My husband’s birthday is at the end of November. It has been on the same day as long as I’ve known him ;-), but for some reason, this year I struggled to get my gift for him done in time. As in, nothing would go right…it was as though I’d forgotten how to sew. SMH.
- I sliced into the front bodice (is it still called that for men?) trying to fix a button band and had to recut it.
- Any pieces that could have been sewn on backwards, upside-down, or wrong side out, I did it.
- Nearly cut too far snipping the corners off pretty much every single collar point/cuff.
- My cuffs still don’t look sharp and pretty as I’d like.
- I interfaced the button bands with too stiff of interfacing so had to recut them.
- My hems still weren’t level, even after adding length to the pattern pieces–which I still don’t understand, since I compared the side seams of the pattern pieces and they matched after my adjustments. You sure couldn’t tell it by the finished seams though. Hmph!
- There wasn’t a package of bias tape to be found that came anywhere close to the grey-green striped fabric–in fact, notions for that fabric were nearly impossible all around.
All I can say is thank goodness past me (because these fabrics were both in my stash for the last 4+ years) bought the full yardage recommended by the pattern! I wouldn’t have needed but about 2/3 as much, but all my goofs meant that the extra came in very handy! I guess the other thing that turned out really well was the sleeve plackets and my topstitching–both of those things are gorgeous on both shirts. Neither of them are something that anyone but me (and you–since you’ll get close-ups) will notice, but at least something turned out right! And all of this trouble on a TNT! I’ve made this pattern at least 6 or 8 times before!
I only included ^ one because it shows the blue shirt in progress in the back–proof! 😛 (Trust me, it’ll make sense in a moment.)
So here are the pictures of the finished shirts, all ready to be worn by my wonderful husband:
OK, so this picture is actually from this post, but it’s the exact same pattern, fabric, and size. So I’m cheating by not retaking the pictures. Call me lazy if you’d like. 😉
In the end, I’m glad I did these. Hubby’s closet was getting rather shabby–all those clothes he’s been wearing since 8th grade (Grrr! I wish I could still wear stuff from that long ago!) are finally starting to wear out, and all at once too! If I had more time, I’d probably replace a few more in his wardrobe, but the money is the same whether I make ’em or buy ’em, and I’m a selfish seamstress at heart. 😉
Splinters & Stitches 
Nicely done!
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Thanks! Despite all the drama, they turned out very nice, and they look pretty sharp on my fella. 😉
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Hard luck with all those booboos. That’s why I haven’t started a short yet for my own husband – too much fear haha. The finished product looks so great though!
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I think most of them happened because I was pushing to get them done and working on them when I was tired/had poor lighting. They’re really easy to sew up normally, just don’t start on them with a week before they have to be done! 😉
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Beautiful job, and you should be congratulated for sewing for someone else. I know I should sew for my husband, but I’m not sure he would appreciate the time and effort involved sufficiently to compensate me. Ha!
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I’m very fortunate like that–my guys all appreciate my efforts. 🙂
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Good work! Shirts are so satisfying when they work, but so frustrating when they don’t! 😉 Good for you being willing to recut as necessary.
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Well, by that time I was already too late to buy him anything, so I didnt have much choice, LOL!
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