A silk shirt post with lots of construction details

It finally feels like fall here in N. California. Not exactly coat and scarf weather but a slight nip in the air, and some falling leaves. Actually today is a swirl of fallen leaves and a red alert for wind and fire danger but we will cross our fingers and hope for the best. This is the scariest time of year and I don't mean Halloween!

Last week my sewing thoughts turned to long sleeved shirts and I decided to use this beautiful silk crepe de chine fabric. My favorite local sewing store Stone Mountain Fabric  has just reopened to the public after being online only during these many months and this silk fabric is the last thing I bought in person there. In fact purchases the very day before we started the first day of lockdown here in California back in March 2020. 

I've been doing a lot of preparation lately for my jacket class that starts next week, so I have construction details on the brain and thought I would share some of my silk shirt construction methods with this post. I used to do more detailed posts and would like to do some more this fall and winter. The problem is remembering to take pictures as I sew!

For this shirt I've used the same exact pattern that I use for almost every button front shirt I make. I like the size and shape of the collar and the way it fits across the shoulders, so why try something different when a shirt pattern is just the starting point. I have changed this same pattern up to do a popover placket, gathers instead of darts, hidden buttonhole placket, cut-on faux button band, faced front and tunic top versions so if you check the search bar on the side of the blog you can see many other versions. It's Simplicity 2339 which is an Amazing Fit pattern from around 7 years ago? 

To start with I evaluate the fabric and decide which method I will use for the closure at the center front and then which interfacings would give me the shaping I want. For this shirt the fabric was just about the same as this one, which I wear A LOT and whatever I did was successful so I decided to use those methods. (actually if you look at that post there are some god construction details) However I couldn't remember what I used in the collar/collar stand so I unpicked it a little bit at the center back neckline so I could see into the seams. As it turned out I used a combo of lightweight fusible and silk organza. Also I used facings at the front, so there is no sewn-on button band. Sometimes on a silk shirt I think it looks smoother with facings. 

In the photo below I'm getting ready to apply the fusible to the collar, and so I place the fusible on the silk pattern piece, pin it lightly down and then use the paper pattern piece to make sure the shape is retained. Some fabrics just seem to wiggle or change shape and then once you apply the fusible you are stuck with an incorrect shape. I do this a lot with a variety of pattern pieces, particularly V-necklines to make sure they are still the same shape as the paper pattern piece. 

I do the same for the collar stand, check the shape before fusing. For the collar stand side with the silk organza, that fabric is quite stable, it stays the same shape as the paper pattern piece so you can use that as the guide when joining that to the fabric. 

Next up is taking care of the facings. I like to use the fusible which is in fact a woven fabric to finish the edge of the facing by stitching them right sides together and then flipping over the fusible, clipping the seam and then fusing the rest in place. It is a bit of a fiddly process as you don't want to fuse it crooked, or with a wrinkle so I just move the iron about 1/4" at a time from the seam edge towards the other edge. 

The result is a very clean finished edge inside the shirt, and then you have the facing showing where the neck falls open at the top, so you see the right side of the fabric. This fabric has a distinctive different shade of blue on the wrong side and for a while I was trying to figure out how to use that as an accent but it's not really distinctive enough so I let go of that idea.

I wish I had measured the piece before I started cutting it out, it was probably 1.5 yards of 55" wide fabric. So that's enough for me to make most shirts or tops with some inventive cutting out - however I did have to omit the inner yoke piece in silk. In fact I often use some solid lightweight fabric there anyway so it worked out. 

As I was sewing I realized I wanted the seams at the side and in the sleeves to have some nicer seam finishes so I did what I think is a faux french seam, in that I press it open and then press to create two folds which are stitched closed. Perhaps more work than the traditional method of a french seam but I never remember to do it and then have to use this. So often I am just sewing on auto-pilot with something playing in the background. I'm currently watching a variety of British, French and Italian mysteries on Britbox and Mhz channels. And I definitely need the subtitles on the French so that means I pay more attention to the screen than to my sewing :). 

For the cuffs I put both a lightweight fusible and then on one side I put silk organza, that combo gives the cuffs just the right amount of stiffness. I just cut out some "close enough" pieces, baste them on and then trim to match the cuff edge. 

