The Body

Introduction and hemming

So you've got your five pieces of fabric and you know what you want to make. Next you need to join everything together. I do this by hemming all the pieces then whipstitching the bits together, and that's the method I'll walk you through. But as long as you get a neat, strong hem with no raw edges you're fine. So if you'd rather you can use run and fell or a french seam. Be aware that there are no surviving examples of french seams in this period, so it may or may not have been in use. Kentwell won't query it, but if authenticity matters to you then this seam-type is not appropriate.

The first thing to do is get yourself a video and, possibly, a decent bottle of wine. It is technically possible to sew without these, but it's definately not recommended. I'm also told it's possible to sew without having to evict a cat from the fabric, but I don't believe that either...

Ahem. Once you're settled comfortably you need to start hemming. See here for a blow by blow account of how to do this. You need to hem the two long sides of the body piece and all four sides of both underarm squares. You'll also need to hem both length sides and the shoulder side of the sleeves which, unless you have very wide sleeves and very short arms, should mean one short and two long sides. That's all the lines in red marked in the diagram at the top of the page. It's going to take some time, but you'll be a lot better at hemming by the end of it.

It's important that all the hems on each piece are folded the same way, so they all end up on the inside of the garment when you're done. Yup, guess who learnt this the hard way?

Putting on the sleeves

Once you're done hemming you're ready to start joining the pieces of fabric together. Take the body piece and fold it in half lengthways. Put a pin in a long side at that fold - that's to mark half way down the length.

Find the half way point on the shoulder side (the short side) on the sleeve piece. Lining up the two pins, pin the sleeve to the body right sides together. Now you need to sew those two pieces together, using either whip stitch (shown at the bottom of this page) or ladder stitch. It should end up looking something like the picture to the left.

This stage, by the way, is where the Elizabethan Costume Page makes one of it's machine sewing short-cuts. It divides that square under-arm gore into two triangles to make it easier to sew in by machine.

Sewing the sleeves

Next, sew up the seam that runs along the bottom of the sleeve. If you'd like a cuff you'll need to stop this seam three inches or so from the wrist end of the sleeve. If you're planning on not having a cuff and just hemming the wrist opening then whipstitch this seam to the very end. Don't hem the sleeve end yet. You may find the two sides don't quite match up - don't worry.

The side gores

Note for men: Most of this stage doesn't apply to you. Make the T-shape neck-cut as described below, then skip onto your next note.

This next stage is a little tricky to explain in words, and this section will be enhanced with photos when I or one of my friends gets a shift to this stage. Until then I'll do my best and, if it doesn't make sense outside my head, I'd be really grateful if you could let me know.

In order to get any further you're going to need to be able to try the shift on. Right now you can't: there's fabric where your head needs to go. So the first task is to make a head-hole. Very carefully, cut a T-shape with the horizontal of the T running along the center of what will be the shoulder line of the shift, and the vertical running vertically down the midline of the shift front. This T should be cut as small as you possibly can and still get the thing over your head, because you're going to have to replace it with what will be the proper neck-line. I'd suggest making the cuts no more than four inches long initially then gradually lengthening them until the shift will just slip over your head. In the diagram to the right I've changed the blue cross to show the T-shape. You should NOT make an equivalent vertical cut down what will be the back of the shift.

Go and slip the shift on, find a mirror and admire yourself. Not very decent, is it? The purpose of the underarm gores is two-fold. Firstly, they allow the body of the shift to widen to allow for the hips. Secondly, they allow it to flare further so you can take a full stride. A shift without those side gores acts a bit like a hobble skirt and is a right nuisance. I know, I've made one.

You have to decide the length and width of those triangles. To get the length, hold the sides of the body together and decide where you want the flare to start. That'll depend on your body length and how much larger your hips are than your chest. Put a pin in that point to mark it; the length from there to the shift end is how long those triangles need to be.

To gauge their length, try taking a stride. Look down at the bottom of the shift and see how much extra you need. That's the width of the bottom of the triangular gore.

You'll also need to hem the thing. That can be done now, later, or - like some women on the manor - not at all. After all by the time the guy can see you haven't done the hem he's close enough that he shouldn't be thinking about the shift...

Put it back on, admire yourself, and heave a huge sigh of relief. The bulk of the work is done.

Note for men: Sew the sides of the shirt together down to about hip height in exactly the same way you've joined the other pieces. You'll be left with a slit from there to the bottom of the shirt. That's correct: it gives you space to move in. Hem the raw edges at the bottom of the shirt, then move onto collar and cuffs. You're nearly done.