A couple of weeks ago I learned about the Pigeon Wishes instagram party for Galentine’s day 2021. The idea is to celebrate Galentine’s day by making something red/pink and have an excuse to be involved in a social event even if I’m not going anywhere. “This is all about living joyfully, in colours that reflect that “(and I guess we all need it).
I decided to make something that was already in my Spring plans (coming soon!) : a pink shirt. I love shirts, I wear them often and I really like to sew them, but pink is not usually among the colors that I chose. But when I saw this rayon dotted fabric on fabric.com I envisioned a classic shirt with a different collar, and I decided to give pink a go.
The pattern and how I hacked it
I started with the Carolyn Pajama shirt from Closet Core Pattern (available in sizes 0-20). I really like the cut of the collar and I think it’s a classic shape, but slightly different than a button up shirt. I hacked the pattern changing a few details to make it less pajama and more shirt like. I made a size 8 and I used 1.5 yards of 56″ wide fabric. My edits to the pattern were only on the collar and cuff shape. First of all I followed Closet Core hack to change the notched collar and remove the rounded detail, then I drafted a different cuff.
I cut a size 8 for the sleeve View B but I cut a size 2 for the cuff (see pictures below). I then tried to close the cuff on my wrist and decided to take out and additional 3/4” on each side. I then folded in 1/2” on one of the long side of the cuff and folded it in half (picture 2). The sleeve is slightly larger than the cuff, and to achieve the pouffy effect I gathered the sleeve to match the width of the cuff and then stitched it with a 5/8” seam allowance to the side without the folded edge (picture 3). To finish it I hand stitched the cuff on the inside of the sleeve with an invisibile stitch and pressed everything. This cuff doesn’t open but I can fit my hand through it and still have a classic shirt effect.
I really like the result and I’m already planning another version in a cherry print!
Cost
Here’s the cost breakdown (total $25.50 including the cost of the pattern):
- Fabric: $11 (I bought the fabric on sale during Christmas)
- Pattern: $12 (bought it during sales too)
- Notions: buttons from my grandma’s stash and thread ($2.5)
Francesca's fold 
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