So, in my full review of the Abbyshot 7b frock, I mentioned that the Abbyshot fabric is a near perfect match for the backside of the W. Bill cashmere, which I found very strange as clearly a significant amount of time and effort were put into matching it back to a swatch of the real deal.
Well, I was recently able to revisit this issue. I intend on modifying my Abbyshot 7b to make it both fit me better and be more accurate to the screen used pattern, which is a pretty standard frock coat. To this end, me and two of my cosplayer friends decided to go in together to buy a second Abbyshot coat in an XXL, the largest size they sell, so that the extra fabric can be utilized to reconstruct various panels and correct the inaccuracies in the pattern. When the XXL arrived, we promptly popped all the seams and laid the fabric panels out to see what we had to work with. I took the opportunity to take a look at the backside of the Abbyshot fabric, and guess what I discovered?
The fabric. Is. Practically. Flawless. Even the grid spacing has magically fixed itself. The only two things not perfect about it is that the Abbyshot fabric is a wool/cashmere blend (80%/20% respectively) and the Abbeyshot has been woven from slightly thinner yarn, and again the twill doesn’t show up on the Abbyshot fabric the way it does on the cashmere. Also of note is that the flecks are still not quite bright enough. Other than that, the fabric is literally flawless.
Somebody at Abbyshot decided to tailor the coats inside-out. EDIT: I was actually able to speak with Abbyshot directly about this after writing this post, the results of which can be read here.
I’m not going to be able to mod my coat before Gallifrey One this year, so I have some time before I need to get my mods straightened out. My tailor friends have told me repeatedly that attempting to flip the fabric inside out and retailor it with the correct side out would take too many coats and too much time to really be worth it, but I’m not convinced yet.
We’ll see what happens…
The Ginger Doctor 
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Out of curiosity, is the fabric on the coat running the right direction? Example, if you were able to magically flip it inside out would it be good? Or is the fabric ALSO running the wrong direction?
Yes, the fabric would be running the correct direction if you magically flipped it inside out.
My main two concerns for modifying these coats is the armhole / sleeve length issue: reduce the hole, sleeve gets shorter when you raise your arm, especially if you make the arm narrower. The other is correcting the back pieces and that effecting things.
It seems possible to get the correct skirt drape.
The lining is awful, but that would be replaceble.
I am only conjecturing here based on my rather limited experience, but it seems like the abbyshot sizing is “Americanized” meaning that they are aiming to please a corpulent figure as the average, versus aiming for a middle ground. Maybe? I like their work in some respects, but the interfacing seems so floppy. And the crispness is lacking. Very floppy. That extends to the green greatcoat too.
Luckily, these coats can be found on the (relatively) cheap used so… Maybe people have been bold and hacked them up to fit properly their unique sizes, as opposed to the potato sack approach?
Are there any good examples online of modifies coats?
I’ve seen some good mods but idk if anyone has tried to flip the fabric ever. The big problem my friends see are the front panels, which have buttonholes already cut into them. The sleeves are too long anyways so I don’t think that’d be a huge issue. Interesting though, I never thought about trawling eBay for used coats… maybe that’s how I gather the fabric I need to make an “ultimate” version.
Yup. $200-$250 when they appear there. I suspect that will change if and when they are no longer available as new.
For the buttonholes: on the original, they are stitched but not actually cut open, as I recall. I’ll check my photos. The abbyshot is cut open. If you look carefully you will see white threads. That is likely the interfacing. If it’s fusble, you’re likely sunk in reusing. If it’s sewn in, then good to go. Remove the thread, invert the fabric, and reverse the right lapel for the left and vice versa. Of course… When the fabric unravels and other unforeseen disasters occur this idea may prove ridiculous, haha!
I’m trying to post a couple reference photos of the original coat for you.
Okay, it does not seem to be working. Here are links:
Ahhh, it worked!!
Notice how crisp the lapel is. Also, zoom in on the buttonholes. They are stitched, but not cut open. No buttons, no need to open the holes, perhaps?
That’s probably exactly the reason. Those are great reference photos, btw, thank you for those
I am still pondering whether to pursue this idea of “correcting” the jacket… Flipping fabric, re-lining, etc or just getting rid of it and thinking about other things, haha!
That said, I finally broke down and opened a 4″ seam and pulled some fabric through to have a looksee with my own eyes.
I am forced to agree: the fabric is inside out! Absolutely! It is way less “blurry”. Still, a tighter weave (I think) would have netted a better result again. It still lacks the texture of the original where the brown looks slightly raised. But when I back away from the front / back next to each other, the back looks waaaay better from even 18″ away. Wow!
The interfacing is super floppy from what I can see. It seems synthetic. A “real” interfacing would do wonders.
All in all, this is a decent fabric. Certainly the closest anyone will likely get unless someone commissions a true re-weave and not many could afford that fabric anyhow!
(The outside is on the left and the inside is on the right in the photo.)
Wait until you read the post I’m about to write!
One thing to remember, of course, is this: just about anyone reading this blog would, of course, love to have a frock made of the ORIGINAL fabric, but this is impossible as there is no fabric available (and if it was, it would be too expensive for most, including me, to afford). I think that the Abbyshot coat is very nice and people will be VERY HAPPY when they put one on and look in the mirror. It’s really only a small number of people who are both obsessive AND crazy enough to pick up the seam ripper and scissors to modify a garment SO CLOSE to perfect to start with. How many folks out there will really travel and search for the exact buttons used on the bespoke version made for the show? Seriously, the of-the-rack frocks are great. I just cannot keep from micro-critiquing and this is a result of my intense interest in the show/costumes and the wonder of chasing down behind-the-scenes stories. Go figure, haha!
I feel the same. It’s really a wonderful coat and I never ever thought I’d see that fabric again when I learned that only one bolt of the real stuff had ever been made so when Abbyshot came out with one so damn close I was floored. To see that they’ve gotten even closer than I originally thought is honestly mind-boggling. I’m so pleased that there’s a place willing to put up with crazy people like us to bring us something like this.