McCall’s 6262: I Made a Western Shirt!

American western wear is such an interesting subset of fashion. It can cover everything from the toughest everyday workwear right through to a costume worn in concert by a famous musician, with plenty of range in between. I think that’s what makes it so intriguing to me. I love the practical value of workwear, and western wear, in many cases, takes workwear and makes it beautiful in a way that even those beyond its natural boundaries can appreciate. Although I’ve never lived in the western United States, I’ve always been interested in this type of clothing, particularly western-style shirts. That one garment seems to have so much possibility. Take your basic button-up and add some shaped yokes and maybe shaped cuffs and you’ve got a blank canvas for as much or as little decoration as you like. You might choose to keep it simple or maybe you add piping, fringe, shaped pockets, and/or embroidery. I love seeing the different directions people have taken this in. And that’s why I wanted to try it for myself…well, that and the fact that growing up, I kind of wished I could be a cowgirl. I guess that never died. 😉

I’ve been turning this over in my head for a few years, and collecting ideas on my “Sewing Inspiration: Western Shirt” Pinterest board. To be fair, in the past I did make Simplicity 1538, view A twice (first attempt, second attempt), which has a bit of a western style to it, but I wanted to try piping this time. Despite the fact that I wanted to go all out and fill up a shirt with embroidery, contrasting fabric, or other cool details, I decided to start simple with a shirt that had a shaped yoke and, hopefully, cool shaped cuffs. I settled on McCall’s 6262 a unisex Palmer/Pletsch pattern from 1992. This was advertised at “The Easy Western Shirt” with plenty of options, so it seemed like a good place to start. Looking at the finished measurements on the envelope, I decided on a size large, even though my actual measurements put me at an XL bust and XL/XXL hip. I found a used copy of the pattern on eBay in September 2020.

The ’90’s and its love of positive ease in clothing meant I didn’t have to do a broad back adjustment, but I did grade out a bit at the hip to the equivalent of an extra large.

Despite the millions of ideas I was interested in, I decided to keep it simple for this pattern and just add some piping and pearl snaps, and make the shirt in a single color of fabric. I think this was a good choice, because by the time I finally got around to starting this project in January 2022, I had really psyched myself out about the piping. Yeah, I really overthought it.

I chose to use a “flannel solid” in lilac from Robert Kaufman that I got for Christmas, and I paired it with spring green piping and white pearl snaps. View C was my choice, but I opted to skip the darts.

I really wanted to try out that piping, even if I was worried it wouldn’t turn out right. The instructions were very good, with lots of tips for a quality finish as well as information on how to get the details you wanted.

Despite my desire for “cowboy” cuffs (cool, shaped cuffs), I decided to let that go this time since it wasn’t included in the pattern. I’ll show you what I originally had in mind, though. Check out view A in this picture of vintage McCall’s 2118:

screen shot from an eBay listing, I think; McCall’s 2118

screen shot from eBay; detail of McCall’s 2118

screen shot from eBay; McCall’s 2118; this gives you a good sense of what the pattern piece for the cuff looks like

I had bought an issue of Threads Magazine* that explained how to add those cuffs to a shirt, but I knew that every deviation from the pattern would add to the time it would take for me to finish. Some people love hacking patterns, but I love following the directions (mostly) and finishing my garment. I buy patterns because it means someone has done all the problem-solving for me, and I can just follow along and make something cool. That can change based on the project, but for the most part, that’s how I love to sew. Every time I add a deviation from the pattern or something I feel nervous about making, it really slows my process down, and that bugs me, since I don’t sew especially quickly to begin with. Slow sewing can be fun, but usually I want that garment finished and on my body now!

By the time I actually finished this in March or April of 2022, I knew its time for that season was limited since spring and warmer days were around the corner. And then it sat while it waited to appear on the blog, so it hasn’t gotten worn much! Now that it’s cold again, I really want to wear it!

Thoughts

–This definitely has that ’90’s oversized look to it, but that makes it really comfortable. I like it better tucked in than out, but will wear it both ways.

