If you’ve followed along on one of my sew-a-longs before you’ll know week one is always about preparation for starting our projects. Without further ado, let us BEGIN! *throws arms wide, knocks over coffee and pile of fabric.* Crap.

What you’ll Need

  • Notepad & pen
  • sharpies in  at least 2 different colours.
  • a clear/pale plastic table cloth or a clear shower curtain (either can be found at a dollar store)
  • fabric for making a muslin*
  • The pattern! “Thirst” from Cosplay by McCall’s (M2090)
    Note: Handsome man not included. I asked  =(
    M2090
  • A dress-form*

* optional but recommended.

Ch-ch-changes!

As usual, I’ll be making a bit of a variant of the pattern, but I’ll clearly label the alterations I’ll be making as we go.

blouse_02

This is an approximation of the basic pattern seamlines.

Mostly they’ll be to make the vest of the blouse less full since I’ll be wearing it under a more fitted dress.

annablouse

And Tabard. And Armor.

Basically what I’m saying is the less bulk the better for Anna’s blouse.

blouse_03

So I’ll be taking in the vest/torso of the pattern with some darts and this will help give me more room to breathe under all those layers. I’ll also be dropping the ruffled cuffs and tall collar.

blouse

Because I hate stuff around my neck, I might adjust the collar closing to be lacing but I’ll try out the muslin first and see how it feels.

Measure yourself

Unless you JUST wrote down your measurements, you know what to do. Bodies change, I can’t be the only one who fluctuates based on what I’ve eaten, the phase of the moon and what video game I’ve last looked at. Right? …right? *looks around* …no?

Look up sizing

Men’s sizing is different from women’s, because of COURSE it is. As usual look at which size your bust/waist/hips falls into, and choose the average or the size that is a closest fit. When in doubt opt for the larger size because taking in is always easier than letting out.

In general when sewing men’s patterns for women’s bodies expect to:

  • Have the ‘side seam’ migrate forward because boobs.
  • Have the front waist migrate up, because boobs
  • Hips be a little tight at first, but the wonderful side slit on the blouse gets rid of that problem!

Trace out basic pattern pieces onto plastic/tracing paper

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Calamity why are we tracing out the pattern?
Well. You don’t HAVE to. But I have a cat that loves to help, and the clear plastic holds up better than tissue paper when she decides to try surfing across my floor on fabric.

Trace the following pieces.

  • Back
  • Front
  • Collar
  • Sleeve
  • Sleeve Cuff
  • Front Facing
  • If you’re leaving on the sleeve ruffles, trace those too!

Make sure to trace all the pattern symbols too, and if you’re confused what they mean, you can check out the instructions on the pattern itself, they have a handy chart which explains each one:

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Pre-wash your fabric!

This makes it shrink however much the fabric will and gets rid of the sizing (its a chemical on fabric) before you start sewing. That way, when it comes time to wash the actual shirt, you won’t need to worry about the shirt shrinking on you!

Also, take a moment to look at the fabric. Does it have any stretch? I’ll be using a knit fabric for my shirt, which means I can take in the waist a bit and not worry about getting the shirt on and off. But sewing stretch has it’s own issues, which I’ll cover as we progress.

Join me next week for:

Part 2 – ‘Must we Muslin?’

Spoilers: YES.

xox Calamity