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Jul 4, 2018

A Mermaid-Print Summer Shirt!


Last week Michael and I were on vacation in Sanibel Island, Florida, and naturally I insisted on visiting the only fabric store on the island, Three Crafty Ladies.

They specialize in quality quilting cottons, but they have some great tropical and nautical prints that are perfect for summer shirts.  We ended up buying two: a mermaid print for me and an octopus print for Michael (I'll be making his shirt next).  The mermaid print was designed by Jessica Swift for Art Gallery Fabrics.  It comes in two colorways, Twilight (which I chose) and Orchid.



I decided to make a short-sleeve shirt using a vintage 60's men's shirt pattern, Simplicity 6955.  Other than changing the collar to give it a wider spread and adding a sloping shoulder adjustment, I sewed it as-is.

I decided to use some orange cotton gingham I had in my stash (from Metro Textiles) to make a contrasting inner collar stand, and I also used the gingham for the left-front placket facing (the left side has the buttonholes on a men's shirt).  I cut the gingham on the bias, which seemed like a more interesting choice (and more forgiving, frankly).  I interfaced the bias with a lightweight knit interfacing to prevent stretching.




I tried hard to match the pattern across the front and to cut the other pieces as symmetrically as I could.



I used orange thread for topstitching and chose vintage orange plastic buttons from my stash to maintain with the orange theme.


I really like the way this shirt turned out, though if I were to make it again, I'd choose a different collar stand and collar or draft my own since the one from the pattern is a little wonky; it took me a long time to work out the kinks.

Here's the finished shirt front with collar and contrasting collar stand and placket facing:


Back of shirt:


And here are some modeling shots!




It's fun to sew for myself again -- it's been a long time -- and I'm delighted to have a mermaid-print shirt in my summer wardrobe. 

Have a great day, everybody, and happy summer sewing!

31 comments:

  1. I swoon when I see closeups of your workmanship. That is one great shirt!

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  2. Fabulous! Art Gallery Fabrics are among the best!

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  3. Isn't it super fun to take your time on a project and have it come out really well? I have been finding myself really enjoying that process with my own sewing lately. I love this shirt and I can't wait to see the octopus print!

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  4. That is the coolest fabric – such a great choice for a summer shirt! :)

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  5. The shirt is beautifully sewn and the fabric is so pretty and fun. I bet Michael will want to wear the mermaid shirt too.

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  6. Orange, orange, orange!!!

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  7. Who would NOT be delighted to have a mermaid-print shirt in one's summer wardrobe?

    Some years ago I read in a fashion magazine that "Pink is the new black." The next year the pronouncement was that "Orange is the new pink." Bewildering. Amusing, but bewildering.

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  8. Pattern placement is wonderful. Love the shirt.

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  9. Love seeing your fabulous makes! I've missed reading your blog posts (and was afraid you had joined the legion of ex-bloggers). Thanks for continuing to let us peek into your creativity.

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  10. Awesome! Any chances of you sometime showing close-up steps of the process of making an awesome collar - or any other part of the shirt? Divine workmanship!

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  11. A great shirt and very flattering color for you! Can't wait to see Michael's octopus shirt. :)

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  12. It's a great shirt Peter! Love the fabric details you chose for it.

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  13. Beautiful.........it's all in the details & you certainly hit the mark!...Looking forward to seeing you next month...........

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  14. Really wonderful! Everything is great about this shirt, great pattern matching, excellent choice of contrasting fabric, fit is spot on, details are excellent.

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  15. Love it. The placement of mermaids at the centre back is perfection and the contrast gingham is a wonderful whimsical touch. I think I might just go and pick up some of that navy gingham I saw last week.

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  16. So nice to see you turn up in my in box, I have missed your posts! The shirt is fabulous and you wear it well.

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  17. Your shirt says, "I'm having a great time!" Great workmanship as usual and pattern matching with just a touch of whimsy with the gingham...so fun! Thanks for sharing!

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  18. I work in novelty prints all the time, and you have just done so well by this fabric, in finding the repeats and the mirrors and focusing on them in the layout. The collar mermaids! This just gets better and better. I know the octopus fabric, I am looking forward to how you arrange that.
    swoons again!

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  19. You inspire me to get more creative with color/pattern choices for facings, cuffs, etc. I love this shirt!

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  20. Thanks a lot for sharing this. Now my husband wants one. Lol

    Such beautiful workmanship

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  21. Beautiful shirt. Pattern matching and workmanship excellent.
    Always love everything you make

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  22. one of my favorite shirts you've made. Someday I'll try pattern matching with my trek fabric.

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  23. I love everything about that shirt. Lovely job.

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  24. Fabulous shirt ... love the print! Awesome job!

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