Oh dear, it's been so long time since I have written a pattern review, yet alone a blog post. The wedding preparations took up most of my time. I wrote this blog post last summer, after the wedding but never hit published - oops! So here it comes ...
The shirt is a classic shape slightly loose with subtle shaping, and by classic, I mean the sleeves are sitting at the right shoulder point and are set int. I have been looking for a pattern like this for a long time. While I love the look of big sleeves on others, it isn't a look that suits me well. I had a ready-to-wear shirt - for years now - that I absolutely love and been looking for a similar pattern for a while. The shirt has seen better days and I really wanted a new one. It has large gingham pattern. When I found the Art Gallery Fabric Rayon in the same print, I knew I had to find the perfect dressmaking pattern for it.
The pattern comes in two versions. Version A is a classic button-up shirt with a straight point collar and optional breast pockets. Version B features tuxedo shirt-style tucks across the bust, bishop-style sleeves and a simple band collar. Both version can be made into a shirt or dress length. The pattern is only available as PDF by Pattern Scout. It comes in sizes 0 to 28 (bust: 79 cm till 137 cm) and has B, C and D cup options.
My very first shirt I made about a year and a half ago with zero adjustments to check how the pattern fits me. I used a Rayon fabric and to my surprise the shirt fit me straight away. Normally I have to do back adjustments.
My second shirt, I continued with no adjustments in terms of fit. I did change the shape of the hemline to be less curved on the side and front; and added a bit of length too. This time I used a Viscose Linen. This time, I had a bit of tightness across the arms when moving forward which normally means I need a broad-back adjustment. This shows how different fabric have different qualities so from then onwards I made the broad-back adjustment for cotton and linen fabrics but not for Viscose fabrics.
For most comfort and fit, I have mostly made this shirt in Viscose Lawn and Tencel. The lawn weave is a bit more structured than a Challis - less drapey if you'd compare them side by side. The same qualities apply to Tencel. Which give the shirt a soft yet structured look.
For the first versions I made a size 13 at the waist by simply tracing between 12 and 14 and curved the side seam a bit for more shaping and ended in size 12 at the hip. For the last versions I also made a small bust adjustment of 1" and lowered the dart by 1/2". I made these adjustments because I lost weight over the last 10 months and felt the fit around the bust was a bit too loose.
The sewing instructions are fantastic! You have tips for bust measurements and by far, the best instructions on how to construct the collar stand. With other patterns, I had to look by tutorials or plainly given up but these instructions are amazing! Well done, Casey!
Since then I have made a lot more and maybe gotten a little obsessed with it. With that my obsession to gingham rekindled. I even followed Casey's blog post and made sleeveless versions - love them!
The blue/denim-colored sleeveless shirt, I thrifted the tencel fabric from a dress and I think this is by far my favourite version. The fabric is just the perfect match to this pattern.
Thanks for hanging out with me. Have you made any button-up shirts yet?
Happy Sewing!
Maria
