Itch to Stitch Montana + Simply By Ti Plaid = My Favorite Flannel Shirt

Montana Shirt, Itch to Stitch's latest pattern, is a total flash back to my youth! 

As a teen in the 90's, I lived in flannel shirts. Most of the time they belonged to my boyfriend, but throwing an over-sized flannel on top a tee with some jeans and my Timberland boots was a uniform of sorts for me. Of course, things change over time, and it's been about 20 years since I've owned a flannel shirt.

The Seeds of Nostalgia

In August, Simply By Ti had a pre-order sale on some lovely plaid shirting. I was totally drawn to them and before I knew it, I had placed an order for 3 different prints. The longer I waited for my fabric, the more excited I got about revisiting a style from my youth. Everywhere I looked plaid shirts stuck out. And so I decided, this will be the Fall of Flannel for me. 

After finishing a couple Mila Shirts, I intended to hack the pattern into a full button up for my first fall plaid flannel. Just as I set about gathering my tracing supplies to begin hacking, Kennis posted the testing call for the Montana Shirt. 

The Pattern

Montana Shirt is designed with a classic, over-sized look that fits in all the right places. I'm getting all the things I loved about wearing my boyfriend's flannel: Dropped shoulders, full length sleeves, relaxed fit suitable for layering... but the proportions are tailored for the lady I am, (am too, stop snickering) keeping me from looking sloppy.

Design Features

-Sewing cup sizes A, B, C, D & DD

- Tie front, or longer, straight hem

-Dropped shoulder

- Collar with stand

-Back yoke with shoulder blade pleats

-Cuffed long sleeve with tower plackets

-Flat felled seam finish

Sometimes weird things pop into my head. 

The Montana Shirt is definitely strong enough for a man, but made for a woman. I'm pretty sure only 3 people who read this blog post will know what the hell I'm talking about.

Muslin Work

I find that the more fitted a pattern is, the more muslin work it takes. With Montana Shirt, the key points are shoulder fit, bust cup, sleeve length and overall volume. I don't often wear "oversized" clothes these days, and frankly it feels weird.  

In order to prevent myself from over fitting, I followed the sizing instructions exactly, and then made my muslin right off the printer with no alterations. I did not look at the finished measurements for Montana Shirt!

This is a 10D graded to a 12 hip. The dropped shoulders look nice and are not slouchy. 

Although the shoulder appears to be in the right spot in this photo, it keeps sliding backwards. Look at how low those darts are hitting! Kinda nice for a change....LOL

I like both the amount of volume and the length for a relaxed fit flannel, but the sleeves are definitely too long.

The fit adjustments I made are pretty self explanatory:
1. 1/2 inch forward shoulder adjustment (standard for me)
2. Raised the entire dart 1 inch. Used the technique HERE.
3. Shortened the sleeve 2 inches. (Next time I'll only do 1.5)

The Fabric

Of the three Simply By Ti flannel plaids I ordered, I immediately discounted one, as it is a black/white buffalo check just like Kennis's sample. Don't worry, it is destined to become a different Itch to Stitch pattern soon. I decided the pink and brown plaid on ivory was The One for my tie front Montana Shirt.

This fabric is the perfect weight for a flannel shirt. Not very light, but neither is it thick or bulky. It was hard to keep the right side and the wrong side straight, especially after flat felling seams, but if you looked closely, one side seems a little more "brushed" than the other.

Speaking of "brushed", the soft fuzziness that makes flannel so awesome is the same attribute that causes the fabric to get "pilly" when it's washed and dried. I'm a hard wash/dry kind of lady. The rule is 3x through the machines, especially for cotton or rayon, before I cut. This fabric came through the process quite well; it maintained it's softness and drape but I did have some pilling. Truthfully, I've never had a flannel not pill when I wash it, but again, I'm hard on the wash/dry cycle.

I popped out to my local Joann's and grabbed a sweater stone. It cost about $5 with my coupon-of-the-day. Once you get the hang of the technique, it's really easy: Light, short, brisk, brushing strokes. It rubs the pills right off the surface, restoring the soft, brushed feel without snagging.

This Simply by Ti flannel is a nice and tightly woven fabric that did not trouble me with fraying. Even when I had to unpick and restitch my trimmed and graded collar stand. (I accidentally sewed my collar wrong side up the first time around. Remember to mark your inside/outsides!!)

Construction FUN

I swear I'm not being sarcastic. I truly enjoyed constructing this shirt! I'm sure having just made a couple Mila Shirts helped with my confidence, but I don't want you to feel intimidated by the lovely details on the Montana Shirt. They are worth taking the time to craft.

I took one full day to cut my fabric and it was worth every minute. You can make or break a plaid shirt at the cutting table. Don't hurry. Think carefully about how each part plays with those it will touch. Even when the lines move in lots of directions, you can have balance and symmetry.

 Check each piece against its neighbors. Pay careful attention to mirroring the left and right sides. What are the dominant stripes? What is the path your eye will travel? If your cuts are off, there is no fixing it at the sewing machine.

The instructions for Montana Shirt are comprehensive and fully illustrated, just as you would expect from an Itch to Stitch pattern. Several of the techniques also have links right in the instructions to full-color blog tutorials:

Dart Sewing 

Tower Sleeve Plackets

Flat Felled Seams

Narrow Hem

 And though I have to admit that tucking flat felled seams is on The List with making bias binding, as one of my least favorite sewing things to do, there is no denying the gorgeous finish it gives!

Final Thoughts

My post is all about the flannel, but Montana can be made in a wide variety of shirting fabrics. Check out all the tester versions HERE to see how different they look.

I am over the moon about my first Montana Shirt! 

 
 I will wear it all the time with jeans... both buttoned and open with a tank under.
 
 I also really enjoy it with my olive stretch faux leather pencil skirt. I know there are a few different browns mushed together with and pink and ivory, but I don't care!

I am immediately launching into a second Montana Shirt after completing this blog post. I've decided to use another of the Simply By Ti flannels I bought to make the longer, straight hem version. There is still yardage left of this pink/brown/ivory flannel HERE if you are interested in getting some for your stash. There are also several other flannel prints in stock if pink isn't quite your thing. You can find them HERE.

Come over to the Itch to Stitch Facebook Community to follow along with my in progress Montana Shirt sewing... Better yet, grab yourself a copy of Montana Shirt and come sew with me! 

Montana Shirt is on sale HERE for 20% off now through October 30, 2018.