Today I snuck out of work a touch early, because I was there super-late last night. When I got home, I headed for the sewing room to finish Jeremy's western shirt.
A little background, Jeremy is playing with a western swing band and they dress appropriately. Being a jazz bassist, Jeremy doesn't exactly have a closet full of western shirts. So, I decided that I would make a shirt for him, complete with embroidered yokes.
I used both Kwik Sew 2777, a shirt that I had made for him before, as well as a vintage western shirt pattern.
I made some small changes to the Kwik Sew draft. Instead of an actual yoke, I drew the yoke onto the back piece and eliminated the pleat in the center of the back. The embroidered yoke was done just as an overlay, based on this vintage pattern:
I also shortened the shirt by 2 inches and also the sleeves, based on the fit of the last version that I made for him.
Here are the yokes ready to be sewn onto the shirt:
I drew the pattern using motifs inspired by the bass. The curl in the center back is inspired by the scroll:
And the other motifs are meant to represent the f-holes:
Here are photos of the finished shirt:
And from the back:
Close-up of the front yoke:
And a close-up of the back yoke:
The embroidery is very simple...I used only three stitches: backstitch, "lazy daisy," and a blanket stitch (around the flower cutouts).
Overall, I am really pleased with the way the shirt turned out, but I need to find a source for better pearl snaps. The ones I used were pretty shoddy, but we don't exactly have great notions available...just what they sell at Hancock's. But, after I beat the crap out of them with the hammer, they decided to stick.
I also got this sateen from Fashion Fabrics Club to make a shirt, sans embroidery:
So I guess I better get on the ball and find better snaps!!
14 comments:
wow - like total wow ! How very clever of you to make that shirt - the design is really clever and it looks like a great fit.
I can't believe how wonderful that shirt is - it looks so amazing. I am very impressed. Jeremy is going to be a real star wearing that!
Great shirt. You put a lot of thought into it.
Great shirt, Michelle! Jeremy is a very lucky guy, and I bet it won't be long before the other band members start asking for custom-made shirts, if they haven't already!
I like the quality of the snaps at Snapsource.com. Love the way you made the shirt reflect the scrollwork on the bass.
It looks awesome! He looks very happy with it.
I LOVE this!! He looks fantastic! But I have a thing for western shirts.
I second Snap Source. I've made three shirts with snaps from there and they are indestructible.
That is amazing! I'm not even into the Western look, and I love it.
You always do such nice work that I am not surprised at how well you were able to full this off. Sometimes we do have to beat our projects into submission!
Love the embroidery! I love to hand embroider but couldn't begin to remember the last time I did any.
Pearl snaps? Snapsource.com & sewbaby.com
Absolutely Fabulous!!!!
I use the snaps for SnapSourse. They have a gazillion colors, and many colors available only online. The snap setter is reasonably priced and easy to use. My last order with shipped the day after I placed my order.
Wow! Great job!
Great job on the shirt, I also love the hand embroidery using the bass as the focus. I have done westerh shirts with fancy yokes and never thought of using the embroidery with applique
(?sp). I only used decorative machine embroidery to attach the yokes.
The blue and white print should make a really awesome shirt too.
Lita Jones
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