McCalls Men’s Button-Down Shirts 6044

I’ve made this shirt several times for my hubby (I think I’m up to seven so far!) and it’s relatively straight-forward. The first time I made it, when I was a fairly new sewist, I felt the instructions seemed rather complicated, but by going step-by-step, taking my time, reading and re-reading, everything seemed to fall into place and made sense. Now I can rustle one up (except the buttons and button holes) over a long day. I make it in the small size for him, but have also added a couple of slim darts on the back of the pattern and I make the sleeves a bit narrower to give him a better fit. I really like the neatness of the front band; it gives it a professional finish. The collar and collar stand aren’t too complicated once you get your head around it, and I really like the pleat and slit detail on the cuffs of the long-sleeve version. The latest two (the blue long sleeve and green short sleeve) I’ve made using French Seams to give the insides a cleaner finish. He’s a happy chappy, as he can now pick out the exact fabric he wants, then hand it over to me and it comes back as a shirt!