I wanted the back to be loose and flowy so I put a small pleat in the center back. 

For the cuffs on these silk shirts I don't do a tower placket, I prefer the continuous binding which is a bit softer. 

So that's the latest on my start of fall sewing. I am vowing NOT to make any coats this year, I've made 3 in the past 18 months and the red coat only had one wear. I plan to wear that all through the holiday season!! 

It will be blazer sewing from now to Thanksgiving. We start the Live/Online Jacket Tailoring class next week on Tuesday night. There's still time to register, here on the Hello Stitch website.  It's  Tues/Thurs 6-7:30pm so hopefully that works no matter your time zone. And you don't need to have all your supplies for the first class as I will be covering a lot of that information then and you can get your project together after that.

I've now taught a couple of in-person classes at the studio and it was really fun to be there, I think a lot of people either started sewing during the pandemic or decided it was time to learn because we are almost fully booked. In January I think we will have lots more garment sewing classes so I will update when we get the schedule finalized. 

I'm looking forward to wearing my new silk shirt, and this is actually how I will probably wear it most of the time, underneath a cashmere sweater. 

Happy Sewing,

Beth

For today's garden photo, a closer look at those hydrangeas which were a bright lilac blue earlier in the summer. I tend to leave them on the plants and just see what colors they turn. The other day I saw a floral designer refer to this hydrangea bloom as "antiqued" which is I suppose a fancy name for fading flowers. 

Sew the Precious - Silk Crepe shirt

Is it spring yet? My February has started off at rock bottom as I caught the flu and have been mostly horizontal for the last week. After hearing about it on the news for months I thought it unlikely I would get sick, as I practically shriek and jump away when next to someone who coughs. But alas the germs got me, shall I blame the gym in January? why not. Anyway - an imposed rest for the last week and I'm finally feeling human again.

This post is heavy on sewing details and techniques and lacking any photos of me wearing this shirt - that will have to wait until I'm feeling better, plus I have a skirt in the works that goes with this so it will wait for the the full outfit.



The last thing I had finished was a silk crepe de chine shirt in a purple leopard-y print. I would call this fabric "my precious" as I bought it over a year ago at Stone Mountain with not a real idea of what I would make but I just loved the color and feel of the fabric. I think at the time I had the idea of making a Bondi dress for my summer vacation but made this version instead, and set the silk aside, knowing I would wear it more often if it was a shirt or top.



The purple/magenta color is something I really like and the spots in white and navy blue make it so interesting. They still have this fabric at Stone Mountain - as you will see further down in this post.

So once I decided to make a shirt, after a few experiments with other patterns I returned to my favorite Simplicity 2339, which may be going on upwards of 20 uses of this pattern. I think a shirt is a shirt, and if this is the silhouette and detail I want then it's best to use a pattern that I know fits me perfectly.  Also when people say that standard tissue paper patterns are not very strong I just shake my head - I think they last forever - or at least a good long time. Although with this pattern I have modified it for various changes (covered button placket, popover version, darts rotated to gathers, etc) so I do have some pieces copied over onto other papers.)

Let's talk about yardage. Once I unfolded this fabric I saw that previous me only purchased 1.5 yards of this fabric which is 54" wide. Even for my bargainous nature that is a bit skimpy to make anything other than a sleeveless top or a very simple dress (which was my original plan).



Consequently I had to do a bit of creative cutting to get a long sleeve blouse out of 1.5 yards. Note the collar stand laid out at that jaunty angle. Not exactly on grain - but I figured with interfacing it would be stable enough to work, and it was.

Speaking of interfacing, this is the new-to-me method I read about in Threads magazine, and it works so well. Particularly for small pieces. You can cut out an interfacing piece in the general shape, and on the right grain, then place over the fabric piece on top of a silicone baking mat. Press/steam away and then trim the excess. The part of the interfacing that is overlapping to the mat does not stick at all. In fact it doesn't even seem to melt. So a win in terms of less precise cutting and placement of interfacing, and no sticky bits that just peek over the edge of your fabric and adhere to your pressing surface.





