Contrast Thread Shirt

This was the fourth shirt I made; the third for myself, and the second on my new sewing machine.

My inspiration for the colors was Proper Cloth’s Albiate Washed Light Indigo Contrast Thread 80s Denim, a discontinued shirt that used to cost $250. It was one of the few shirts I could find online that deliberately used contrast thread. I thought that would look cool, and also show off my stitching better. The cotton bed sheet I had was a bit lighter blue, but close enough.

This time I following the drape method from Shirtmaking by David Page Coffin. My sister helped drape fabric over me to create custom pattern pieces for the front and back. From the Fairfield I used the S yoke, XS sleeves, and M collar. That variety of sizes shows why it was always impossible for me to do up the top button on the stock Fairfield. On this shirt, I decided to leave the back flat (no darts or pleats) and to skip the pocket.

This is definitely my best shirt yet. I can still see some small tweaks I’d like to make for the next one, but the fit is much better than before. I really like the contrast thread and I think I’ll do that again in the future.