The surface lace embellishment on this dressy 1912 Duster takes a bit of time and care to apply, but gives this garment its unique style.  The Coat Sides (Piece 3) are the only main body sections to have lace --there is none on Coat Front or Back. 

Once the lace has been applied to each Coat Side, the side edges of Coat Front and Coat Back are pressed under by a full 3.0cm (1-1/8"), and overlapped by 3.0cm (1-1/8") over the two lengthwise Coat Side edges.  The Front and Back are then attached by sewing along each pressed edge in a 1.6cm (5/8") seam, creating a long decorative tuck about 1.3cm (1/2") wide along each edge.  

The photos below show the steps in preparing the Coat Sides and how the Coat Fronts and Coat Back are attached to them.  Use a strong machine thread (such as a machine quilting cotton) to sew the attachment stitching.  If you like, you can top-stitch in a heavier thread as a contrast touch. 

Press "Play" to go through the photos in order, or click on any thumbnail photo to view. 

The Collar of this Duster coat is the stylish, wide "sailor" type so fashionable in the 1910's.  

When cutting the Collar, the most important point to remember is that there is a separate Collar pattern for each of the two sizes.  Piece 7A must be used with Size A Coat, and Piece B with Size B. 

This Collar is constructed separately from the Coat itself, and then sewn on around the neckline only as far as the Seam Indicators #10 (at the large dot), on each side (see markings on pattern Pieces 1 (Coat Front) and 7A or 7B (Collar). ​

​Be aware that if you make any alterations or changes that will affect the Coat's neckline (for example, by adding to the centre back line), you will need to make the same changes to the Collar.  Further, if you do a complete re-drafting of the Coat to change the size, you will probably also need to re-draft the Collar piece.  

The photos below show the process of preparing the Collar (laying out and attaching the surface lace embellishment), sewing Collar and Collar lining together, and stitching the Collar to the Coat neckline.   This attachment stitching is done as a 1.6cm (5/8") seam, in order to allow the Facing to be sewn on in a 2.0cm (3/4") seam to hide the preliminary stitching lines. 

​The next step in construction is preparing Front Facings (Piece 8) and Back Facing (Piece 9), and sewing them onto the Coat to finish all the Coat edges. 

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The following photos show the steps in preparing the [optional] lace embellishment on the sleeves, and constructing the Cuffs with their attached Facings.  The notes on at the bottom of each photo explain the step being shown.  Click on any photo to go to it, or click on play to run through the series of photos.