I trim it with scissors but I suppose if you are a wizard with a rotary cutter it would be a quick task. I think of all the things that make scissors dull the worst culprit is interfacing, so I do all cutting of interfacing with a specific scissors so as not to dull my nice ones. Paper I think has no effect on scissors but interfacing is a menace!

Lastly, I always use the paper pattern piece to verify the shape of my pattern pieces (usually I do this as I lay down the item prior to placing the interfacing on top. But I didn't take a photo of it that way - hopefully you get the idea. You would be surprised how much pieces distort with handling and it's just a bit of insurance to maintain the right shapes.




For silk shirts like this I have concluded that 2 types of interfacing work well, one one side I put a lightweight fusible (usually the Couture weight Sheer Elegance from Fashion Sewing Supply) and on the other side I use silk organza. Same for these three parts, collar, collar stand, and cuffs. On the button band just the fusible, no organza as I think it would be a bit too stiff, whereas I want some stiffness in those other three spots.

Another interfacing technique I use is to enclose the edge of a facing by sewing the interfacing and flipping it over, then fusing it. It's a bit of a tricky maneuver but I did take some photos and write about it in this old post. 

If you look closely at the edge of the shirt front facing you can see that the interfacing and the fusible are stitched together to make a completely clean finish. I love to use this on silk shirts and tops. But you have to clip the seam, and then carefully press that first 1/4" down to get it smooth and flat, then pressing the rest is not too bad.





There are a couple of ways to sew the collar stand to the shirt, and I prefer to do it this way which is a bit fiddly but I think the end comes out nicer. I wrote an article for the Craftsy website which is still alive on the Bluprint website with color-coded details on how to do the collar/stand with both methods and I still think it's one of the best I wrote! (along with my favorite one, the hidden buttonhole closure :)



Onward to cuffs and buttons. I bought these buttons at Stone Mountain, they had the right about of blue to go with the shirt. I had a number of dark blue buttons in my stash, but they were all too shiny or too bright so for once I was patient and waited to finish until I could buy some nice buttons that complemented the fabric.




When I do cuffs on a silk blouse I most always sew a continuous lap which you can just see peeking out there. I think it looks more elegant on silk fabric.

I never use a cuff pattern, I just decide how wide I want it to be, and how long depending on the thickness of the fabric. Then I cut rectangles, interface, and add silk organza to make it a bit more structured.






The fusible keeps the seam allowances from showing through and the silk adds a bit of rigidity, you can see that cuff can stand up a bit on it's own there.

Lastly, how do I know they still have this fabric at Stone Mountain?



Because when I went in to buy the buttons I succumbed to my urge to have a nice fat bow to wear with this blouse, so I bought another 1/4 yard which was used in it's entirety to make this fluffy bow.

Another silk blouse in my wardrobe - I think this will get worn a lot with all my purple and blue items. A little more costly than my usual sewing lately - not a remnant in sight. About $ 50 if you total fabric, buttons and interfacings. Considering I'm still wearing the first silk charmeuse shirt that I sewed from this pattern in 2011, I think it will get plenty of wear and use in my wardrobe.

So that's the latest - this weekend I've felt a lot better and started on a very cheery and suitably February red coat which I hope to complete to wear to Frocktails later this month. Plus I might start on some corduroy jeans as a warm up for my jeans class in a couple of weeks. And try to get outside to check what's survived the winter in the garden and even do a bit of prep for spring!

Happy Sewing
Beth

Today's garden photo is a pink camellia. These are so common around here in older houses, I think garden design has moved on to more interesting things but there are a few remaining at my place. This is pretty but it's so messy and I think this might be the year that it gets the chop to make space for something different.

Plaid flannel shirt and a fabric flub

Organizing my fabric stash can be blamed for this fabric pairing which didn't turn out quite how I expected. Along with a lot of other people I decided to reorganize my fabric, see what I actually had accumulated and perhaps get rid of some stuff. To my surprise I found this plaid flannel which I think was purchased last year at the same time, at Joann's when they had one of their typical super discount days. I do like the colors and it's really soft and cozy, however I think my pattern choice took me in the wrong direction. But I have rescued it somewhat and I will wear it.

