once you've sewn on the buttons, unpick the stitches holding down the buckles, the fabric strip literally folds over the bar of the buckle and this is a lot easier than you'd think.

Gently unpick the seam holding the buckle down

You can either machine sew or hand sew the seam back down again once you've put your new buckle on, it doesn't have to look perfect, remember we're looking for a hand finished look.....

Speaking of hand finishing.... I've got one last trick up my sleeve for making this Mac look extra special,  when I used to work on Savile Row, we used to hand topstitch jackets and even down the side seams of trousers in a contrast thread to jazz them up and give off that "bespoke" vibe. I've decided that although this is pretty time consuming, I'm going to go for it as it'll take my Mac up to another level. Do it in stages over a few days so you don't get bored or get sore fingers ... believe me, it'll be worth it!

Got a lovely strong contrast thread here ...this should do the trick!

Simply stitch along all the edges of the garment, using the existing stitch lines as a guideline and a good strong needle. This is called a "Saddle Stitch"

Stitch along the seam lines at the front edge and flap

All these little extras make the garment look more and more individual

Look how well my nail varnished sleeve buckle matches the belt.... FAB!

Don't forget that the pocket edges and even the storm flap and belt can be customised too!

So, we've changed the buttons, replaced the buckles and we've top stitched all the seam edges..... let's see how our project looks now compared to before.

I'm pretty chuffed to be honest! It's turned out beautifully... I can really see and feel the difference in the before and after, the whole garment just looks a lot more upmarket and stylish.

So the next time you're passing by your local Charity shop, pop in and check out the Outerwear section and pick yourself up a lovely bargain raincoat and get customising,  it's a great way of having something completely unique. 

I've got another plain cream one here .... I'm thinking gold buttons and buckle might be rather snazzy!!