Hey hey fam! So being a good responsible sewist, I made a wardrobe stable, the versatile and totally necessary DIY basic, a white linen shirt. There is no summer without sewing something in linen and I did my due diligence.
Let’s start with the fabric, a Viscose and Linen blend (70/30 split) from Sewing Studio. I’ll say up front I am particular about my linen choices. I have yet to embrace that insta-wrinkle thing, so I’m usually looking for a blend.
When I saw it, I knew this was a win. When it arrived, it was a verified win. It is buttery soft with a very slight slub and is referred to as a “silky noil” on the site.
My pattern choice was something basic, this McCall’s, M7360. It is intended to be a loose fitting pullover with various sleeve lengths. Despite loving showcase garments, I know that the basics are my core pieces that will get the wear-to-construction time ratio I like.
Now though this is a basic look and the pattern is not difficult, there is careful sewing involved. True #slowsewing
A few details…so let’s dive in. 🙂
CONSTRUCTION
- I made no fit alterations as there was no need to.
- The placket, collar band and cuffs were hand-tacked so that when I top-stitched each I caught cleanly the fabric beneath.
- The buttonholes were a challenge as I forgot the basic manual method to sewing them on my Viking machine. Proof of how frequently I sew buttonholes. lol. That method would have served me better…especially with this fabric, but it was a lesson learned and I’ll remember for the next time.
Here you can see a close up of the back yoke and the top-stitching.
And here you can see the front and these adorable buttons I found. They are laser-cut acrylic cabochon pieces that I found on Etsy. You select the color and size and the shop will drill the holes, 2 or 4, to turn them into buttons. I only bought 3 colors, but will go back to buy a few more just to have options the next time I’m in a button-up mood.
Just to show the versatility, I styled it with two options here. Shorts and jeans. Trust and believe this will do time as career-wear too.
The shorts are newly rebranded Closet Core “Jenny” trousers. The jeans are a great stretch denim from Nordstrom.
But the real MVP are my shoes!
I am the possessor of some fairly narrow feet and I am on a constant hunt for properly fitting shoes…and the pickings are “slim”. lol. bad pun intended
They tend to be the most basic, uninteresting, bland footgear imaginable. You can ramp it up with some higher end brands, but I guess there’s not a broad market for us special folks. When I do run across a good pair, I’ll try to post a review.
These are a pair of slip-on knit sneakers by David Tate, from Nordstrom. Knit sneakers are basically the death knoll in athletic footwear for a narrow fit, but they worked out here. I wear a size 9N and these have a nice snug fit with a good cushioned insole. No gapping at the sides either.
Well back to the pattern. Very pleased and you can add this piece to my growing summer collection.
Beautiful shirt. I love the yoke and where it crosses at the back. I have a few yoked shirt patterns but they cross too high for my figure, this one looks worth trying.
Thank you so much! I like to fit and the yoke fits my broad shoulders. Definitely give it a try.
Great job on the fine details of the linen blouse. I love the details of the buttons too!
Thank you so much! It worth the extra time and effort.