Does anyone remember these kids’ coats?

[EvilSylvanianRabbit]

When I was a kid 5 or 6, I was food friends with a really rich girl who was briefly at my primary school. This would have been around 1990-1991. She used to wear coats which were so fancy with lots of pockets - they were very patterned and colourful, but the special thing was that they had a small stuffed animal-shaped toy in each of the pockets made from the same material as the coat. It was fascinating putting your hand in the pocket and pulling out a small giraffe or bear or whatever.

They weren’t handmade, as I remember seeing one in a shop when I was little, and I can’t find anything on Google! Does anyone remember these at all?

*good friends, not food friends

They were made from buying a kit from Clothkits, based in Brighton, cutting out around the printed on pattern and seeing them.
They have in recent years started up again and I believe have those kits
I made them for my boys in the early 80s. Complete with stuffed toy in the pocket. If you bought a little girls dress kit there were dolls clothes to cut out and sew to match

I wasn’t posh by the way! I saved up all year to buy them one kit each from the catalogue
I also made the changing bag which is in the new shop

Yes! Clothkits. My brother had the jungle coat.

Wow - thanks so much! Mumsnet really is amazing, I’ve wondered about this for years!
I’ve googled and those are definitely the ones I’m thinking of. The one I saw in a shop must have been an example, it was probably in a shop that sold the kits (my DM was a knitter so we often used to go to shops like that). I remember being so jealous of this girl’s gorgeous coats!

(I mentioned she was from a rich family as I assumed the coats had been very very expensive - she had lots of other lovely things and lived in a huge house I remember going to parties at)

If you google Clothkits lots of images come up
My boys had the cord dungarees as well and I had a sun dress
I was very exciting when the catalogue came through the post
I used the changing mat for years afterwards as a garden kneeler and the bag opened out as a wall hanging toy tidy
I went to the shop just before lockdown for a reminisce

Yeah cloth kits I had them. They had a resurgent a few years back and I made my girls a replica of my rag doll from when I was little but I'm not sure they are still going.

They were quite expensive compared to buying a winter coat nowadays from George but I loved sewing and saved up. No reasonably priced clothes for children really in late 70’s early 80’s. Marks and Spencer’s was too expensive for me so most of my children’s clothing was home made or from Woolworths. The ladybird brand

Yes definitely still going
I made Cloth Kit as well, the boy version of Kitty and they were in the shop. I believe the new owners may have bought the original printing (?) presses(?) or whatever they used to create the fabric

Wish I’d kept them all for my grandchildren

So nostalgic! Love it. There’s some on eBay and Etsy

I tried to get a bag when my first grandson was born on eBay but they were snapped up really quickly
I think the shop restarted about 5-10 years ago but they didn’t have much of the original stuff to start with
If you live near Brighton it’s worth a visit after lockdown
They also stock lovely fabric and wool as well as the kits and haberdashery
I feel a visit coming on for me!

Yes, I had one as a kid! When I had my own DD, my mum made found the company still existed and bought and made two ragdolls from them for her granddaughter - she emailed them to say that she'd had said coat for me and so on and they sent her a lovely reply saying how pleased they were that she remembered them.

I had a little google of the coat out of curiosity and it is so lovely. I would have been totally envious as a child. I'm envious now!

When were these around?! I don't remember them

There's a Cloth Kits in Chichester.
I used to send my daughter there to do various craft projects.
No idea if it is the same as it was years ago as I can't even sew a button on without having a nervous breakdown

Yes Clothkits!

Me and my younger brother had them. Mine was jungle animals, his was farmyard animals. Both of my DC have worn them 😍 and my mum has them stashed for if my brother has any children!!

I had one and it was my favourite thing.

You can still make them, although they’re currently different colours.

Link

I remember cloth kits well, used to buy —bodge— them for my dd. The very special thing about them that I remember and loved was that you could buy things to match, so jumpers to tone with the dungarees, socks to match the jumpers etc. We take it for granted these days but in the dark ages things like bright coloured socks were hens teeth in the UK.

Yes my mum made me one and she still has it so my dd can wear it in a few years time

clothkits.co.uk/products/blue-clothkits-classic-vintage-padded-farm-jacket-childrens-dressmaking-kit

Get Sewing OP
😄

Ahh amazing! I had one a a child, and I’ve just googled and bought one for my daughter.. thanks for the thread!

It’s not in Brighton! I’m having a senior moment, the new shop is in Chichester.