archer!

The famed Archer… I LOVED. MAKING. THIS.

Jen from Grainline’s sew-along was awesome and I highly recommend taking a look if you’re going to take a stab at this pattern.  I had sewn one other button-down (for Mr. Nice way back in my sewing day) but I still learned A LOT from her.  Check out those nice little cuffs up there!  I wish I had had the patience to wait for the instructions on the yoke burrito – trying that next time.  (What?  You don’t know what the yoke burrito is?  Guess you’ll have to watch her tutorial!)

The influence of a talented seamstress made me really focus on trying to cut and sew this well, and instead of my usual hack job, I ripped out seams and redid it when it wasn’t quite right.  This ended up being one of my better sewing jobs because of it.

And is it embarrassing if I tell you that this little anchor stitch on the upper corners of the pockets kept me obsessed for a full 48 hours?  I absolutely adored this detail, thought about it at night, at work, and must have shown it to Mr. Nice about 3 times.  That little inch is the most professonal-looking thing I’ve ever done.

What?  You want a closer look?

Here are some other notes…

• I finished my seams with french seams, even though there was only a 1/2″ seam allowance.  I learned that (duh) you can just sew the initial seam at 1/4″, trim it, then sew the final seam at 1/4″.   I followed all her other finishing techniques and they look nice.
• I added 2″ to length, extending the pattern ahead of time, the right way.  She actually gives instructions on this and I did it because I am 5’10” and am very glad I did, it’s just right.  However, it made my button spacing funny and the one at the bottom is too close to the hem.
• I really liked this fabric when I bought it (at The Drygoods Shop in Asheville, and I love this place), but uh, now that it’s a button-down, does it look a police officer’s uniform shirt?!  Halfway into this I realized that this was a high possibility, so I inverted the pleat and pored over my button options to minimize the uniform similarity…
• I didn’t know interfacing came in different weights.  Wow.

For next time (because there will be a next time) I think I may take in the waist a little and narrow the sleeves.  I like things fitted and I would like to practice some of those pattern-adjusting skills.  However, the fit is great and the sizing was perfect (fyi this is a size 6).

Look at me.  I love my Archer.  What a dork!