Pattern Review: Sew Over It Libby Shirt

I fell in love with the Libby Shirt during #MeMadeMay, after seeing a beautiful version shared by @canningmakes on Instagram. I immediately headed to the Sew Over It website to look at it in more detail. It is only available as a PDF, but this is fast becoming the norm for me in pattern purchases during the pandemic anyway. It does mean you will need access to a printer.


I will get my criticism of the pattern out of the way first, since the reviews I read before buying seemed to simply rave about the finished Libby. It is only through reading them again retrospectively that I realise they have each implied having the same problem as me, but have generally brushed over it and blamed themselves.

The Sew Over It website describes this pattern as "a manageable, fun-to-make and of course stylish intro into the world of shirt-making". I'm afraid to say that I disagree, taking particular issue with the word "intro". If you have not made a shirt before, I would not advise this as the first.

The challenge comes when inserting the collar. While the construction itself is more straightforward than for some collars, the instructions to help you do so are poor. Poor to the point that I had no idea what they were talking about, leading me to put them aside and use my previous knowledge of shirt-making to insert the collar instead.

I found it particularly frustrating because it seems to word things in a more complicated way than necessary - for instance, referring to a mysterious "inverted corner of the neckline", which it turns out is the most subtle of corners, simply a bend once cut out in fabric. This inverted corner is marked with a circle, but they fail to mention that it is on a different pattern piece to the one you've been working with, so you're left very much guessing which corner and which circle you should be looking at. (**SPOILER** It's on the front bodice; it's the middle circle).


I don't think it helps that the instructions are accompanied by photos rather than diagrams. And in the photos, they use a patterned fabric, making it harder to see what's what. This is especially difficult once printed out, which I always do so that I don't have to run back and forth to the computer, or squint at the instructions on my phone.


Sew Over It themselves appear to have acknowledged that there is a problem with these instructions, adding a Libby Shirt collar "sewalong" to their website. I was hopeful that this extra tutorial would solve the problem, and assumed that a "sewalong" would involve a video. But it didn't. It is simply a longer description with more steps and more photos. It may be that these are adequate to muddle through as a newcomer to shirt-making, but I must confess, I was annoyed enough at this stage to simply look at them blankly before deciding I was going to do it my own way instead!

Okay. If you're still here, and you're not perturbed, I will at last get on to what I like about the Libby Shirt...

It is a very casual, easy-fitting shirt which will work well in most lightweight fabrics. No darts to worry about, it just hangs loose and boxy. The collar - once inserted correctly ;) - is both neat and relaxed, sitting open until pulled together by the top-most button at mid-chest. The back has a yoke, and just a very subtle gather at the centre. The shirt has a slightly curved hem, with the option of cropping it to be a straight hem across the front. There are five or six buttons down the front, depending on whether you opt for the cropped version or not (I used fewer - see alterations section for details). The sleeves end midway down your upper arm, and have a fold-up cuff attached. They have a nice easy fit too, in no way restricting you from flailing your arms around like a mad thing, if that's what you like to do.



Well, you've heard the bulk of my comments on this already! Otherwise, construction is fairly straightforward, with few pattern pieces for a shirt, and easy-to-attach sleeves. I managed to squeeze mine out of a metre of fabric since I was working in a plain fabric with no nap (direction) to it. I cut out and constructed it within a day.

One thing worth mentioning, because this is a loose, airy shirt suited to lightweight, drapey fabrics - I'd recommend going for a reallllly lightweight interfacing for the collar and facings. It always feels like it will do nothing, but it stiffens and stabilises the pieces just enough. I've used heavier interfacing for similar shirts in the past and the buttonstand tends to look uncomfortable, and juts out awkwardly when sitting down.


I made this shirt as a Size 12. I would usually be a 10, but with the pregnancy I thought I'd give myself some extra room. I chose the cropped version, which maybe wasn't wise with my growing belly already starting to poke out from underneath! But the fit is good - easy without swamping me. And looks great from all angles.


The only alteration I made was to reduce the number of buttons from five down to three. I used chunkier ones than the pattern suggests (20mm rather than 12mm), started slightly lower down between the official top and second-from-top button positions, and spread them out more too. But this is just is personal aesthetic thing. There weren't any necessary alterations for me.


I still feel a bit unhappy with Sew Over It, both for the confusing instructions and for advertising it as a good introduction to shirt-making. So my enthusiasm to buy more of their patterns is somewhat muted. However, I do concede that this is a nice pattern, resulting in a very successful and comfortable shirt. And if my review were based solely on the end result, I would really sing its praises, since I think I will get a lot of wear out of it, and plan to make it again in the future.