Yoke extends into front

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1

Hi!

While still on my first Simon shirt, I noticed that one of my off-the-shelf (yet from a small company) shirts has a yoke that does not end on the shoulder top, but extends over the shoulder into the front a bit. Maybe 4cm or so. I never noticed before, but now after looking at shirt patterns and doing sewing, the view adapts… Anyway, I thought this is a good idea to avoid a seam on the shoulder, to avoid rubbing when carrying a bag or rucksack or something.

Looking at the Simon pattern printout, I think it is easy to modify the printout and cut off a piece from the fronts at the shoulder and attach those left and right pieces instead to the yoke at the top. Then re-add seam allowance etc, to make it complete again.

Will this result in a good shirt shape when it is done this simply by just transferring a piece from one part to another? The grain direction of the yoke is, of course, different from the grain direction of the fronts, so maybe it will deform in weird ways. If it is a problem, it could be mitigated by turning the yoke relative to the grain direction, which will require a split yoke.

Anyway, do you think this is worth a try? If yes, it could also be another option in the Simon pattern, which clearly lacks options… :slight_smile:

Happy to hear your opinions!

**Henrik

2

As you already discovered, shifting the seam forward is often used with shirts. The grain direction of shirting fabric doesn’t distort the shirt.

slika
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(Again, this is an insert from D. P. Coffin’s book about shirtmaking — I highly recommend it!)

As you described, shifting the seam forward is very simple; the only thing to take care of is ensuring the curves of the collar and sleeve openings remain smooth.
There is an option with Simon, but bear in mind that you need to shift both the shoulder and the collar.

slika
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2 Likes
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I don’t see why you can’t generate the pattern on paper, then transfer a short amount from the front panel to the yoke, before transferring to fabric to move the seam forward a short amount.

4

Ah, thanks, interesting! I had totally missed those options.

Oh, and since the day before yesterday, I am a proud owner of a copy of Coffin’s shirtmaking book. :slight_smile: