HOW TO IRON A SHIRT

[alden]

Pierre

I know I speak for all the LL members in saying that it is great to see you here.

Hope all is well.

Michael

[laliquette]

Michael,
You know that I've a lot of problems in this time....
But I don't forget the LL members.
I will do all that I can
Pierre

[patchmark]

Pierre,
Thank you for the information
Mark

[Costi]

Dear Pierre,

I am glad to see you back here, too, and I do hope your troubles go away...

I am having some fun (or my shirtmaker is?) with one of these:

They belonged to the late Duke of Windsor, but there are few (if any) pictures of him without a coat on (perhaps a few photographs in short sleeves). One of the first things my shirtmaker noticed about these shirts, apart from the particular cut of the front, was the blousiness (fullness) of the sleeves - given the fact that the Duke was not large enough a man to fill those shirts according to the contemporary fashion of "slim fit". I was wondering what your opinion was on the cut of shirt sleeves - do you prefer them narrow through the arm and hanging straight with the cuff just above the wrist, or do you prefer them cut fuller (more "blousy"), finished with a tight cuff that rests on the wristbone and a bit of extra cloth "blousée" over the cuff?

[laliquette]

Costi,
I go to try to explain my position
The shirts on the picture are very old.
At this time,the shape of the shirts was different as today.
For example,for the sleeves we don't work today as before.
Before the armholes are very deep and large, and naturally the sleeves was deep and large too.
The same example with centimeters:
Before the deep of the armhole was between 20 and 22 cm and more
Today we are between 16/17 and 18/19 for bigs men.

It's normal, when the armholes are big that the sleeve is big too.

Another thing:
Today the sleeves are slim and for the assembly to the cuffs we do creases under the sleeve near the opening.
Before it was impossible to do that because we have too much material.
An it's for this that the material was distributed all around the cuff.

To end my post I would like to tell that this style of sleeves are rather for womans .
But all the shirtmakers know to do that for the men' shirt.

I'm not sure ,my explanations are clear ??????

[Costi]

They are perfectly clear, thank you very much!
I find that I somehow prefer these "bloussier" shirt sleeves (old style, as you called them), not only in terms of comfort (because a slim fitting sleeve, if cut well, can also be comfortable), but also aesthetically. I am not talking about exaggerations, just a bit more room in the sleeve and a couple of centimetres extra length, too, so the cuff does not ride up when I extend my arms or bend the elbows.
I have recently tried a new pattern with my shirtmaker, more contemporary as it were, with a closer fit through the body and the sleeves. She looked at me in the new shirt and, although well made, in the end she decided she prefered my usual pattern, which is a bit more relaxed - she said a more generous shirt looked more "sweet" on me - that is, more round, more inviting, more easy on the eye.

[Greger]

Yes, sleeves with some, more or less, "poof" looks better. No poof looks "stale".

And then there is the 7-6-7 cut or, the probably older cut, 8-7-8.

[andreybokhanko]

Pierre,

I'm happy to see you again!

Hope all troubles are behind you.

Andrey

[Greger]

Everybody says to press shirts on the flat, but I really like to wear shirts that have been shaped by pressing parts of it on a tailors ham. Place the big end of the ham in the scye and press the shoulder shape and the back on the ham. Move the ham so the small end is towards the waist and the big end towards the shoulder and press shape at the shoulder blade. The hip and seat area can also be shaped that way with the small end to the waist. To be really unique use a sleeve roll in the sleeves.

Personal touches like that make a comfortable shirt.