A rolled edged shirt

This version of The Box Shirt was an experiment but its turned out to be one of my favourite shirts.

I was playing with the rolled edge function on my overlocker (Jenome 6234XL) and thought I’d make a shirt inspired by the designer Martin Margiela.

I had visited the exhibition ‘Margiela The Hermés Years’ in Paris back in 2018 and was completely blown away by the pared back luxury created in such an experimental way. This silk shirt stood out with its hand rolled edges. However my hand sewing is appalling and I avoid it as much as I possible can.

The fabric for my shirt is not silk, but a luxurious polyester cloth that must be Japanese. I purchased as a remnant many years ago and I was keeping it for a special project. It has exceptional drape as can be seen by the pockets.

When cutting out I omitted the facings for the front and cut only half the collar piece to create one layer. Before constructing the shirt, I tested the rolled-edge stitch and the narrowest overlocking stitch and perfected the tension. I used the narrow overlock stitch on the edges of the garment pieces that were to be stitched into seams, temporarily leaving the other edges as cut edges. For the pockets I used the rolled-edge stitch all round.

Making the shirt, I started with the pockets attaching to the front by stitching close to the rolled edge. Then the shoulder seams and attaching the collar’s right side to the wrong side of the shirt. I took the minimal seam allowance and the seam is outside hidden by the collar. Once the sleeves were attached and the side seams completed, I finished all the outer edges with the rolled hem function on my overlocker.

I love the drape of this garment it feels so luxurious.