How to Sew Men's Shirts

As a viable way to save money on clothing, home sewing is more or less popular depending on the current price of fabrics. If you shop around for specials and closeouts, you can still save money by sewing men's shirts for work or even formal wear. Follow these steps to gather information from the back of the pattern envelope and begin.

Instructions

1. Choose your pattern. The envelope will have ratings about the degree of difficulty of the project such as, "Easy Sew," "Quick and Easy," "Beginner" or "Advanced."

2. Look on the front of the pattern envelope to see illustrations of the completed garments and also to find the pattern size.

3. Find line drawings of what the backs of the shirts will look like when completed. You will find these drawings on the back of the pattern envelope.

4. Read the back of the envelope to find what kinds of fabrics work best with the pattern and how much to buy for the size you have chosen.

5. Ensure you have chosen the correct size from the size chart on the back. You should measure the men you plan to sew shirts for before going to the pattern store or ordering online. Measure the circumference of the neck and chest and the sleeve length from the center of the shoulder to the wrist.

6. Choose sewing notions. This will include items such as buttons, zippers, interfacing, hook and loop tape, seam binding or hooks and eyes according to the directions on the back of the pattern envelope.

Tips & Warnings

• Normally, a pattern fits a small range of sizes, so choose the middle of the range for the size shirt you will most likely sew.

• If a fabric has nap or a design that you need to match, you will have to buy a little extra fabric. Nap is found on fabrics like velour or corduroy, where you can raise the fabric by stroking it in the wrong direction. The back of the pattern envelope will tell you how much extra fabric to buy.