Readers, my Christmas gift to myself this past year was an Amazon Kindle. There are some features that could be improved, but I can honestly say that I totally love it. For the past couple of weeks I've been reading the unabridged version of The Count of Monte Cristo. Hands down this is the most fun I've had reading since the whole Harry Potter series. I was basically aware of the part about tunneling out of prison, but it's SO much more than that. I can't recommend it enough. Just beware, it will impact your sewing projects. I've been working on Victorian shirt #2 between chapters. "Ok, I'll pin on the collar and then I can read a chapter." "Ok, I'll baste the collar and then read a chapter." "Ok, after sewing the collar I'll read a chapter." You get the picture.
The sleeve plackets were a walk in the park after having dealt with the front bib and placket construction. Because my shirting is very fine, I've decided to go with a full doubled back
French cuff. Of course this means searching for cufflinks! These little guys came in the mail yesterday. They're little green pearl buttons, although they don't photograph that way.
Cute, vintage and cheap. Only $3.99!
I seem to be forever altering this pattern. The original pattern, shown at the top, has a one piece collar that folds over. It's easy to make, but at the same time kind of unsubstantial. I've decided I'd rather have a two piece collar with a seam at the top edge. This should add some much needed body to the collar. Below the original is my new collar pattern. I lowered the front neckline when I increased my sloped shoulder adjustment. As a result the collar needs to be 1/2" longer. You can see where I cut and taped in little sections of paper. At the bottom of the photo are my new collar pieces, one of which is interfaced.
The neck edge is staystitched and clipped. In addition to pinning on the collar, I also take the time to baste it below the staystitching. This helps avoid any little gathers that will just have to be ripped out and re-sewn. Oh, how I hate that!
