Sunday 29 July 2012

ALL 10 SHIRTS NOW FINISHED

I am absolutely delighted to announce that I have finished the last of my D Mike's shirts this evening.  That is 10 shirts since the 15th May this year when I completed the first shirt for his birthday.

Here are the last two shirts ( the one on the left is made from a beautiful Oxford broadcloth, and the one on the rights from a shot satin which hates to be photographed - too shiny).


This has been quite a journey, and there have been ups and downs during this whole process, but on the whole I have really enjoyed making these.  While the deal I made with my D Mike will result in a beautiful designer handbag, in truth I would have been more than happy to do this just for the love of it, because it is a delight that he is so happy to wear something I have made for him.

As regular readers of my blog will know I have been making other things along with these shirts in the last two months, but here are the stats below:-

Pattern used: Kwik Sew 3883

Alterations to pattern:

  • Added back pleats
  • French cuffs
  • Flat felled seams
  • Embroidery
  • Collar stays

Fabric used: 22.5 meters various fabrics

Equipment used:

  • Bernina Aurora 440QE
  • Janome 350e embroidery machine

Machine feet used in addition to the normal foot:



  • No.10 for top stitching
  • No. 3A for buttonholes
  • No.70 for flat felled seams
  • No. 68 for hems

Mistakes made on this journey:

  •  Sewed sleeves on the wrong way round
  • Top stitching went wrong so had to unpick it
  • Sewed some of the buttonholes too small and had to unpick them

Achievements:

  • Managed to use my No.68 foot for hemming the shirts (I struggled with this foot in the past). 
  • Perfected my method for sewing my collars thanks to Margy posting a very useful tutorial on her blog.
  • Came 2nd in the PR contest (One Pattern many looks) - THANK YOU VERY MUCH IF YOU VOTED FOR ME
  • Learned how to perfect top stitching the points on the collars from an article in the Threads magazine
Amusement:
  • Embroidery in the yoke of each shirt culminating in 10/10 CC (= the last shirt that gets my beautiful bag) - Mike often says I am going to wear number 3 today or number 6 which I think is really funny.
We have chatted about which day we will go to Bond Street in London to purchase the bag, so it will be a week on Tuesday when we will be on vacation.  Now I will be in a panic about what I wear to walk into a Chanel boutique - oh the stress, does this mean another special Chanel shopping outfit.  I wonder if I can do any snoop shopping while I am in there.

I hope you all had a good weekend.  Catch you later......



16 comments:

  1. Congratulations on this achievement!!! You won't know what to do with your time now that these are all finished (ha,ha!!!)...
    ✿ Judy
    made by J

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    1. Thank you Judy, as for what I do with my time, well I have a sewing list as long as my arm.

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  2. Brava, Pauline! I've so enjoyed your journey!

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    1. Thank you Margy, and thank you for your collar tutorial its now my favourite way of sewing my collars.

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  3. Bravo Pauline for completing the 10 shirts. It has been fun to read about each shirt. What will you make next? A beautiful outfit to compliment Mike's shirt he will wear when you go shopping for the handbag?

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    1. Thanks Ann, my next project hopefully will be a quick one, that cowl neck top. Yes I guess I should make him wear one of the shirts.

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  4. What a journey! You finished a marathon here! Your well deserved prize must await you now.

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  5. I waited until you were done to congratulate you. Wonderful shirts and what a wonderful marriage you have to make this fun trade. Enjoy your new bag!

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  6. Congratulations Pauline, great achievement and beautiful shirts.

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  7. That's for all the useful info about the process - it's interesting. Well done on completing your shirt odyssey. Time for you now.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Ruth, however compared with my working day today which was a nightmare, the shirt-making was a breeze

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  8. What a fabulous accomplishment Pauline! Congratulations on your success!

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