Summer Essential - Fougére Linen Overshirt

May 3

May 3 Summer Essential - Fougère Linen Overshirt

I am loving all the basics I have been able to add to my wardrobe recently. Today, I made an oversized shirt which I know will get a lot of wear almost all year round - woot! I had the opportunity to preview the Fougère Overshirt which is a new pattern that Deer & Doe just launched and as usual, here are my honest thoughts on the pattern.

Full disclosure: Pattern & fabric allowance received in exchange for review. All thoughts are 100% mine.

Pattern: Fougère Shirt by Deer & Doe Patterns which is described as an overshirt, perfect for light or medium weight fabrics with a fluid drape. Version A is a long shirt with a curved hem and Version B is a cropped shirt with an elasticized hem. Both versions feature a three-part sleeve.

Size range: Available in sizes 34 to 60 (i.e. 31” to 57” bust). I believe the ranges are sold sizes 34 to 40 and 46 to 60.

Fabric used: I used a linen viscose silky noil fabric from The Fabric Club Canada, which has the yummiest drape and I can 100% recommend it.

My body measurements: bust 41”, waist 34.5”, hips 44.5”

Size made: I made a size 44 (Version A - long shirt). Although the pattern put me in size 46 based on my measurements, I chose to size down because I knew an oversized pattern like this would have a lot of ease. I think I made the right decision.

Pattern adjustments:

I tried to stick to the pattern as much as I could for this first version so I ended up making only one small adjustment.

Hem: I folded the hem facings over for a second time to hide the serged edges (personally thought it gave a cleaner finish). Next time, I’ll use bias binding to see how that works out.
Scrapbuster: Not an adjustment but in order to squeeze this shirt out of the 2 metres of fabric I cut out the back yoke in this fun leftover fabric. Love how it turned out!
Next time, I will shorten the sleeves by 1 inch to get the perfect length.

Feedback:

Overall, it was a pretty straightforward sew and I enjoyed making it. My favorite thing about this pattern is the construction of the three-part sleeve. It comes together nicely to create a vent, similar to a placket but without all that hassle. It’s brilliant and I love it!

The only part I was not a big fan of was the hemming method. The pattern comes with facings for the hem and I was quite intrigued by this but I personally think there are easier ways to still get an equally nice finish (I think it is the exposed serged ends that bother me since I ended up folding it over twice to hide that - that could be the solution).