I've been on a quest for over a year to sew all my own clothing. And I think the end is in sight!
My goal was to develop a wardrobe of simple to sew items that would work for a broad range of weather.
The final piece of the puzzle fell in place recently: the tunic.
With it as a base layer/only layer necessary in hot weather, outfits can be created for most temperatures and climates.
So the first layer is a tunic, which is just two rectangles of fabric sewn along three sides, leaving openings for the head and arms. It can be made smaller to be worn like a tshirt, or larger as a standalone garment.
The second layer is monpe farmers trousers. This pattern is a little more complicated (I will eventually have a full outline of how to make them, though there are the sources around the internet where I learned how to make them), it's the only one that requires scissors.
The third layer is a type of jacket most would probably recognize as a kimono, but all these layers have been constructed by cultures all over the globe, the patterns are incredibly simple. For this one it's all rectangles: a large one for the back, two narrower ones for the front panels, and two smaller ones for the sleeves.
By combining these layers in different configurations, and using different weights and types of fabric, an outfit can be put together to protect you from whatever weather you're dealing with.
I've made all these items myself, and all sewn by hand. The techniques needed are minimal, for all but the pants, the shapes are rectangles, so good scissors aren't even necessary: just start the cut with a knife and rip the rest of the way. And it can be economical: was able to make a smaller tunic for myself out of $12 of materials and 3ish hours of hand sewing. These garments also work for all types of activity, from difficult manual labor, to leisure.
I'm writing this as an introduction, my plan over the next few months is to make guides for producing these 3 layers. The patterns are easy enough, the thing that will require some work is how to figure out sizing. I did it through trial and error, but I'm guessing there are methodologies out there somewhere that will make the process easier. If anyone has tips on that I'm all ears.
