Poinsetta Button Down Shirt.

[20161210] Simplicity 9877 Women's shirt patterns printed in 2001./> I wanted a button down holiday shirt that I could wear to work. I looked through my pattern stash and the closest thing to a button down work shirt was Simplicity 9877 printed in 2001. Buttons up front and has darts in back and front. Has sleeves with cuffs. No princess seams or darts. </p> <p> Size was 12 and I probably need a 14 or 16, so I widened it to make it more of a size 14, shorted the sleeves an inch, and lengthened the hem by an inch. I made the cuff two pieces instead of folding. I didn't bother with separating the collar into two separate collars, but should have. </p> <p> <img align=But boy oh boy was it off. It was still a little short and that giant dart made it super slim fit. I ended up making triangular gussets to put back in where the dart had taken them out. The shoulders are also a smidge too wide. Since the pattern says that shoulder pads are optional, that means that the pattern was designed to have shoulder pads in so the fit is not going to be perfect without them.

It's finally in a wearable state, but not sure the stitching near the gussets will last. Because the shoulder lines are not in the right place, it made the sleeves too long which pushes up and makes odd wrinkles.

I wanted to make another shirt, but not with this pattern. I looked for patterns from the big 3 for a professional button down shirt, but women's patterns suck. Vogue has a nice menswear shirt, but no women's. Women's tops have princess seams, darts, funky sleeves, weird gathers, or other unwanted features. I may need to take this pattern and one of my newer shirts and try to make a better pattern.

The one thing I like about old patterns is pocket(s).

Poinsetta Button Down Shirt

Poinsetta green and red cotton print long sleeved shirt with faux double collar buttons down the front at at cuffs. Dart and gusset in front and darts in back.

Pattern: Simplicity 9877 printed in 2001. Size 12 modified to be Size 14. 1" added to the hem length, shortened sleeve length by 1", added triangle gusset back into dart, cut cuffs as two pieces instead of folding. Slightly trimmed edge of collar point.

Poinsetta Button Down Shirt Right 3/4 View Poinsetta Button Down Shirt Left 3/4 View Poinsetta Button Down Shirt Left Poinsetta Button Down Shirt Back Poinsetta Button Down Shirt Right


Completed: December 2016