Scott Freeman tore his favorite raincoat, a secondhand North Face jacket he liked enough to try to replace himself. He and Brittany already had a sewing machine out in their Seattle apartment. They turned the kitchen table into a workbench and, as City Arts reported, used paper grocery bags from QFC to draft the pattern. The bags supplied the paper. Figuring out how a sleeve would look laid flat took a little more work.
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How the Freemans made their first raincoat
Scott described the process in an interview. They laid existing coats over paper to trace the shape of a sleeve, then made trial versions of the body and sleeves from scrap fabric. They started big, took in the body until it fit the way they wanted, then pulled the fabric pieces apart so they could see their shapes flat. Once the pattern was close, they cut it in waterproof fabric.
Freeman dates its first namesake raincoat to 2011. One jacket became a side business and eventually a shop. The company now has a showroom at its production space in Seattle’s SODO neighborhood, where you can try on the clothes and get a look at how Freeman makes them.
The F.C. Coat is cut and sewn in Seattle
The olive Freeman Convertible Coat costs $475 as listed by the brand on November 13. Its Scottish-milled shell is 100% cotton treated with a plant-based dry wax and a PFAS-free water-repellent finish. Cotton flannel lines the body and hood, and the sleeves use a densely woven cotton lining. The adjustable hood comes off, so you can change the look on dry days and reattach it when rain is in the forecast.
The hood has a structured brim, and the cuffs adjust. Two flannel-lined lower pockets snap shut, and a pocket beside the brass zipper keeps small items inside the coat. If you’ll wear it over a flannel or sweater, compare the brand’s garment measurements with a jacket you already layer under. Freeman calls for a warm hand wash and either line drying or a low tumble dry.
I’d judge it first as a lined coat for wet days around town. The wax and finish describe the shell. They don’t tell you how warm the coat will be on a long, cold walk or how it will handle hours of heavy rain. The construction details come from Freeman’s product listing.
How I’d wear it on a wet winter Saturday
The F.C. Coat anchors the rainy-day look in our Winter Outfits for Men guide. The outfit starts with a cotton waffle henley and a plaid flannel under the olive shell, then adds straight-leg denim and leather field boots. The henley and flannel give you a layer to take off once you’re indoors. If the forecast calls for sleet or a long stretch outside, choose footwear for the surface and add insulation for the temperature.
Shop the layers from this look
- Corridor Waffle Henley in Natural for the cotton base layer.
- Oak Street Bootmakers Field Boot for the leather boot shown in the guide.
For a closer look at the layer underneath, see our Corridor NYC guide. For another small maker whose story starts with how a garment is made, read Duckworth Wool: One Montana Ranch, Sheep to Shirt.