–This flannel is nice and beefy, as usual for Robert Kaufman flannels, which are some of my all-time favorites, but it is pilling a bit after only a few washes. I guess that’s just par for the course with cotton flannel.

–I’m getting better at putting pearl snaps in, although I did crack one of them. Luckily, you can’t feel it, and it won’t fall out–it just looks cracked.

–My piping, while not perfect, worked out pretty well for someone with very limited piping experience! I’m happy with it.

My interior finishing on the yokes just involved pinking the seam allowances.

It’s not my favorite finish since it will (and did) fray, but I knew it wouldn’t be able to fray beyond the stitching line, so it was fine. I also added piping at the cuffs.

Resources

As I said, I’ve been contemplating this shirt style for a long time. If you are also interested in this style, here are just a few of the resources and inspirational places I looked to get ideas as to the range of western wear. Hopefully there will be more of this awesome style in my sewing future.

~How the West was Worn: A Complete History of Western Wear by Holly George-Warren and Michelle Freedman…I really want a copy of this book, but the used ones are so dang expensive! This was a really interesting resource.

~100 Years of Western Wear by Tyler Beard…gives you a look at western wear through, as you might expect, the last 100 years up to the 1990’s

~”Go West! Why These Custom-Embroidered Cowboy Shirts Are Topping Our Fall Shopping Lists” by Kristin Anderson for Vogue.com, September 29, 2015…an interesting look at one company making modern custom western shirts

*~”Updating the Cowboy Shirt” by David Page Coffin, Threads #67, November 1996

Of course there are many more resources out there, but these are a few that I found particularly interesting.

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Simplicity 9388 Shirt Jacket in Robert Kaufman Shetland Flannel Speckle

Today I’m bringing you a pretty popular pattern (and some alliteration, all for free!). Simplicity 9388, a unisex shirt jacket in three lengths, has been well-received in the sewing community since its release.

I like making button up shirts and jackets that aren’t too tricky, so this was on my radar. When I got some Shetland Flannel Speckle in the “Steel” color by Robert Kaufman, it seemed like an ideal match.

Fabric & Notions

This flannel is 95% cotton and 5% polyester. It’s 44″ wide and 6.4 oz/square yard. It’s listed on Robert Kaufman’s site as being 2-ply and therefore “stronger and loftier”. It really is a nice flannel, as all the flannels I have ever used from Robert Kaufman have been. It fluffs up a bit in the wash and, my favorite part, contains little flecks of colors–green, blue, pink, orange, and white.

Look at those bits of color! Yay!

Mine was a Christmas gift from my husband and came from Amazon. He bought me four yards, and after making this shirt jacket, I have 16″ full width left, plus some odd-shaped extra bits.

You only need a tiny bit of lining for the inside of the yoke, so I looked in my stash and chose a bit of gray cotton lawn by Cotton + Steel. I can’t remember for sure, but I probably bought it at Pintuck & Purl several years ago.

Other than that, I found thread, interfacing, and buttons at Joann’s. I really thought hard on the buttons, spending a lot of time online looking at options, but in the end, Joann’s had just what I wanted. While I had thought something neon or bright would be the ticket, it was this medium pink that looked the best.

My favorite detail on this shirt is the “L” patch from Wildflower and Company on Etsy.

This was also a gift, and went great with the shirt. It was easy to iron on and instructions were included to ensure success. After adhering it, I stitched around the outside with regular thread in my bobbin and clear nylon thread in my needle. If you haven’t used nylon thread before, it looks a lot like lightweight fishing line, but comes on a spool. I have a really old spool that was given to me by a friend. This stuff pretty much lasts forever, and is great extra insurance on something like this embroidered patch that will definitely go through the laundry on a regular basis.

I did have one tool failure–and this is something I have seen in several cases, unfortunately. Using a yellow Chaco liner on white/light material is probably a gamble that won’t end well.

