Shetland Flannel robes

Wow, this is gorgeous fabric!  It was my inspiration for this year’s Christmas gift for all of my female relatives – flannel robes, using the Purl Bee pattern. I bought the Shetland Flannel fabric at Purl Soho – 4 yards each in colors peach tweed, pumpkin herringbone, oregano herringbone, denim tweed, and grey herringbone.

I started with size small in the peach tweed, and when that seemed REALLY small (luckily, I have an extremely petite sister to gift it to!), I moved to size medium in the pumpkin herringbone, and then up to size large for the remaining three robes.  In all three, the sizing problem I experienced was how tightly the robe fit in the underarms.  I suspect that this is because the pattern is just a series of rectangles, and since the sleeves are rectangles – instead of flaring larger at the shoulder, as most patterns do – there isn’t enough leeway left for adequate space in the underarms.  I tried to address this in the later robes by stitching the underarm section with only 1/4″ seam, but they still fit pretty tightly.

I like the detail of the french seams at the shoulder and arms, although it does add a little bulk, especially at the armholes, so I skipped it on the last two robes, to see if it would help with the underarm fit.  I think it made more of a different to use a smaller seam width, but the fit still feels a little tight to me, and unfortunately, I’m not an accomplished enough seamstress (or pattern maker / modifier) to alter the pattern to accommodate this issue.

Other than the underarm fit, I love all of the details and styling to this robe.  It’s cozy without being too heavy or warm, and I think that the flannel will get softer with each wash.  The great thing about robes is that they’re so forgiving size-wise – if the arms are a little long, you roll the sleeves, or a little short, and you call them three-quarter length  If the hem is a little long, it’s a full-length robe, if it’s a little short, it’s three-quarter length  You get the picture – as long as it fits across the back, under the arms, and can comfortably overlap and close across the front, you’ve got the “right” size!