Patterns for men's garb

[Prof. John Bull]

Garbers,

Can anyone suggest some readily available patterns for men's garb?  So far I've found Simplicity 4059, Butterick B4574, and a few good things at AlterYear$.

I hope I'll still be allowed to be a manly man if I sew my own garb.

[isabelladangelo]

Is there a specific look you are going for? There is a big difference between 15th c German and 16th c Elizabethan English.  Most guys I know happen to really like the basic t-tunic and pants look which is very easy to make into a decent Norse outfit depending on how early you want to go...

[LordPaulet]

Margos Patterns if you are looking for anything in the noble area. 

~L/P

[Prof. John Bull]

Elizabethan England, for certain, looking for gentleman's clothes mainly and also minor nobles.

[Lady Rosalind]

Definitely Margo Anderson...

The savings in time (for me anyway) definitely is worth it. The gentlemen's patterns are great for what you want.

[gem]

Here's what they're talking about, Prof:

http://www.margospatterns.com/Products/ElizGntlmnWrdb.html

Prepare yourself; if you've been used to spending 99 cents on Big 3 patterns, there will be a little sticker shock. But you get ALL sizes in one envelope, detailed fitting instructions, and a ~100-page manual that explains everything step-by-step and includes a lot of historical information.

Another good resource is the book THE TUDOR TAILOR.

[Master James]

Prof John no you are not going to lose your man card for sewing.  At least not around here anyway.    I have two sewing machines because the wife got tired of losing time on her's!  As far as Margo's patterns, you will find that for the most part they run a little big but once you figure out the proper size, they are really nice and provide all kinds of options.  The slops are really hard to understand how they go together because the directions are very confusing.  If you decide to go with them and get lost, post here and I can help you out assuming you go with the Margo Anderson patterns.

Also, to save the patterns and make them last longer since they are so darned expensive, I ironed a light weight facing onto them to give some more strength than the simple tissue paper.  It lets them hold up really well.  Good sewing and welcome to the club!

[Tripletap]

Sewing can be manly, just think of the sewing machine like a power-tool, a drill press or something, and scissors are like knives.

[Prof. John Bull]

Thanks.  Yes, there was some sticker shock there but then again I want a sewing project, not a design project, and there's a difference.

One of the first disagreements I had with my stbx was when she got a sewing machine and I made a little bag with a zipper using some scraps of upholstery fabric.  I don't think she considered it consistent with the gender roles she wanted.  Hopefully with some moral support from the forum I won't need to see a pshrink about it.:-)

[Tripletap]

A sewing machine needle is like a Full-Auto Machine Gun, but instead of bullets, it spits out thread.

[Lady Kathleen of Olmsted]

Fantasy Fashions has  nice seperate Doublet and Slops pattern. The Slops pattern can also be used for Manly Breeches.

Doublet Pattern...http://www.patternsoftime.com/proddetail.asp?prod=FF03

Paned Slops, Breeches Pattern...http://www.patternsoftime.com/proddetail.asp?prod=FF04

Hope this helps. I use these patterns a lot as well as margo Anderson's patterns

[Kate XXXXXX]

Thanks.  Yes, there was some sticker shock there but then again I want a sewing project, not a design project, and there's a difference.

One of the first disagreements I had with my stbx was when she got a sewing machine and I made a little bag with a zipper using some scraps of upholstery fabric.  I don't think she considered it consistent with the gender roles she wanted.  Hopefully with some moral support from the forum I won't need to see a pshrink about it.:-)

My FiL made all his own trousers for years.  Plenty of men here sew, and I know one well married Oz who makes a living designing and making ladies swimsuits!

And there are always blokes like Kenneth King and Kaffe Fasset and David Page Coffin...  And all those West End Tailors!

[Lady L]

I also have the Fantasy Fashions doublet pattern and it's very nice. Easy to use, turns out looking very good.
Both my sons sew, they are also welders, fix old cars and like fishing.

[Tripletap]

It seems manly to know you could provide your family with shirts for their backs, even without alot of money.

[Imestra]

The very mostest manly men are those who fear not the reprisal of the un-enlightened.
In other words, gender roles are stupid. 
Talent in any form is HOT!

[LordPaulet]

Another note about the Slops in Margos Patterns...Most likely you will need to lengthen the top by 2~3 inches.  I have found in most of my crouch measurements that I take, I end up having to lengthen her slops by about 2 to 3 inches.  It seems they were designed to sit on the hip but the doublet only goes to the waist and I have this anal retentive thing about shirts poking out between doublet and slops

[Lady Rosalind]

Thanks for the tip about the slops, Lord Paulet! I have to make a set for my ever-growing 16yo, and am sick of his shirt always working its way between the doublet (which suddenly became 4 inches too short over the winter), and his current pants (cut off black scrub pants, because they were cheap, but now it's hard to find the drawstring ones, so we need real pants).

Prof: as another poster said, talent is admired, no matter what! Do what makes you happy! And share your results with us!

[DonaCatalina]

also the Costume Connection patterns, Elizabethan Gentleman and Early Tudor Gentleman.

[DonaCatalina]

Another note about the Slops in Margos Patterns...Most likely you will need to lengthen the top by 2~3 inches.  I have found in most of my crouch measurements that I take, I end up having to lengthen her slops by about 2 to 3 inches.  It seems they were designed to sit on the hip but the doublet only goes to the waist and I have this anal retentive thing about shirts poking out between doublet and slops

Good point Lord Paulet.
I found that I had to do the same with his lordship's slops on Margo's patterns as well as others. Measure, measure and measure again.

[Goody]

For the price Simplicity 4059 is good!! You should join MNRF Fest Friends. Plenty of men in the group have their own machines!

[Master James]

Lord Paulet is so right!  I fix that by several methods.  First, I do lengthen the crotch as he suggested.  Second I change up the waistband from a very modest 1-2 inches to a full 4 inches wide and finally, I lengthen the doublet a bit.  Now the lengthening of the doublet is not because the pattern is wrong, its just that I have a very long body so in order to get it to fit right I have lengthen it by about 2 inches as well.  As with many patterns, tailoring them to your own body type takes a bit of fiddling so always do mocks before you start cutting the good fabric! 

[Cilean]

My best advice for you is to pick up Margo's Anderson's Gentlemen's Patterns
www.margospatterns.com

Tudor Tailor has some a little bit but they are pricey:
www.tudortailor.com

Margo has a ton of information held with her patterns that really make the experience easy plus she has a yahoo group that you can ask questions.  Many of the people are very knowledgable.

Cilean