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Dec 2, 2012

Michael Models His New Flannel Shirt!



Readers, the shirt is done and Michael loves it.  I think the color really suits him, don't you?  It fits nicely and it's super soft and snuggly.







As you know, I picked up this gorgeous tattersall plaid flannel at Mood.  The quality is superior to what I normally sew with.  It sells for $12/yd, but it's 60" wide and, though I bought 2 1/2 yards (I'm making boxer shorts with what's left), just 2 would have sufficed.



This project would no doubt have gone faster if I hadn't made so much of it on my Singer 66 treadle.  I think I'll save the treadle for easier projects or until I address that stitch issue I described yesterday.  I think the bobbin area could use a cleaning.

I finished the shirt -- primarily collar and cuffs -- on my Singer 201.  I serged the side seams and then stitched them down to make a faux flat-felled seam.  I also serged the (straight) hem and stitched it up.  I only serge shirt seams when I'm using a pillowy fabric like flannel.

Here's the inside side seam.



The outside looks like this:



The hem, from the inside:



And the outside:



Close-ups of the collar:





The cuffs have two buttons and, for the first time ever, I placed a button on the sleeve placket (which, along with the collar and yoke, I cut on the bias).





Overall, I'm happy with the shirt.  Being the sewing obsessive I am, however, and knowing that many of you are too, I'll share my newest blog feature: "What I'd Do Differently Next Time." Skip this if it annoys you, but I can't help myself!

1) I wish I'd done the buttonholes in a thread that matched the blue, rather than the gray.  I'm not wild about the way they pop. 



2) This flannel was rather shifty, and the back -- which is normally cut on the fold though I did it with the fabric open flat precisely to avoid this problem -- is ever-so-slightly off grain.  You'd have to look hard to notice (despite it being a grid), but I know.  I could have inspected the back piece more carefully after cutting, or when attaching the yoke; I didn't.



3) I put a lot of care into my cuffs, but I could have distributed the sleeve gathers a little more carefully.  This was one of those tasks that, when I needed to do it, I was running out of steam.  Normally I just make a small pleat but the pattern has you make gathers and I figured, why not?







I think that's about it.  BTW, I made this with vintage Seventies Butterick 4712, a nicely drafted, slim-fitting shirt pattern.



Lest you think Michael paraded around the neighborhood in December in his shirtsleeves, here's his outfit.



You can see all my flannel shirt project pics, including more glamorous shots of Michael, here.

Hope your weekend has been a good one.  As for me, I think it's time for a glass of wine.

See you all soon!

54 comments:

  1. beautiful work! it suits him really well and goes nicely with his eyes :)

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  2. lovely shirt and it does go well with his coloring I wouldn't change a thing

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  3. Absolutely perfect. So impeccably neat. What gorgeous fabric too :-)

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  4. I love it! Your work is always so perfect, and the fabric is beautiful. I'm thinking of sneaking off to Mood one day soon to see if I can't find a few yards for a shirt for my husband.

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  5. Sorry? What's not to like about snuggly???
    Sounds (and looks) perfect to me!

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  6. Beautiful shirt-it looks great on Michael

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  7. You could not of chosen a better color or style.
    Michael looks absolutely gorgeous in this shirt.
    Great job! Beautifully tailored.

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  8. The shirt is nice, but what is really sweet in the pictures is how obvious it is that you two love each other.

    Beth

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  9. Your sewing is so neat! And don't worry about the small details you could have done differently, because the Big Picture is terrific. You made a shirt for someone you love. How great is that???

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  10. I love the slim cut! Looks great on Michael, perfect color to bring out his eye color. What interfacing did you used?

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  11. The shirt and style are perfect for Michael. A very nice shirt.
    Maybe you are being picky but being constructively critical is how you get to be a better sewist.

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  12. Wow, classy looking result. No one can see the buttonholes 'cause the buttons are done up.....
    The off-grain I'm sure no one would have noticed, if you hadn't mentioned it! A little OCD? No offense, I am that way too, except for my own mental health I'm trying to learn about "Good enough" !
    Oh how I'd love some of that fabric. The flannel we get here is either too thin or too thick, nothing you'd really want to make a shirt from.
    Great result and love reading about your adventures in needle land. I have a hand crank Singer that I use at my off-grid cabin. Easier than the treadle but sometimes I need a 3rd hand.
    Bon soir

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  13. Beautifully done! While working on a coat from one of Gertie's patterns, I have fallen back in love with flannel! So comfy!

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  14. It turned out great! The right fabric can much such a difference, eh?

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  15. lovely shirt! it looks so soft and snuggly!

    i'm all for the "what i'd do different next time" segment. i always have a list of things i'd change next time!

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  16. I think you are too hard on yourself. The shirt is lovely, looks great on Michael, and is one of your best projects to date. I like reading, 'what you would do differently' but is seems like you're a little disappointed with the outcome. It is a LOVELY shirt. Thanks for sharing all the steps. As a just-past-novice sewer, I love all the photos you take and how carefully you explain your projects. I also like the fashion shows when a project is done. Thanks Peter, you do great work.

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  17. Beautiful! While I understand being nit-picky for the next time, I happen to really like the gray buttonholes and wouldn't change those at all. Maybe they'll grow on you?