I don’t know if this happens with all the Chaco liner colors, but I have used the yellow on cream fabric and it has never washed out. I helped with a class once where someone made white jeans and couldn’t get it out. Now I notice that I can still see my marks even on this medium gray, even though I have washed it since making it. I absolutely love my yellow Chaco liner for its ease of use, and I really don’t have problems with it on darker colors, but it just doesn’t seem to come out of lighter colors.

See that yellow streak? It’s not the worst ever, but it will probably never come out.

The Pattern

I chose to make View B in a large for the bust/chest and waist and an extra large for the hips.

You can see where I graded out a size for the hips on the left edge of the pattern piece.

Here’s a close-up

I thought about trying the shortest view (View C), but I really wanted hip pockets, and View C omits those.

This pattern was nice to sew without any real surprises, and it felt like it came together fairly quickly. I like the front chest and hip pockets and love how the lining on the inside of the yoke looks.

Inside front. You can tell I have been wearing this because…wrinkles! haha

Inside back–love that lined yoke.

One of the few things I didn’t like is that, at this length, the hip pockets finish just above the hem, so if you put your hands or something heavy in the pockets, they will hang down beneath the edge of the jacket. To fix that, I topstitched my pockets to the front, following the seam line from the inside. They aren’t perfectly even, but it’s not noticeable unless you are trying to notice it. While I prefer the look of the jacket without this topstitching, it doesn’t look bad and it completely solves the problem.

Pockets! And now that they are topstitched, they don’t hang down!

One thing that was a little different from a lot of shirts that I sew is that this pattern has a one-piece collar and the button plackets extend past the edge of the collar. It give the shirt jacket a slightly different look from a regular shirt. I also like the seam line over the chest pockets. It’s a good detail.

This shirt jacket has, in my opinion, the perfect amount of ease to wear over other shirts or a light sweater, and I could see making this in other cotton flannels or, even better, in wool.

Sewing is so exciting!!!

If you look around on the internet, you can see a lot of versions of this pattern, including an amazing version in red faux fur by Yoga Byrd over on the Minerva.com website (hopefully that link works).

While I started this in the winter (And maybe finished it in the winter? I can’t remember…), it’s a great transitional piece for spring. I have worn it a lot, and am so glad I made it.

There’s nothing like a garment you have made yourself when it comes to the ideal fit. And if you find fitting difficult, persevere! You’ll get there! With practice, even if we can’t make everything fit perfectly, we can usually get things closer to what we want than store-bought clothes.

Quick and Easy Pajama Pants: McCall’s 3019

It was time for a quick and easy project, I needed pajama pants, and I had some cozy flannel that had been in my stash long enough.  And when all those things aligned, I finally made myself some soft and cozy pajama pants.

The pattern is out of print (OOP) McCall’s 3019 circa 2000 (easily found on Etsy).  This is my go-to pajama pants pattern for my husband.  It’s a unisex pattern that we got from my mom, and it’s a favorite for its loose fit and POCKETS!  You can use it for pants, shorts, a raglan shirt or a long robe.  So far, all I have used it for is pants.

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The fabric I used is an organic cotton flannel from Cloud9 Fabrics, with a great cloud print on it by artist Eloise Renouf.  I got this fabric a few years ago from Pintuck & Purl, but wasn’t sure what to use it for.  I really wanted to make a shirt out of it, but all I could see when I looked at it was pajamas.  Finally, this year, my need for pajamas and an easy project was so great that I knew it was time to use this fabric for its true purpose:  the coziest flannel pajama pants I have ever owned.

I’m a pretty big bargain shopper, so I usually go for the best quality at the lowest price.  I used to always buy cheap flannel on sale whenever I needed flannel, so this was my first experience with organic cotton flannel (I think…I forget a lot of things…).  And there is a huge difference.  I already knew there was a pretty big quality difference between the flannel I had been buying on super sale at the big box stores and quilt shop flannel, but this organic cotton flannel is the best.  It’s really substantial and soft, and I will admit that for the first few weeks after making these pants, I kept wondering how early I could change into them each night (or afternoon…it gets dark really early in the fall here).

