Vogue Shirt V8772

So this the Vogue 8772 fitted shirt with a lot of adjustments that others don’t seem to have found necessary.
I wanted a warm slim fitted shirt to tuck into my work trousers and not be too bulky under the jumpers we are all wearing in this weather at the moment.
I have to admit, however, it wasn’t the pattern, it was me that caused most of my issues. I’ve since read the back of the pattern packet and noted the fabric recommendation for this shirt was a lot lighter weight, a chiffon or light weight silk, rather than this cotton which would explain most of the adjustments I had to make.
It’s classed as a Vogue ‘easy’ pattern it’s definitely more ‘intermediate’.
I went with the size 12 for measurements bust 34”, waist 26.5”, hip36” but graded up to a size 14 around the waist. My measurements are 34”, waist 29”, hip 37” and I checked against the finished measurements for ease. It’s a fitted shirt so I wanted shape around the waist but still with ease to be comfortable.
I absolutely love the resulting shirt but I did end up re making the sleeves. All the details of the adjustments I made to the sleeve head, armscye, length and width are on my blog post. https://lovelucie.org/2023/02/01/vogue-8772-fitted-blouse/
It was worth persevering. I now have a great pattern for a fitted shirt!

I started this shirt on a whim. I had a metre of Liberty wilmslow silk that I’d bought in the post-Christmas sale a few years before I realised that you really needed 1.5 metres to do anything with buttons.

This fabric had been sitting in my stash for so long that the visceral memory of the amount it cost had faded. Vogue 8772 had similarly been sitting in my stash, but unlike the fabric, it was steadfastly reproaching me.

’How,’ it seemed to say, ‘can you count yourself as a sewist if you can’t face sewing a shirt with a collar stand?’

And so eventually I had enough and decided I was going to make the thing. But I wasn’t just going to make it in a nice cotton lawn. Oh no, that would be far too simple.

(The visceral memory of how much the longer lengths of cotton lawn in my stash had cost was rather fresher)

I just managed to eke the body, collar and shortened sleeves out of the metre of silk (as you can see, I decided against the sleeves in the end). Due to a too slim margin of error on the pattern jigsaw needed to get this to happen,  I did not manage to get the collar stand. This may have been a blessing in disguise as I had a length of cherry sandwashed silk in my stash (also of longstanding) which gives a lovely pop of colour at the neckline. I also used this to make bias binding to face the armholes.

Despite the tricky material, the blouse itself has turned out pretty well. Vogue 8772 is a nice pattern, well drafted and fairly flattering. Something to bear in mind for next time is that I personally would have preferred the finished blouse to be about 3/4 inch longer at the hip. However, as I will probably wear this tucked into suit trousers when office life resumes I think I can live with it.

I made my usual adjustments to the pattern by reference to the finished garment measurements. I cut a 14 at the shoulders, grading to a 16 at the bust and hip. This is less ease than the pattern calls for but it fits me very nicely so I think it is a personal judgment call. I have found most Big 4 patterns tend to gape at the shoulders in the larger (I.e. above 12) sizes and grading in the armholes is a reasonably quick fix in most cases.

I decided to try this pattern because it has nice shaping provided by French darts, and quite a few different options to use (pointed collar or **** bow neckline, sleeve variations or a sleeveless option, as well as different hem lengths). I made view D, which has a pointed collar, long cuffed sleeves and the shorter hem length.

I didn't have any problems at all sewing the shirt - the instructions are concise, but I always found them to be clear (although I have made a couple of shirts/shirt dresses so have used all the techniques included before). The cuffs use a continuous lap, which I always find easier to sew than a traditional shirt placket - and I actually prefer the look too. The centre front is finished by turning under on itself twice to form a facing (I added a strip of interfacing to help stabilise it as I always find this makes sewing buttonholes easier).

In terms of sizing, I made the size recommended for my bust measurements, but went down a size from what was recommended for my waist and hips. That worked out nicely for me - the shirt has a nice shape without being too closely fitted. The arms come up fairly long - I'm 5'9" and have relatively long arms and they're just OK/verging on being too long on me.

I enjoyed sewing the shirt and love how mine turned out. I'll definitely be using this pattern again! More details on my blog: http://nightingaleanddolittle.blogspot.com/2019/11/vogue-8772-shirt.html

I purchased this pattern after having seen a lot of garments made using this one and sewed option C (with short sleeve that I changed a little). All sewing steps are very carefully given on pattern's leaflet, so I didn't have any problem while creating it... Just to mention that pattern is emphasizing on details and I really love the result. The fabric I used is a linen/viscose blend that worked really well. I am going to use v8772 again to sew other options. Highly recommended!
P.S. If you wish to see more photos, you can see them over at my blog with a more detailed review (in greek) : https://mylovemadewardrobe.home.blog/2019/09/15/%cf%81%ce%ac%ce%b2%ce%bf%ce%bd%cf%84%ce%b1%cf%82-%cf%80%ce%bf%cf%85%ce%ba%ce%ac%ce%bc%ce%b9%cf%83%ce%bf-vogue-8772/