I made a very easy shirt a long time ago, at a Sew Over It Workshop, back in the day when they did face to face workshops. I had asked for them to grade up the pattern (the Alex Shirt/Shirtdress, from their City Break E-book), because I was bigger than the maximum size they did then. They’re much more size inclusive now. At the time, I had my doubts about what sort of a grading job the teacher did. The shirt was oversized, and despite her assurances that the shoulders were meant to be that far down my biceps, and the chest was meant to be that wide, I was not convinced.
I decided to use it as a nightshirt rather than a going out garment, and it works very well that way. Over time, the fabric has softened and become more drapy, and the dodgy fit has become less of an issue. In fact it’s enough of a beloved item for me to justify doing a load of mending on it, when it’s got worn.
Since I made it, I wondered if it had just been a case of me choosing the wrong sort of fabric. I decided to try making it again, but in a more drapy material, to see if that made the sizing/fit issues any better. I finally got around to trying this theory out, because I wanted a new nightshirt.
I picked a more fluid viscose fabric (from Fabricland, but it’s no longer in stock). They called it Caribbean Hibiscus, but I’ve always called it Midnight Garden, because it’s a floral print on a dark navy background. It’s drapy, but still quite substantial, you can’t see through it.
I made the pattern up, exactly as per my original pattern from the workshop. The only difference was that I shortened the sleeves.
I should have learned from the original version that I don’t actually use the buttons, I just pull the shirt on over my head, so I don’t know why I went to the trouble of making buttonholes, with all the “Will they all work out ok, or will the last one bugger up the whole thing” stress. But I did. And they did all work out ok.
I like the feel of this nightshirt – it’s soft and tactile. I like the goth vibe of the print. But it’s proved to me that I was right about the grading job. I still think it’s too wide. The pattern, as designed, doesn’t include any sort of shaping, but for a curvy girl it definitely needs some. It’s not falling right, it’s swinging out, and the side seam pulls forward at the bottom. And the hem is rising at the front, on account of my bust projection.
My thinking is that it needs some bust darts plus an FBA, to provide all the fabric it needs in the top front centre, and less at the sides. That way the front would fall straight down rather than flaring forwards.
The armscye is very low down the torso, but I suspect it would work better if the shoulders weren’t so wide.
But overall it’s cute and I’m ok with it for a nightshirt.
If I want to make an actual shirt or shirt-dress from this pattern, one that I’d be going out of the house in, it would need a lot of adjusting and re-toile-ing. I’ve looked at the pictures on the SOI website, and searched the hashtags on instagram for other people who have made the Alex, and I can see that this shirt was not designed as loose-fitting, boxy or baggy. It’s quite close fitting. It feels like the teacher who graded this pattern for me basically just made everything bigger all round, and she definitely overdid it on the Wearing Ease (the amount of extra width in the garment that allows it to be not too tight, not too loose, according to the style of fit you want for your garment).
Which leads me back to the subject of the pattern grading… I still feel a bit aggrieved (can you tell?) at the lazy grading job that the teacher did (that I paid extra for, by the way, it wasn’t on the house!) and the failure to adjust on the hoof, during the workshop. I had intended to go off on a big rant about it. But, pfft, it’s a long time ago, and a lot of water has passed under the bridge. I really shouldn’t hold onto those negative feelings. So I’m going to try and rationalise it, and turn it into a positive. I WILL amend this pattern to get it back to something I’d be happy to wear, and I WILL make this pattern again as an actual going-out-of-the-house shirt. This is going to teach me more about Proportion, in terms of the visuals, and in terms of construction. So I’ll be spending a little while with rulers, bits of paper and sellotape. Wish me luck!
Finally, I should also say, I am fully aware that SOI have extended their size range enormously since 2017, and I am very grateful for that, and to every pattern company that goes beyond a size 18. So this is not about them, but about the issues inherent in grading patterns up in size. I know I’m always going to need some tweaks, to make the pattern just right for my body, but it’s so much easier if the basic pattern is in the right sort of sizing for me in the first place, and it’s only a matter of tweaks, not reshaping the whole thing.
So watch this space. I’ll be coming back to this pattern. I’ve got another project I’m concentrating on right now, so it won’t be soon, but this is not goodbye, it’s definitely au revoir.
Béa's Sewing Adventures 