Chester
A crisp boys' shirt with a mandarin collar stand, front button placket, a patch pocket, and cuffed sleeves finished with a placket. Tailored for a smart, everyday fit.
A sharp shirt for every day
A classic boys' shirt with a neat stand collar, a button-front placket, and a patch pocket on the chest. Long sleeves finish with a placket and buttoned cuff.
Cut from natural shirt fabrics — cotton, thin jeans, or linen — this pattern is sized for ages 4 to 14.
What you'll need
Suggested fabrics
We recommend natural shirt fabrics — cotton, thin jeans, or linen.
It's best to use a non-stretchable fabric, or one with only a slight stretch.
Also needed
- Main fabric — 0.64–1.20 m (25.2–47.24"), length by size, see table below
- Interfacing — 0.5 m (19.7")
- Buttons — 8 pcs
- Seam allowances of 1 cm (0.39") are already included on every pattern piece
For fabric width 1.4 m (55.1")
| Sizes | 4 yrs | 5 yrs | 6 yrs | 7 yrs | 8 yrs | 9 yrsMOST PICKED | 10 yrs | 11 yrs | 12 yrs | 13 yrs | 14 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Height | 104 cm | 110 cm | 116 cm | 122 cm | 128 cm | 134 cm | 140 cm | 146 cm | 152 cm | 158 cm | 164 cm |
| Main fabric | 0.64 m 25.2" |
0.69 m 27.17" |
0.74 m 29.13" |
0.79 m 31.1" |
0.85 m 33.46" |
0.91 m 35.83" |
0.97 m 38.19" |
1.03 m 40.55" |
1.09 m 42.91" |
1.15 m 45.27" |
1.20 m 47.24" |
Pattern pieces already include seam allowances. When buying fabric, add a 5–10% margin in case of shrinkage.
Specification
| Pattern piece | Qty |
|---|---|
| Main fabric | |
| 1 — Back yoke (double) | 2 |
| 2 — Back | 1 |
| 3 — Front | 2 |
| 4 — Sleeve | 2 |
| 5 — Cuff | 2 |
| 6 — Sleeve placket | 2 |
| 7 — Sleeve placket binding | 2 |
| 8 — Pocket | 1 |
| 9 — Collar stand | 2 |
| 10 — Front placket | 2 |
| Support pattern | |
| 11 — Chalk, mark loops and buttons, size 104–140 | 1 |
| 12 — Chalk, mark loops and buttons, size 146–164 | 1 |
Main fabric, width 1.4 m (55.1")
Sewing instructions
Sleeve plackets
8 steps- 1
Iron the interfacing to the collar, cuffs, front plackets, and sleeve placket binding pieces. Press the allowances on the placket and the sleeve slit edging.
- 2
Mark the cut line with chalk on the wrong side of each sleeve.
- 3
Pin the edging to the wrong side of the sleeve, right side to the cut line — to the line closer to the back — and stitch.
- 4
Pin the placket to the wrong side of the sleeve, right side to the cut line — to the line closer to the front — and stitch.
- 5
Slash along the line, stopping 1.5 cm (0.59") from the edge, then cut toward the corners of the frame. Turn to the right side.
- 6
Fold the edging allowances, pin, align, and stitch the edging and the triangle of the frame together. Press.
- 7
Topstitch the edging 0.1 cm (0.04") from the fold.
- 8
Fold the placket, pin it into shape, and topstitch 0.1 cm (0.04") from the edge. Press.
Patch pocket
3 steps- 1
Press the pocket allowances. Fold the top of the pocket along the fold line, then fold and pin the allowances.
- 2
Stitch the top of the pocket, turn it out, and press.
- 3
Baste the pocket allowances, mark the pocket placement on the front with chalk, and pin the pocket in place. Baste if needed, then stitch and press.
Yoke & shoulders
3 steps- 1
Pin the right side of one yoke to the right side of the back, and the right side of the other yoke to the wrong side of the back. Stitch, then fix the allowances to the upper yoke with a finishing stitch. Press.
- 2
Pin the fronts and the upper yoke to the back along the shoulder edges, right sides together. Roll up the fronts and back, cover the roll with the bottom yoke, and pin the shoulder edges. Stitch.
- 3
Turn the back and fronts to the right side and press. Topstitch 0.1 cm (0.04") from the seam.
Sleeves & side seams
4 steps- 1
Pin the sleeve into the open armhole, matching the notches — the sleeve allowance is slightly larger to allow a welt seam later. Stitch, then press the allowances onto the front and back.
- 2
Turn up the sleeve allowance by 0.5 cm (0.2") and pin, then baste. Stitch the allowance 0.5 cm (0.2") from the seam and press.
- 3
Pin the side edges of the sleeve, front, and back wrong sides together. Stitch 0.5 cm (0.2") from the edge, trim the allowances to 0.3 cm (0.12"), turn inside out, and press.
- 4
Pin the side edges of the sleeve, front, and back right sides together. Stitch 0.5 cm (0.2") from the edge, press onto the back, and fix the allowances with a finishing line.
Front placket
2 steps- 1
Press the allowance on one side of the front placket. Pin the right side of the placket to the wrong side of the front and stitch. Press the allowance onto the placket.
- 2
Press the placket in half, covering the stitching seam by 0.1 cm (0.04"), pin, and stitch.
Cuffs
3 steps- 1
Pin the pleat on the sleeve. On the cuff, press the allowance on one long side. Pin the other edge to the bottom of the sleeve, leaving 1 cm (0.39") on the cuff, and stitch. Press the allowances onto the cuff.
- 2
Pin the short edges of the cuff right sides together and stitch, stopping 1 cm (0.39") from the raw edges. Turn inside out and press.
- 3
Fold the pressed edge and pin, overlapping the line by 0.1 cm (0.04"). Stitch, then press and topstitch.
Collar & finishing
4 steps- 1
Press the lower allowance on one collar stand. Pin the stand pieces together along the upper edge up to the rounded ends and stitch. Press the allowances onto the lower stand.
- 2
Pin the lower stand to the neckline of the shirt, right sides together, matching the notches. Stitch in, then press the allowance onto the stand.
- 3
Pin the stands right sides together and stitch the rounded ends. Clip the allowances, turn inside out, and press.
- 4
Pin the pressed edge of the stand to the neckline so the upper stand overlaps the seam by 0.1 cm (0.04"). Baste, then stitch — starting from the middle of the back is easiest — laying the line on the right side into the seam. Press.