Anyone dart or take in the sides of their own shirts?

Originally Posted by matsui

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I made a mold of my upper torso. I read an article about how to make one using duct tape, where you wear an old t-shirt, and have someone wrap you in about 3 layers of tape, then you cut it off and tape it back together and stuff it and you're left with an exact mold of yourself.

That's so sigworthy.

Originally Posted by Rugger

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How do you take it in when you get to the cuff?

How do you take it in when you get to the cuff?

Originally Posted by Rugger

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How do you take it in when you get to the cuff?

cuff is problematic, so I kept my distance.

Originally Posted by either/or

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cuff is problematic, so I kept my distance.


So how/where do you end the stitching?

Originally Posted by TC (Houston)

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That's so sigworthy.

I guess you're ready for the plastic wrap clone then



Oh, and btw, here's a couple of clone recepies more.

Originally Posted by Rugger

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So how/where do you end the stitching?

I merged with the original seam a couple of inches from the cuff.

So my machine came on Friday and I finally got a chance to set it up and play with it today. My project was a pair of PRL Chinos which were nice but a Loose/Baggy fit with an inseam several inches too long. My goal was to make them slimmer fitting, slightly tapered, and hem them. Total Success! This was my first time ever sewing and I had no help, it did take awhile with the learning curve though.

-looking good from what we can see. Nothing beating that sense of accomplishment, eh? ...and no euro-hem for the pants I see, very daring Be sure to have that camera & mirror nearby when you try a couple of shirts...

Originally Posted by either/or

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...and no euro-hem for the pants I see, very daring

I just looked up what that is. Looks like it would be inferior to the proper way.

Originally Posted by cptjeff

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I just looked up what that is. Looks like it would be inferior to the proper way.
It is, although it preserves the original seam - good if it has any unique properties that can't be re-created. (wear, stitching etc). And, of course, it's reversible.

Originally Posted by either/or

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-looking good from what we can see. Nothing beating that sense of accomplishment, eh?

...and no euro-hem for the pants I see, very daring

Be sure to have that camera & mirror nearby when you try a couple of shirts...

I've seen a few videos on the Euro hem, I'd do it for jeans but these were just my test pants. I think I may attempt some shirts today and if I do I'll try to take some pics.

Anyone found a great video on flat felled seams? I have been a little confused by the text stuff I've read.

Originally Posted by YoungAmerican

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Anyone found a great video on flat felled seams?

google image-search flat felled seam produced some of these:



[link to accompanying text]



[link]


article on all sorts of seams


-sure you need a video?


btw, have that iron & lots of pins ready, it really helps ironing/pinning this kind of stuff in place before you sew.

After reading this thread I rummaged around in my storage unit and dug out my trusty $60 Brother sewing machine. (I used to have a nice heavy old $10 yardsale Singer but I think my sister has it now.) For anyone who doesn't sew very much, remember to put in a new needle frequently and oil your machine following the instructions in the manual after EVERY SINGLE USE. It will last a long time and your sewing will go better.

Anyway, on to the shirt altering... I have a large number of 16.5x35 Lands' End dress shirts. They fit fine but have a lot of extra fabric. They do offer the "Tailored" fit which is a bit slimmer, but it usually costs several dollars more per shirt. Meh. I'm a cheapskate.

Turned a shirt inside out and did a quick trial basting job with safety pins. Ideally I'd do a tapered 1-1.75 inch adjustment on sleeves and one inch down each side seam. But, after fiddling with pins all over the place I realized that my sewing machine has a nice little ruler built into it marking one inch. So a quick trip around each side of the shirt/sleeve at a one inch spacing, with a taper to the cuff, and shazaaam! Fit is much improved. I haven't even bothered with trimming out the extra seam allowance yet. Did one more shirt and it is also far far better. I could get more complicated and take more out of the sleeves, but one inch per side is so much better on these ~$20 shirts that I'm just going to do a bunch more the same way. Takes about 5 minutes per shirt once the bobbin is wound.

Hooray!

I wonder if something similar can be done with khakis? Slim up the legs a bit?

I wonder if something similar can be done with khakis? Slim up the legs a bit?

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yes