Zip-up hoodie

Finished my first hoodie today 😎 It’s really gender neutral with a boxy fit, but I’m putting it in the menswear category because it’s a gift for my husband.

To my surprise there aren’t all that many brands making sewing patterns for men… For this zip-up hoodie I used the #wbmziggy pattern by @wardrobebymepatterns, who have a whole collection of modern men’s basics. This pattern is sized for 74cm/29” to 116cm/45.5” chest, and has a relatively slim fit. A shame it skews small – it’s awesome that it fits young teens, but I know a lot of “normal” sized men that would be the biggest available sizes in this (or not fit at all without grading it up myself). We sized up to match a RTW hoodie my husband owns, I made this in 2XL (for reference in RTW he’s between M and L).

The fabric is beautifully soft recycled sweatshirt in a burgundy colour chosen by my husband, and I used preformed ribbing. Next time I’ll use ribbing that you cut to measure instead – this worked fine but doesn’t look as nice when it’s not being worn.

I did sew the zip the wrong way, and then struggled to align it with the pockets and hem ribbing – sewing blindly with the facing meant it kept moving a few millimeters without me noticing. But my seam ripper and I are very close friends, and I managed after a few attempts! 😆 I really liked the video sew along that accompanies the pattern, it was very helpful to me.

The hoodie fits perfectly, and I’ll probably be making more when the weather gets cooler. I think it would be relatively easy to cut it in a zero/low waste way, with the drop shoulder sleeves and boxy style – I think the facing could be replaced with bias binding.

If you have any menswear or gender neutral pattern recommendations, please let me know in the comments!

#wardrobebyme #diyhoodie #sewingformen #menssewingpatterns #wbmziggyzipperhoodie #wbmziggyhoodie