Bibs for Bib Shirts + more

[Delmonico]

Bib shirts are popular because they look good, are very historically correct and besides that John Wayne wore them a lot.

If you make your own shirts, the bibs on a bib shirt are one of the easiest part of a pattern to modify to fit your own taste.  In fact and 4 button placket shirt with out gathered sleeves or front piece can be made as a bib shirt.

The easiest way to do this is to take a large piece of paper and fold it in half.  I usually make the rest of the shirt first so I can use it to see how it looks and fits.  You then cut the paper with your sissiors away from the fold, kind of like when you made Valintine hearts for Mom to hang on the ice box.  Unfold the paper and lay it out on the front of the shirt, does it look like what you had in mind?

If so cut two pieces out of the material, interface it and sew your seam, leaving enough room to turn it inside out.  Blind stitch the rest of the seam and sew a seam all the way around the bib about 3/8-5/8 in and a second one about an inch in.  Put your button holes where desired inside the seams and sew the buttons on the shirt.  With out the thicker material of the placket it is a good idea toe sew the outside buttons to a small buttons on the inside.  This will keep the main button from pulling through the 1 layer of material.

I make a lot of heavy quilts using flannel shirts and save the buttons from them to use for this, but any cheap 3/8-1/2 button will work fine for this.

[Silver Creek Slim]

That's great, Del. Ya might see me wearin' a lot of bib shirts, now. 

Slim

[Delmonico]

Another nice touch on a bib shirt is to embroider the bib.  This dates back to the elite Cavary units in the Napolionic Wars and to Fire Companies in the US by at least the 1830's.  In fact one story is this shirt was developed to put unit symbols on.

The embroider bib shows up enough in period photos to warrant one if desired.  If you ever get a chance to look at a clear copy of the "UNTOUCHED" Billy the Kid photo, he has a dragon on his bib shirt.

The embroidery can be put on before the bib is sewn or after.  I have one with Purple Cone flowers on the Bib, my favorite flower in the whole world and a common prairie wild flower with medicinal roots (pun unintended) dating back to the Natives and in more comon use today under the taxinomical name, echinacha (sp will be corrected)

Piping on the collar, bib and cuffs will add to the classy look of one of these shirts  if that look is desired.

A slanted pocket that will admit the left hand and is set about the bottom of the rib cage and about under the brace if worn was a popular option with George Custer among others.  Of course pip the pocket if piping is put on the rest of the shirt.

If one wants a very ecentric look a fringed, beaded buckskin version is not unknown, was worn by none other than TR among others.

[Wymore Wrangler]

I really like the bib shirt ya made Terry Lane, maybe you should set up a custom shop also...

[Delmonico]

I really liked that shirt, but I needed gas and groceries to go to Rock Creek.

Look sometime, that one is hand sewn.   the buttons really make that shirt.  When they chose it for a Buffalow Bill shoot I was right proud.

[Free Hand]

Del
thanks for the info. I've always liked the look of those bib shirt; they seem (no pun intended) to me to really say "old west" to me.

FH