So the pants themselves–this was a quick and easy pattern to sew, as expected.  It only has three pattern pieces:  front leg, back leg, and pocket.  My measurements put me in an extra-large size.  The pattern only covers small, medium, and large, but I tried on the last pair I made my husband, which are a large, and found that they fit fine.  I figured I could cut the large and sew with a 3/8″ seam allowance instead of a 5/8″ seam allowance to give myself a little bit of extra ease, knowing I would actually be fine either way.  This worked out great.  The pants are nice and roomy.  I’m really happy with the fit.

I sewed them with a straight stitch and zigzagged the seam allowances, because I was after SPEED!  I added some elastic to the waist and a little ribbon tab at the back, and I was done!  And now I sleep in cozy bliss whenever these pants aren’t in the wash!  I really do need another pair, but I’ve got enough other projects I want to make that that probably won’t happen.

The fabric has begun to pill a little bit, but it still feels just as soft.  You can see it a bit in this picture of one of the pockets.  It doesn’t affect the feel of the fabric, though.

All in all, this was a great project.  It was a good, quick sew and yielded something that is worn even more than most of my other projects.

I plan to take some time off for Christmas (Merry Christmas!  Happy New Year!).  I don’t know if it will just be a week or two or perhaps a little bit longer, but I should be back in January or maybe early February if I decide to extend the break.  I hope you all have a wonderful holiday and enjoy this first official day of winter (Winter Solstice!), knowing that now the daylight will start coming back.  Yay!

Queue Jumper: Wiksten Kimono in Denim and Flannel

Hi, friends!  I’m back with another sewing project.  Truth be told, I have a few others that have been finished for a little while, but since this one jumped in front of everything else on my sewing list, it seems appropriate for it to jump to the front of my blogging list, too.  😉

The Women’s Kimono Jacket from Wiksten, commonly called the Wiksten Kimono has been pretty popular in the sewing community.  The first version of this pattern, by Jenny Gordy of the sewing pattern company Wiksten, came out in Making Magazine No. 4/Lines.  Since then, Jenny has updated the pattern, adding different lengths and refining the fit, and you can now buy it as a standalone pattern if you don’t have access to that issue of Making.

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I wasn’t too sure about the pattern at first, so I followed the #wikstenkimono hashtag on Instagram and got a look at what people were making.  The more I thought about it, the more I realized that this was my kind of jacket, and people reported that they loved the process of sewing it.  When Pintuck & Purl stocked the pattern, I made sure to snap one up.

When contemplating which version to make and what fabric to use, I initially planned to make the mid-length version.  As the weather cooled off, though, I thought maybe I would want the long one to wear over leggings and cozy up in during the cold months.  Most of the versions on Instagram during the time I was trying to make fabric choices were in linen, and I considered using some yellow linen for it, but then I had a thought.  Why not figure out what it was that made me reach for favorite garments in the fall?  Which things did I want to pull on over my t-shirt when I was hanging out at home or meeting with friends to catch up?  Once I asked myself that, I could see I needed to make this jacket cozy.

My first thought was cotton flannel lined with fleece, to get a feel like a fleece-lined flannel shirt.  It might end up looking like a bathrobe, but it seemed like it was a risk worth taking for my first version.  Even if it was only something to wear at home, it would still be a win.  I talked it over with some of the ladies at Pintuck & Purl, and realized that we had some very cozy flannel that no one had tried yet, AND I had already purchased some pink (“Heather”) Cloud9 Tinted Denim that would be GREAT with that flannel.  I was planning to make pants with the Tinted Denim, but this idea struck me as an even better idea.

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I was told very firmly that I needed to at least try to pattern match my plaid and that I was going to have to straighten out the grain on the flannel just a bit because it was a plaid that I needed to try to pattern match.  It’s not uncommon for fabric to become off-grain as it goes on the bolt, and while it’s usually not an issue, this was something I should try to put right.  I only offered weak resistance, because I knew they were right.

