The Great Pumpkin Coat

Would you ever wear a big orange suede coat? What if it came with a matching clutch purse and suede pumps? What if it was a birthday gift from your father? What if the cut of the coat was perfectly on-trend and complemented the fashionable dress silhouette of the day? Would you wear it, even if you risked looking like a giant pumpkin and/or drawing attention to yourself? Would you hide it in your closet, waiting for an appropriate occasion to present itself or wear it all the time for no particular reason?

These are not hypothetical questions. The Great Pumpkin Coat really exists. It was perfectly trendy in 1961, but it has hardly ever been worn by its owner - even when new!

The coat belongs to my mother. She says it's not orange, it's "apricot". Here's The History of the Apricot Suede Coat, according to Mom:

My father was an executive with International Shoe Company in St. Louis* until he retired after 42 years. Although he was in the Men's Division, my shoes always came home with him from "the office", usually 4-6 pairs stacked in their boxes and tied with string. It was always a surprise to see what I was supposed to wear each season.

Dad also had many contacts among the suppliers of materials for the shoe business, and for my fifteenth birthday he surprised me with a 3/4 length apricot suede coat, a clutch bag to match, and (of course) matching pumps. It was the '60's and the style of the coat was flared like an "artist's smock" with a black taffeta lining.

Although it was a truly striking ensemble, I really didn't have many occasions to wear it. I did take it to college and it has remained with me through many moves in my life. When you asked for it recently, Jenny, I was amazed and truly pleased. Seeing you in it last Sunday made my day!

MOM

* My grandfather's office was in the heart of the garment district on Washington Ave., very close to where the City Museum is now. He was married to my stylish grandmother. With his connections in the garment industry and her eye for style I'm sure they were a couple of snazzy dressers in their day! --J

This spring I've been wearing The Great Pumpkin Coat in all its orange suede vintage glory. It keeps my big pregnant belly covered, even now in my last month or so. I would never have considered it if I wasn't pregnant, but now that I've worn the coat I think I might keep it to wear this fall (but only when baby Henry is not within spitting-up distance). It's one more thing my pre-pregnant self would never have considered that has been a pleasant surprise.

The coat and envelope clutch are in mint condition. Unfortunately the matching suede pumps are no longer around. I don't carry the purse, but I wear the coat frequently. It's a showstopper. It hangs very nicely when unbuttoned and makes a much more slimming vertical line than you might expect based on the volume of material. I rarely button it because when it's buttoned it makes me feel like I belong in a road construction zone. Besides the traffic cone/barrel effect, the placement of the lower button is like a cruel joke meant to draw attention to my temporary outie belly button. I just keep it unbuttoned and it's all good.


Just to be extra-clear, I did not make this coat; it is a vintage garment. However, I've seen many vintage patterns for coats in this style. The full shape of the coat makes perfect sense when you consider the fluffy dresses the coat was intended to complement. In all the pattern illustrations I've seen, the coats look kind of rigid. Maybe they are being supported by the petticoats and dresses, or maybe the pattern illustrators made them look stiff to show the design details more clearly. Consider the era:

Dress patterns from 1961, the same year as the orange coat. These are already in my pattern stash, waiting for my waistline to return!


Coat patterns that are very similar to the style of my mom's vintage coat. Don't they look just a little too stiff in the illustrations?

I can say with certainty that the orange coat isn't stiff at all and hangs beautifully. If you're thinking about making an easy-fitting coat to wear over big dresses (or a big ass, or a pregnant belly, or whatever!), give the patterns from the early 1960's a look and try to see past the stiffness of the illustrations.

P.S. Mom, the coat would look great on you for this fall. It's as comfortable, flattering and striking as anything you might find at Chico's or the mall. I'll hand it over, just ask!