How to Alter a Tailored Raincoat
A raincoat may need to be altered for a variety of reasons. Perhaps the owner has gained or lost weight, or maybe the raincoat is being passed on to a new owner. Altering a raincoat after it has been tailored uses the same process as altering an unused raincoat. Although vinyl can be a tricky type of fabric to work with, it is rather easy to alter a vinyl raincoat if it is done carefully.
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Things You'll Need
- Sewing machine
- Measuring tape
- Fabric crayon
- Pins
- Seam ripper
- Thread
- Scissors
- Extra vinyl fabric
Instructions
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1
Collect the measurements of the person who will wear the raincoat. Measure arm length, arm and neck circumferences, shoulder-to-shoulder distance, neck-to-waist distance and waistline. Although you may not use all of these measurements during the altering process, write them down just in case.
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2
Make the person wear the raincoat to locate the area where the alteration is needed. Find the appropriate seam that needs to be altered.
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3
Use the seam ripper to remove the chosen seam in the section where the raincoat needs to be altered. Keep the seam ripper away from the vinyl and remove the threads slowly.
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4
Use a fabric crayon to mark where the alteration needs to be made. For example, if the raincoat needs to be made smaller, mark the line where the new seam will be by pulling the vinyl together. If the raincoat needs to be made larger, use the extra vinyl to determine how much is needed for a good fit.
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5
Turn the raincoat inside out and line up the markings made in Step 4 to help create the new seam line. Use pins to keep the new seam line together. Double-check the new seam line with the measurements collected in Step 1. If the alteration requires extra vinyl, sew it to the raincoat using the original seam line and create a new seam line where appropriate.
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6
Sew the new seam line on a sewing machine with similar colored thread. Sew the new seam slowly, so the vinyl does not break or rip.
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7
Put the altered raincoat on the owner. Check to see that the alterations are correct. If so, take a pair of scissors and remove any excess vinyl or thread. If not, go back to Step 2 and make new seam line adjustments.
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References
- Photo Credit man in coat image by MAXFX from Fotolia.com