This is the final version but it started out with a bit more ruffle than you see.






This is how it looked on it's first "finish". I got the bright idea to use the fabric selvedge on the edge of the ruffle parts, so they didn't need hemming or finishing. Which was fine, but this fabric is quite thick so not really suitable for this pattern. The recommended fabrics are things like chiffon, silk, etc. lightweight fabrics that will gather softly.  While we are here let's not mention my wonky edge on the back where you can see the white stripe of the lower back peeking of the yoke bottom. I didn't notice the misalignment until it was all finished and I took the pictures. At that point I thought about opening the yoke and fixing that but at this point I am done. And maybe it's fine to have some imperfections (especially in the back where I don't have to see them :)


Here's the pattern photo, this is Burda December 2019 # 101.  Her hair is obscuring the neck ruffle detail (grrr, why with the poses that don't permit us to see details?). but it sure looks like a lightweight fabric, perhaps a voile.


Anyway I tried it on and just was annoyed by the neck ruffle, it wasn't really itchy but kind of poking my neck if that makes sense. Also the front ruffle makes the front a bit stiff - not a deal breaker but noticeable.  So yesterday I just got out my snippy scissors and opened up the top seam of that neck band, removing the neck ruffle. I call those my snippy scissors - they probably have a real name but I cannot sew without them - I have about 5 pairs, all that type of squeeze snip. The new ones are super sharp, almost too sharp but I've learned to be more careful. I never use a seam ripper but just snip the threads with those if I have to remove stitching.



And then once the ruffle was removed I pulled out all the stray threads with what I think is called a "self-locking forceps or hemostat"  Also indispensable  - can't sew without that either. (If I ever lose the 2 pairs that I have I will order more, there seem to be lots on Amazon.)  Then I hand stitched the top back closed, with a little artful adjustment at the center front. Which I'm not 100% pleased with but I've had enough with this shirt.







Now that I've taken the neck ruffle off it's way more comfortable to wear, feels like a tunic top really. Plus it coordinates with my new blazer so there is that.

The other change I made was to add a strip of elastic at the waist in the back. It seemed really shapeless and due to the fabric didn't have the flowy look that might be better for a shirt like this. So I added the elastic to give a bit of shaping. I also took it in at the side seams about an inch at the waist tapering out to zero at the hip for a more fitted shirt.





I gathered the sleeves into the cuffs which are a bit wider than the pattern specified. I never use pattern pieces for cuffs, I just make what feels right for the style and fabric. The sleeves are a bit long for my ultra short arms but I like cuffed sleeves to be on the long side, sometimes I wear with turned back cuffs.







And buttons - they seem to be making me crazy lately. As I've mentioned they used to stock a nice selection at Joann's but now it's so may plastic-y crafty buttons. What do people do with those, glue them in scrapbooks or something? sheesh. Anyway, I needed 10 buttons and I had 9 matching. The one on the bottom is one of those 9 and then I just rummaged until I found a reasonably similar blue button, sewed it on and called it a day. I don't care that much about one small button and it's certainly not worth making a shopping trip for that. Plus use up what you have! that is definitely one of my sewing mottos.

So that's one fabric out of the stash - not the best result but hey - it's wearable and it's warm! Up next I'm finishing that lovely silk shirt shown at the end of my previous post and then I think I will make a coat. I haven't made a coat for myself in a few years and I have some gorgeous cherry red wool from Mood that needs to be a coat by February!




Next weekend is my Jacket Tailoring Workshop Fri pm and Sat/Sun. Which is always fun for me and I look forward to seeing what people make. Although we didn't know when we scheduled it that the SF 49'ers would be playing in the Super Bowl on Sunday!!  Being on the west coast the game starts late so I likely see most of it.



Happy January Sewing,
Beth

spring is coming - the first daffodil appeared this week 😀

Shirt fit details: Vogue 9029

Lately I've sewing only from my Burda magazines, but I do have quite a stash of envelope patterns. Some used frequently, and others never even opened. I got a copy of Vogue 9029  at a Bay Area Sewists pattern swap, and decided to give that a try. Actually this was a bit of an audition for some silk fabric that I've had since the spring. I wanted to see if a different blouse pattern might be good and while I didn't end up using this Vogue pattern for the silk I will probably return to it in the future, with a few fit adjustments.

