I dip my toes into the waters of other pattern companies, then keep returning to Style Arc.  I really do find them reliable, contemporary, fashionable, and consistent in fit.  As long as I choose the designs in shapes that I feel best in, I rarely sew a fail from a Style Arc pattern.

That said, some are bigger wins that others, and this coat is right up there among the wins! I love everything about it. It’s the Style Arc Parker coat. From their website: With an effortless long-line shape, this coat is a perfect option for a smart casual look. Let the collar sit high on the neck and allow the revere to fall naturally. This style features a horizontal hip seam, patch pocket and stitched back vent. FABRIC SUGGESTION ponte, knit boucle, sweater knit or rugby knit.

Fabric choice is really important to sew this successfully.  It’s designed for knits – take note!  It’s an unlined coat without closures, although it would probably be straightforward enough to add an open ended zip to the front between the outer and the facing if you so desired.  Although this is described as a coat, and has a collar with reveres, I am more likely to treat it a bit like a cardigan.

The fabric is a knit from The Remnant Warehouse. It behaved a bit like a rugby knit – not super stretchy like a ponte, but with some substance. I’m not sure what the fibre content was, but it pressed nicely.

The collar was fairly easy to set in, with judicious pinning and even a teensy bit of basting. Working with a knit fabric made it more straightforward than I expected. I used a fairly light stretch interfacing on the collar and the front facings.

The front patch pockets are located a short distance below the feature seam, which is topstitched. This lines up with a seam on the back, also topstitched. The centre back vent has mitred corners and is also topstitched in place.

There is no topstitching down the front opening or facings, so I stitched in the ditch along the shoulder seamlines and the lower front seamlines in order to hold the facing in place. I think that I’ll tack the back neck facing down at the centre too – it has to be fiddled with a bit to lie flat.

This type of garment fits really well into the Melbourne climate. Although there are definitely times of year when something warmer is needed, much of the time our weather is in-between hot and cold, so this type of layer comes in handy. Being a knit, it also kicks goals in the comfort stakes.  And I’ve just realised that this whole outfit is by Style Arc!  Elle pants, Abigail top, Parker coat.  Shoes are Django & Juliette.