Peter Models the 1940's McCall's Boxers or "Back in My Underwear"

OK, do these boxers make my a** look big?

Yes, and I love that about them!

After a marathon morning of sewing on my Singer 15-91, I finished my French yoked boxers, made from McCall's 4474, which I have learned is from 1941.  Seventy-two-year-old underwear, people.

Hope you vegetarians aren't offended by a little beefcake.





I think Michael finds these more amusing than sexy, but what does he know?



I love these boxers and they're extremely comfy.  I haven't tried putting pants on over them yet; one thing at a time.  The only alteration I made was to take 2" off the rise, front and back.  As you can see, they go up to my navel, but no higher.



My fabric is a beautiful gray shirting that arrived in my twenty pound gift box from MPB reader Babe.  It's perfect for a project like this: super soft and appropriately conservative.

These boxers are complicated to put together.  I was fortunate that I had my Simplicity boxers to refer to since they're nearly identical in construction.  The instructions are dense and a little hard to follow, frankly.  While the illustrations are excellent, there's an awful lot of information crammed into half a page -- very typical of vintage pattern instructions.





Some details:  the waistband.



The vertical slit that the right side of the waistband passes through is a little too narrow, hence the bunching (below).  Next time I'll have to make the slit wider or make the bands a little narrower.  My largest buttonhole template is 1 1/16"; perhaps next time I'll try my old Singer buttonholer that doesn't use templates.



This is the center back; as you can see, the boxers are adjustable and there's no elastic.  As a result, they're extremely comfortable in the waist.



Here's the buttoned front yoke:





Boxers like these are ideal for a man with a "prominent seat."  Notice that the Simplicity boxers I made a few years ago have a separate seat panel -- still common in men's boxers today -- while my McCall's has a single center back seam and lots of gathers.







Next, I want to make the woven undershirt, which should be much easier.

In closing, readers, have I sold you on making vintage men's undershorts -- or scared you away?  Do you --

1.  Love 'em.

2.  Hate 'em.

3. Plead the Fifth.

Have a great day, everybody!