As befits a test garment, not exactly very interesting photos but sufficient to talk about the details of this pattern. It has shoulder princess seams front and back, a sewn on button band, collar stand and collar. The pattern also has options for ruffles on the cuffs, a ruffle along the button band, and a tie bow in place of the collar and stand.



I used some nice weight cotton that I have no idea the origin, perhaps I bought it at an ASG sale last year? in any case it was about 2.5 yards so enough for a shirt.

Here's a look at the pattern details.




I started with a size 12 in the neck and shoulders which is my usual size in Vogue patterns and then graded out at the waist and hip to fit my measurements.



Here is the pattern piece for the side front. Note that the pattern lists the finished garment measurements on the pattern piece. On any Vogue/McCalls pattern these numbers are on the front piece, or if it is a multiple piece front (such as on princess seams) it usually is on the side front. I find them SO useful, particularly with princess seams, you can just see at a glance the circumferences. Occasionally I've measured them to check and they are accurate (note you have to deduct seam allowance from each pattern piece to get the finished garment measurement which is tedious so I just tend to believe them :)
Another note -and something I repeat in my sewing classes, these measurements are based on accurate sewing of the seam allowance. So in a multi seam garment if your stitching wobbles around and the seam allowance is not consistent you can gain or lose circumference. A change of 1/4" multiplied by several seams is a big difference. Ok that's enough lecturing.

Looking at the finished measurements and not wanting a body skimming shirt I added ONLY at the side seam of the Front Side and Back Side pieces. Giving myself about an extra 2" circumference at the hip. For myself I find the fit will usually be fine in the upper body so I just sew all seams as size 12 and add this fit insurance on the side seam only. If I were substantially adjusting a pattern, say adding 5-6 inches in various places then I would distribute that among the various seams but for this type of garment and this amount of difference I find for myself this method works. And makes the sewing SO much easier.



Fit-wise that worked out fine. You might be able to see that I haven't hemmed this shirt, plus the sleeves are a bit long. As I was making it I decided I didn't need another blue/white polka dot shirt as I already have this one so I decided to leave it partially finished and give it to a friend who could hem etc. to fit her. By the way I don't think I am a shirt with bow person, I always feel a bit silly with shirts like this even though I like the idea of them.

Back to fit analysis: the issue I had with this pattern is the width of the shoulders. Looking at the photo above, and as soon as I tried it on I felt the shoulders were too wide and the armhole seam wasn't in the right place for me.




Comparing it to another shirt which has a fit I like, I found that the distance from sleeve to sleeve across the back was 1.25" wider in the Vogue pattern. The bright pink shirt is this one from last winter. For that shirt I used my Simplicity 2339, a pattern that is going on maybe 20 uses? Bargain!!
Anyway - it is so interesting to compare shapes and measurements on what look like very similar items.

And here are the two shirts both on the same dress form. The pink shirt is stretch silk charmeuse and I don't think that ever photographs well - but it is dreamy to wear.




See, now that I've pointed it out you can see that the sleeve seam is falling off my shoulders. I mean it's not the worst fitting issue but something that I noticed and not a big deal to adjust for the next version.






Front back view, this pattern has potential and I think I will adjust the shoulder width and sew it again one of these days. Plus this fabric is such a nice shade of blue.




And here is my friend Halyna (who is @zigzagstitching on IG) wearing this shirt which I had to remind her needed hemming - she was ready to wear it immediately as she is crazy for polka dots.



So that's the latest on this pattern, which I will return to one of these days. Perhaps in a cotton lawn in the spring.

And what about "my precious" which is this silk from Stone Mountain that I've been hoarding in search of the perfect shirt pattern. I cut it out this weekend using my trusty Simplicity 2339 😊. And have a bit of a saga even with that variable in the mix. More on that in a future post.



Happy Sewing,
Beth

today's garden photo - we have a new bloom! The messy camellias which sort of annoy me most of the year are starting to put out these luscious flowers. The color is so lush and velvety. And they are so messy when the flowers fall.  At least the bees love then, full of sticky nectar.