I am a great fan of Style Arc patterns and the Maggie Shirt is just as good as everything else I have made.
I ordered the pattern in a Size 12 for my youngest daughter but did not get to making it up before summer ended. At present I am making a collection of garments for the eldest daughter and had extra fabric left over from the Ottobre Shirt and cut the remainder out as the Maggie Shirt.
The pattern is very simple with dolman sleeves and a fly front. It was this fly front that gave me so much trouble. Style Arc instructions are more a list of the order to sew and I normally look them over then disregard but this tab front needed lots more. While separate left and right fronts are cut it was very difficult to visualise how it went together to create the concealed button band (first you have to realise that the buttons were concealed!). Luckily the wonderful ladies over at Stitchers Guild had the answer. This tutorial from the blog toile & trouble completely explained the process (now printed out and filed with the pattern) and I was able to redo the front with success.
Once the front was completed it was a breeze to finish the rest of the shirt. It has a yoke that extends into the sleeve and an inverted pleat at the centre back which gives a nice look as well as providing more room in the back. Unfortunately the fabric is not ideal for this style - a very fluid polyester which sticks to the body and crackles with static very quickly as you can see in the final photo.
Another nice feature of the shirt is the length and the shaped hem; it is very flattering and I am considering getting this in my size.
I will be making this again in time for next summer and think I will try it in a cool cotton with contrasting collar and yoke.
