30-05-2018

Got equal amounts of the three colours. I’m thinking a gardening shirt in plaid, with sleeves and body in different, but related, tartans. Playing with some designs that use equal amounts of each colour, and swapping colours around. Amazing how different the results are!

I’ll make cuffs, collar, pockets and button bands (and perhaps a yoke?) of denim in a matching colour. Will add elbow patches as well.

I like numbers 1 and 4 together…

I will double the yarn and use the fingering heddle which is 50dpc so 250 ends (yarn held double).

Now…sizing.

Sleeves: finished: 70cm x 44cm per sleeve so takes full 50cm loom width; 140cm +10% shrinkage = 155cm ttl length + 60cm loom waste = 2.15cm warp. Make it 2.25m warp length.

Body will have to be done in 4 halves: 75cm x 33cm per each piece; 40cm width of weaving (200 ends) and 4m warp should do it.

31-05-2018

sleeve warp:
I will shrink the pattern, which is:
(2x-3x-2x-6x-2x-3x) + 2x, with x = 4 shown. I will make x=2, so:
repeat (4G-6B-4G-12Br-4G-6B) + balance 4G
or 36rep + 4bal
to get 250 ends:
4Br-4G-6B (4G-6B-4G-12Br-4G-6B)x6 - 4G-6B-4G-6Br

09-06-2018

Finished yardage for sleeves. Wow, this is nice stuff! Fulled in the machine on “delicates warm” and a brief spin in the dryer, followed by a iron while still damp. It fulls to a lovely, wooly cloth, perfect for a warm shirt! Exactly what I had in mind. And I L.O.V.E. the earthy colours.

dimensions:
47.5 x 186 cm off the loom
45 x 178 cm fulled

shrinkage: about 5% both L and W

Note that the fabric isn’t quite wide enough for the sleeves to be cut full width, so luckily I’ve made a little extra yardage so I can futz with the layout a bit.

09-06-2018

body warp:
I have to shrink the pattern again. That multiple of 3 is akward; change it slightly to be a multiple of 4. So:
repeat (4B - 8Br - 8G - 12B - 8G - 8Br) + balance 4B
or 48rep + 4bal

Need 200 ends:
2Br - (4B - 8Br - 8G - 12B - 8G - 8Br)x4 - 4B - 2Br

…and yeah, I’m not doing a 4m warp. Doing back and front separately. So 2m warp, twice, should be fine, judging by the length of cloth I got from the sleeve warp.
I will be fringing the ends of this cloth, because (heh heh) I want to use the fringes to make some embellishment along the yoke. You know, the “western” look.

13-06-2018

half of body done.
dimensions:
38x163cm with 6cm fringe off the loom
35.5x156cm with 6cm fringe fulled

shrinkage: about 6.5% W, 4%L

Just wide enough for the back of the shirt (with center back seam), but not for the front with a cut-on front band. But that’s OK, I wanna do a contrast front band anyways.

Also note: because of the seam down the back, I made sure to lay out the plaid so the edges, when matched, create a continuous pattern.

24-06-2018

second part of body yardage done. Getting ready to sew!
Yardage is just enough, with creative layout and some piecing together along midlines…I have essentially only tiny scraps left. Not even enough for a pocket!

25-06-2018

All sewed up! Tip: baste seams that require plaid-matching, because the fabric stretches a lot more than commercial cloth. Also I used a “walking foot” on my machine, which helps too. I serged all the inside edges because fulling isn’t enough to keep ravelling under control.

Looks a-1-plus-fantabulous! Love the fringes, the cotton twill detailing, and the fact that I managed to get the plaids to mostly match! The only drawback is that I used those pound-in snaps, and THEY SUCK. Never again. I may actually have to pull these out somehow and replace with something better.

A warm, soft, wooly, fall gardening / camping shirt!

pattern: simplicity 7030, but any man’s shirt pattern with yoke and collar-with-stand will do, as long as you make sure you cut bigger so it isn’t a “tailored” fit.

23-10-2018

…heheheh I made one for myself…

14-10-2022

This shirt is now worn out! Husband has gone through the elbows (right around the patches, natch!), he wears it A LOT. I think this gives me the opportunity to make a replacement :)))