Catherine Morland, being excessively fond of Gothic novels, found herself traveling to Northanger Abbey expecting it to be a dark, exotic, and frightening place. On her journey, she would have worn a pelisse—a long outer coat that was often lined with fur to keep out the spring chill. The Northanger Pelisse, with its lacy, ruffled collar, is a modern version of this Regency full-length coat. It begins with a length of I-cord and is worked from the top down in the contiguous method that has the look of a set-in sleeve with the ease of one-piece
knitting. It features a cable-and-lace motif in panels down the sleeves and body of the coat. The upper body is worked to an Empire waist then sewn to a lace-motif waistband that is worked sideways. A special feature is the closure: sewn beads on the outside that hide strips of snaps on a length of ribbon.