I took my flannel home and prewashed and dried it, and then my husband and I attempted to pull the fabric on the bias from opposite sides to try to get it back on grain.  I think it worked.  Believe it or not, that was the first time I had ever tried that.

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Both the flannel and denim are nice and soft.  The denim is fairly lightweight.  I’ve used it before for these shorts and this shirt (in yellow), and I really love it.  It’s such a nice fabric that ages beautifully, softening up over time.  The flannel is from a company that is new to me, Marcus Fabrics.  This buffalo check comes from their Primo Plaid Flannels:  Classic Tartans line.  So far, I really like it–it’s extra soft.

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Other than that, I used whatever thread I had lying around (which meant I used three subtly different shades of pink, switching to the next shade when the previous one ran out).  I also tried sew-in interfacing this time (pictured below).  Normally I just use basic fusible Pellon interfacing from Jo-Ann Fabrics, but I got a bunch of Si-Bonne interfacing from an estate sale I went to.  I hadn’t heard of this brand before, and I don’t think it’s around any more.  I put the interfacing in the washer and dryer to preshrink it, and then basted it to the collar pieces by hand (next time I’ll do it by machine).  A lot of people skip the interfacing in the collar, but I wanted to stick close to the pattern as written for my first attempt, with the exception of different pockets on the outside layer.

The sewing itself wasn’t difficult.  I traced a large and cut the longest version.  I changed my outer pockets to larger ones that extended across each side of the front pieces with an angled top, and I had fun adding extra topstitching to the top and bottom.  My topstitching inspiration came from Helen’s version as well as a fashion image I have of a jacket collar with multiple parallel lines of topstitching.  I lined it with flannel so it would be soft and warm.  I also added the original patch pockets to the inside so the jacket would be reversible and so that no matter which way I wore it, I would have inside and outside pockets.  I am so happy about that decision every time I wear this jacket (and I have worn it most days since I finished it).  I cut the patch pockets on the bias for visual interest and made sure to line them with denim so that they wouldn’t stretch out of shape.  In a perfect world, I probably would have cut the flannel side of the collar on the bias as well, since it would have looked really cool, but I didn’t buy enough for that.

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I was nervous about the plaid matching, so I decided to try to match the horizontal lines of the plaid at the side seams, which turned out great.  The flannel on the collar was too much for my brain, so that doesn’t really match where it attaches to the body, but because of how the collar folds out to contrast whichever side is on the outside at the time, you don’t really see them together.

I love how I managed to match things up at the center back collar seam, though!

When I put this on after I finished sewing it, I looked in the mirror, saw how huge it was…and loved it.  Sometimes I make something oversized and don’t like it, but this is huge, and I LOVE it.  It feels so good to wear, and is so cozy and, in its own genre, is pretty cool.  I’ve worn it with jeans and leggings, both with the sleeves cuffed and un-cuffed, and can definitely see myself making other versions.  I’d love to make the mid-length, and maybe even the short length in a fancier fabric.  The sew-in interfacing makes the collar soft and substantial, perfect for turning up to cover my neck when it’s cold.  I could definitely see making other versions in wool or maybe my original flannel + fleece idea.

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If you are new to sewing, and this is a style you like, this would be a great pattern to try.  It’s not too difficult and it’s a pleasure to sew, not to mention you get two garments in one since you can wear it as a reversible garment if you want to.  If you’re not new to sewing and you like this style, I think you’ll like it too.

Update:  After wearing this for three days and then washing it, I went back and edgestitched/topstitched along the bottom and the outer edge of the collar.  My flannel fabric wanted to roll to the outside, even after having understitched during assembly (I think it’s a looser weave than the denim).  I’m hoping this will help prevent that.  Even so, I love the jacket and have worn it most days since making it.

Simplicity 1538 (Again!) in Robert Kaufman Shetland Flannel

Hey…I bet you guys are going to be super surprised…I made Simplicity 1538!  Again!

It’s good to know I finally have a TNT (Tried ‘N True) pattern.