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  18. Michael looks especially handsome in that beautiful shirt! Wow. Excellent collaboration :-)

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  19. Peter, the shirt is lovely and Michael looks wonderful in it. The color is perfect. I am starting the Craftsy shirtmaking class soon, haven't sewn anything but quilts in years. Because of your blog and your shirts, my interest in garment making has zoomed. Thank you for being such a warm and inspiring presence! Kathy

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  20. Peter,
    Beautiful job! The colour really enhances Michael's eyes. I want one now :-)

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  21. Beautiful job! How or when did you decide to cut the yoke on the bias? I don't see any pleats or tucks for ease, but maybe they aren't needed. I've cut my yokes cross-grain with solids or striped fabrics, and they've worked well. How do you like the bias result?

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  22. Michael looks AMAZING in this shirt - the colour, style, and texture all suit him well.

    You've done such an excellent job on the finish! It's a great example of how fancy machines don't do the job, the person sitting at them does all the hard work :-)

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  23. Peter you've done really well on this one, Michael looks great, the fit is nice and the color suits him really well. Good job!

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  24. Gorgeous shirt, fantastic fit - you inspire me to do better :)

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  25. Huzzah!! Here's to really nice fabric, excellent fitting and sewing, and a handsome model. Well done indeed :)

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  26. Oh, and I get the nit-pickiness (I do it to myself as well), but I still stand by my post ;)

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  27. Perfect shirt. I like everythong about. I envy your perfectionism.

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  28. This is a lovely shirt (especially the plackets!)

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  29. What a lovely shirt! The cut and fabric choice are so perfect for Michael, and the fit and workmanship are superb.

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  30. That is a pretty shirt, and I like the colour of the buttons. It probably feels great too, being it flannel. The colour looks great on Michael, he's absolutely radiant!

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  31. The collar and stay are a pretty piece of work. So precise!

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  32. This is a beautiful shirt-I love it. Maybe you should go into the bespoke shirt business????

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  33. Beautifully made shirt and it looks good on Michael. Your collar and stand are PERFECT. How did you do it?

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  34. Your sewing and your man are impeccable.

    Did you do some fitting and altering along the way, or does Michael sport a "pattern model" physique?

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    1. Very little fitting. I did a sloping shoulder adjustment on the pattern a long time ago, and that works for both of us. A standard 36" pattern will fit us both fairly well.

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  35. I think this shirt is lovely. Like others above, I think you are much too hard on yourself. As a reforming perfectionist myself, I will share my new mantra with you. The work we do is almost nearly, but not quite hardly perfect. It's the nature of being human. None of the things you speak of are visible. It's a great shirt, and Michael is a knockout in it.

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  36. Looks great! Michael looks fantastic. Enjoy the wine!

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  37. Shirt perfection as far as I'm concerned - and Michael looks great!

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  38. Radiant? Me?

    I am one lucky domestic partner to have not only this gorgeous shirt, but also the genius who sewed it.

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  39. It looks great and of course Michael looks very handsome in it. I wonder when I'll be making another men's shirt? I'm doing a set of flannel boxers right now.

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  40. Have you thought about looking into designing a label for your creations?

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  41. Impeccably put together, warm and snuggly-looking, absolutely stunning.

    Shirt's nice too. :)

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  42. The shirt looks great and certainly compliments young Michael's coloring. Good job Sir! My hubby has been requesting shirts for some time now, so I will be going back over your posts and 'shirt-a-long' for top tips!!

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  43. Good looking shirt. Thanks for the detailed post-production notes. Very helpful.

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  44. I love the shirt - especially those gathered cuffs. They look fantastic!

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  45. The shirt looks great and really suits Michael. What I want to know is..were the Colour Me Beautiful swatches involved in choosing the fabric?

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  46. This shirt is beautiful! I'd never have the patience to do the gathered cuffs so I'm in awe as usual. Oh, and Michael has that layered look down cold.

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  47. What a great shirt on Michael! I'm always so impressed by your top stitching, Peter.

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  48. What a gorgeous shirt! It's truly beautiful! Michael is a lucky duck!

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  49. Beautifully done shirt Peter. By sheer coincidence, I also sewed a shirt last weekend on my treadle machine:

    http://tooling-up.blogspot.com/2012/12/girls-dress-shirt-for-violets-revels.html

    It was a dress shirt for my daughter to wear to a performance. Looking at your pictures, its clear you did a more painstaking job than I did! Nice work.

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  50. You are so inspiring! I just found your blog today, and I think I may have already achieved stalker status...lol...what excites me is all you've accomplished in such a short amount of time, along with the fact that you're self-taught! It gives a newbie some hope! I'm learning bit-by-bit how to sew, but until now I've sort of thought it was impossible to do it well unless you've been trained by someone who really knows what they're doing. You've given me hope that with some commitment and a lot of effort and patience, perhaps I will someday be able to give someone I love a soft and snuggly shirt that I made! And it might actually fit! Keep doing what you're doing...your blog is awesome, your sense of humor contagious, and your talent AMAZING!! I can't wait to read more!

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  51. This is wonderful! Good fabric is hard to find, especially good flannel. You need to explore the concept of straightening your fabric so it is on grain before you cut it out. Depending on how much you have, you may need a helper. Fold the fabric in half lengthwise, making sure it is hanging straight, all those wave lines at the fold are gone. You will probably see 2" on either end that don't match up.. Then, you open the fabric and pull it on the diagonal, one person on either side, walk your way down the fabric. Fold in half again, and check your progress. Keep at it until it hangs straight on either end. This is particularly important when you have a plaid or vertical line to deal with, like you have in this beautiful shirt. If you do this before you cut a garment out, it will never hang to one side. I usually allow 1/8 - 1/4 yard extra, just for this process. You will get so you can see how much a fabric is off grain by eyeballing it. And you may not purchase some fabrics because the print of the design is so off grain it would result in a funny look.

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