This is another step in my Wedding Suit project - where I am making each piece of my wedding outfit. Less than twelve months now. The shirt came out really nicely, pretty clean, and I don't have anything else in my wardrobe that's a similar colour - it's a nice break from both cloth (linen, not cotton) and colour (I've a lot of whites, greys, blues)
This shirt is going to go into summer/autumn rotation - I am excited to wear it. In particular I'm pretty proud of:
- Overall construction of cuffs, collars, and buttons - the details are starting to feel less home-made and more hand-made.
- The edge stitching around the cuffs and collar: The lines are getting straighter and more consistent !
- Button positioning and stitching looks nice. I've fluffed this before and you get gathering/bunching of fabric ):
Unfortunately, the garment has come out pretty baggy around the torso, which is great for a breezy summer linen shirt, but I think for a more formal shirt I need to make some more alterations before the next project.
The whole process took about a week, working most evenings and spending a few hours over the weekend to do the hand-finishing details. Long enough that I will appreciate wearing it, but not so long that I got bored.
The fit, Good:
- Using a self-drafted sleeve placket has made for good results, I like the placket size
- Length of the piece is basically spot on
The fit, To change:
- For a formal shirt, the piece is far too big on me, I am but a wee lad. I think I can take 6" out the hips/waist, and 2-3" out of the chest.
- Shoulders are okay when the top button is done up, but could be 0.5-1" narrower
- Sleeve could be 0.5-1" shorter (cuff comes too far down)