This version is made from Robert Kaufman Shetland Flannel in the Peach colorway with pearl snaps from Pintuck & Purl.  Thread, pattern, and interfacing came from Jo-Ann Fabric.

This shirt has the same added length (two inches) that my last one had, but for this version, I also used the pockets and front yoke in View A.  I swapped out my favorite buttons that look like pearl snaps for actual pearl snaps, something I’d never worked with before.

Here are my notes.  This fabric has a very subtle right and wrong side.  It’s actually made up of red and ivory threads, and one side is a little lighter while the other side is a little redder.  I chose the lighter side as my right side.  Either would look great as long as you are consistent (or intentionally inconsistent, I suppose).  It also feels like a lighter weight flannel than the Mammoth Plaid I used for the last shirt, although it’s the same weight according to the Robert Kaufman website.  It also feels a little bit softer to me.  I did prewash and dry my fabric, but it may not be a bad idea to throw this one in twice, just to be safe.  When I finished the shirt, I noticed that the front near the bust is very slightly tighter than I would like.  You can see it in the picture at the top of the post.  It could also have been the addition of the front pockets and yokes or maybe, as Maggie at Pintuck & Purl pointed out, the difference between using pearl snaps and buttons.  Who knows?  It’s not something that will keep me from wearing the shirt, but it’s definitely interesting.

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During construction, I used flat-felled seams for my arm and side seams.  They definitely aren’t perfect, but I think topstitching and seams like these are just some of those things that take practice.  Overall I tried not to get too picky and only ended up redoing my topstitching in one or two places.

I also tried out the triple stitch on my machine.  I know Lauren of Lladybird has talked about loving that more than using topstitching thread, so I thought I would give it a try.  It really does create a beautiful stitch.

For another interesting detail, I used a coordinating quilting cotton for my cuff and collar stand facings as well as for the undercollar.  I wish I had more of these quilting cotton prints.  I won a few in a giveaway around the time I started to sew, and they coordinate with so many things.  Unfortunately, I don’t even know the company, designer, or line they are from.  Do any of you?

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By the time I took this picture, the snow was getting to be a little much, but it gives you the idea.  Below is a clearer picture.

Finally, pearl snaps.

I used size 16 ivory snaps for this project.  I was given the gift of my husband’s grandmother’s sewing things when she passed away, and I found two different kinds of snap setters among the bounty.  One is this blue plastic setter.  I looked around on youTube for a tutorial on how to use it (which was harder to find than I expected), and I gave that a try on some scrap fabric.  I also tried out this metal setter using directions on the back of some vintage snaps.  That was the tool I liked the best, and the instructions were excellent.  I got all of my snaps in without too much trouble with the exception of my first one, which cracked due to insufficient padding underneath it.  Lesson learned on that one!

So here’s my shirtmaking question for you.  When you are putting in your cuffs or collar, if you are instructed to pin the facing down from the outside and then topstitch from the right side, catching the outside and the facing in the topstitching, are you successful?  If you are, how do you do it?  I’ve given up and now I just hand-stitch those facings down and then topstitch on the outside because I could never catch the whole facing.  Thanks for any help you can give on that!

That’s it for this shirt!  I have some more Robert Kaufman flannel that I was going to use to make one more, but I’m trying to force myself branch out.  We’ll see what happens!  My latest thought is maybe Simplicity 8014.

Recommendations:

• Ticket to Ride.  Have you ever played this game?  You try to build trains to complete your goals (“tickets”).  The more tickets you complete, the more points you get!  It’s a lot of fun.
• Grandma’s House Patterns.  I can pass a lot of time looking through all the past and current sewing patterns on this website.  It’s also exciting to threaten to make some of the funnier styles of decades past for friends and family!  😉
• The Labyrinth is one of my favorite movies from childhood.  As soon as I saw this Labyrinth worm pin from The Foxy Hipster, I knew I wanted it for my growing collection, and one of my friends got it for me for my birthday!
• Lexi’s.  Fortunately (or unfortunately) there is one both next to where I work and within a relatively short distance of where I live.  The burgers, shakes, and fries are awesome.