Winter coat - fabric choice for a duffle coat

It's complicated, but basically last year, I didn't have a winter coat.  Given that we had some record-breaking rainfall and cold, looking back... it might have been a mistake to try to deal with winter without a coat.  I figure the rest of my clothing can last me well enough but for my health and wellbeing, I need a coat before winter gets here which means, I had best start sewing now.

Thinking back on all the coats I've owned in my life, one coat stands out in my memory more than all the others.  I remember it with great fondness.  It was a real duffle coat.  Fawn coloured, I bought it used for a steal because of the cigarette burns (which I patched with strawberry patches so it looked cute and I could always tell my coat from the others).  What I thought was really neat was the way the fabric was double-sided, but all one fabric.  There was plaid on the inside but fulled fawn twill on the outside.  Very thick cloth - almost too thick.  No lining (so sometimes arms would be difficult to get in and out).  Just a single layer of double-sided cloth.  

It could almost be worn inside out coat if the buttons and pockets were in the right place.  But alas, no. 

I finally wore it out after over a decade of constant use.

Looking at my wardrobe goals, a Duffle Coat would fit with the Farmwear (good elemental protection, vintage look) and with the Scholarly Functional look.  I love that it can do double duty. 

I couldn't find the fawn fabric that I wanted, but I did find some pretty amazing fabric on sale at the local fabric shop.  It's a wool nylon blend.  Knowing this shop, it's probably vintage as they bought a huge amount of overstock of wool and wool blends over the decades and this has that vintage mothball smell.  It would be fun to find out more about the history of this cloth.

(vintage mothballs smell different than modern ones - by modern, I mean post-1990 because I'm getting to be vintage myself)

One side is plaid, the other black.  Both sides are twill, but the plaid side has yarn that is about 1/3rd as thick as the black side.  What's more, the two layers are woven together with the warp of the colourful side picking up weft from the black side in such a way that it doesn't show on the outside of the cloth.  Pretty nifty stuff, and if I had a 16-shaft loom, I would be tempted to see if I could weave it.  

Even though it's not as thick as my memory of my duffle coat (nor as fulled), the two layers look like they will make for extra warmth as there's a bit of an air gap in there.

Thinking more about a reversible coat... I wondered if there was a way to make the seams tidy enough that they would look good from both sides.  So I did a 5/8" seam, trimmed one edge and folded the other over and around for a felled seam.  

This was just a quick sample, so I didn't bother with an iron which made this very difficult.  Even if I had ironed it, I suspect a 1" seam allowance would be better for this kind of seam.  

But I think it looks pretty good.  What do you think?

Next test is washing.  If this is going to last me 10 winters, it's probably going to get dirty.  Drycleaning is recommended, but meh.  I'm not a fan.  

Thankfully this design has nice, pre-measured squares, so I cut out two and hand wash one in hot water with some vigorous action.  Like I would the final coat.

There is no noticeable shrinkage from one wash, but the cloth wants to fray.  Definitely need to be careful enclosing my seams.  

 The top layer is washed, the lower unwashed.  

I don't think I'll bother pre-washing this cloth.  

 Anyway, here is the description that came with the cloth.  Mostly, I'm just posting it here for my own reference but maybe it has some clues for troubleshooting future issues? I hope 6-meters will be enough for a coat.  

Description

This reversible vintage plaid has a thick, heavy drape. Its heavy weight makes it perfect for coats, cloaks,  blankets, wraps, and pet beds.

Wool and nylon blend

150cm or 60″ wide

417gsm or 12.30oz/yd2

Made in West Germany

Dry cleaning recommended. If you wish to hand wash and hang to dry, please try with a sample first.
Due to variations in every monitor, we cannot guarantee colours over the internet and highly recommend ordering a swatch.

Now I have an idea of how the cloth will behave, the next thing do is to find a pattern and make a mockup (frustrating mockup fabric is about the same price as this cloth, but whatever). 

This free pattern looks to be one of the best.  Although this one also has a lot going for it.

Whatever I choose, I can see making quite a few changes to the pattern to better match my goal... so maybe I'll try making a mockup with the free pattern first to see what it's like.  

I also need to decide on buttons, leather, and any other notions I need for this coat.  That's a later problem.