Victorian shirt

My son is a real problem when it comes to dreaming up presents for him.  He doesn’t want to accumulate “stuff” because he pulls stakes and moves quite often, and all his belongings have to fit into the back of his truck.  He’s at the other end of the country, and sending “stuff” very often costs far more than the “stuff” is worth.  There’s not a whole lot I can get for him that he actually needs.  And so – there are clothes… made by Mum.  Come to think of it, he probably doesn’t need much in the way of clothes, either, because he mostly wears whatever goes for a uniform of whatever kitchen he’s presently working in.  This explanation is really getting far too long.  Suffice it to say, I put out “feelers” before Christmas, and this year (or is would it now be considered last year?? – whatever!) there was a hint of enthusiasm over another Victorian shirt.  

I made one about some two years ago.  That was a sort of trial run.  This version is a fine cream cotton.   

(Probably will never meet up with an iron again in its life, but here it is nicely pressed – ready to be folded up into a box and get crushed, and then I wonder why I spent so much time steaming and pressing.)  According to the pattern, the “slit”/vent is actually the underarm seam.  This puts the button on the cuff on the underside of the wrist.  Not very comfortable if you’re leaning your wrist on a table to write, or (more probably) on a laptop to type.  So, shirt No. 2 also got an actual vent at the side of the sleeve.  This time I did not spend a lot of time toiling over an actual placket, but took the easy way out as you can see.  

Apparently, this is a comfortable style. (Certainly is roomy with all those pleats!)  I sort of like the front details of this shirt – wouldn’t mind one for myself, though I’ll probably have to graft the details I want onto one of my shirt patterns.  Even at the smallest size of this pattern, I think I’d get tangled up and lost in too much fabric.  The construction of the front is a little confusing, or may-be I just don’t get something.  It was confusing the first time around, and I obviously didn’t remember a thing a year later, because it was confusing all over again this time.  At the end, I did have a clean finish on the inside of the button placket as well as the outside.  I keep telling myself that it doesn’t matter how you get there, just so long as the end result looks good.