Third Time's a Charm
Yesterday I sewed Muslin #3 of the shirt I'm making for the Men's Shirt Sew-Along. This has turned into somewhat of a Frankenstein project, as many alterations as I've made to the original pattern (and as many crazy floral fabrics I've cobbed together). But I am happy to report that after a bit more tweaking on the third muslin, I'm finally ready to cut out the actual shirt!
It was hard to get a photo of myself wearing Muslin #3. Norm was gone to a rally at the state capitol, so I was on my own. The self-photos didn't work out, so instead I'll show you my first ever full bust adjustment (FBA). <--That link, by the way, rocks as far as FBA tutorials go.
I was happy I had the cardboard dressmaker's mat I'd thrifted last summer. There's probably an official name for the thing, but I don't know it. Anyway, it was great because I could pin right down into it, and the grid lines helped in lining things up.
I wasn't sure how much to adjust the shirt front in the bust. I guessed somewhere between a C and D and went with 5/8 inch. I think the recommended adjustments may have applied to a standard women's pattern to start with, which is sized for a B cup. I dunno. Brain hurts. Long story short, it worked fine.
In summary, these are the changes I have made to the original pattern:
- Added 3 inches to length of front and back.
- Added 2 inches to sleeve length.
- Decreased sleeve width by 5/8 inch from shoulder to wrist.
- Redrew point of collar.
- Decreased back yoke width by 3/4 inch.
- Decreased collar length by 3/4 inch.
- Removed gathering in shirt back below yoke
- Sway back adjustment.
- Decreased width of shirt back and re-cut rear armhole.
- Altered side seams of shirt back, removing 5/8 on each side from under arm, tapering out to hip, and adding curves at waist/hip.
- FBA/darts added to shirt front.
- Lowered front neckline 3/8 inch.
- Removed gathering of lower sleeve and added pleats.
- Raised side slits by 1-1/4 inches.
Many of the alterations were by trial and error, but I did find some helpful general tips in two books I'd picked up at a thrift store last summer: The Busy Woman's Fitting Book and The Bishop Method of Clothing Construction.
And with that, I'm off to cut out the real shirt. Fingers crossed!
P.S. - I cannot wait to get back to making quilts!
7 comments:
Oh my goodness, woman, that thing would have been tossed out long ago by me! You have the patience of a saint!
Ditto what Sue said:) Good luck!
I have the utmost confidence in you...and after all your adjustments and trials, you'll have worked out all the bugs and I bet it will look great.
You're committed to this shirt! I would have given up the first time something didn't go exactly as planned.
Good Luck with the real deal. Im sure all your hard work will be worth it. I cant wait to see it done because I love the fabric you chose!
My favorite muslin fabric shirt combination is #2, the one with the daisy bodice and yellow floral sleeves. I wondered why you'd made so many alterations till I scolled back to see you were using a vintage men's shirt pattern! What a challenge! I'm looking forward to seeing your results. :D
You are going to be so proud of this shirt once you get it finished! And you'll probably be able to create a pattern from scratch after this!!
I so admire your persistence! Once you get this shirt fitted though, you can make as many as you want with abandon, KNOWING that they'll fit. Awesome!
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