oh happy day! cheap shirts at target. AND, detailed instructions on converting shirts.

Would you like an inexpensive, easily converted, cotton/stretch, machine-washable, short-sleeve shirt? That looks like a normal shirt when you take the collar off, no less?
Like, say, this?

Ok, it does have poofiness at the shoulders. Get over it. This is a great investment!

Here's how to do it.

Go get this shirt at Target: The Mossimo Pintuck Henley. It was $12.99 last week, but this week I can't find it on the website, so you better hustle. Buy several. It's got a nice band/mandarin collar style. Hurry.




Bring it home. Sew a button on the outside back of the neck, just where there's a buttonhole on your 'official' clergy shirts. See this photo below. This is a good way to use up small buttons. No one's going to notice it, so use colors or whatever you've got on hand.











Got that? Good. Now sew a button on the INSIDE of the FRONT of the collar, as high up as you can get it, just above where the outside-facing top button is (see photo below). I'd recommend using very small BLACK buttons. That way, when you wear the shirt as a normal shirt (sans white plastic collar), the button is less noticeable. Capiche?

In this shirt, a size SMALL takes a 14.5" collar.


Those are the best instructions I can give about converting shirts in general. You can use these same instructions to convert a basic button-up shirt, as long as you rip out the fold-down part of the collar and sew the seam back up.

The real trick is to put that front button as high up on the neck as you can get it; normal (non-clergy) shirts just aren't built to ride that high around one's neck, and for it to look presentable (and to avoid making the plastic collar into weird shapes) it's best to accommodate it with higher button placement.

Very important technical details.

Tailor girl

Thus far I have remained in the getting-shirts-made camp, mostly because the non placket covered buttons paired with a collar drive me crazy visually. Unfortunately, our tailor is not a young man (Who knows how long he'll remain with us??? Panic!) and the shirts run about $120-$130.

MFD introduced us to the world of tailoring and it worked something like this:

1. Find a tailor or shirtmaker in your area (MFD already had a connection, fortunately.)
2. Convince said tailor there is a market for making women's clergy shirts that look like a woman's shirt.
3. Bring in your favorite non-clergy shirt. (In this case it was a Banana Republic blouse, I think.)
4. The tailor will make a pattern based on this shirt. After you work out the kinks (My first was a bit short. . .no need for the parish to see my belly every time I raise my hands), you can call the tailor and have him make a particular color from afar. (Important in our case, since our fabulous tailor is the chattiest man alive.)
5. After you receive your fabulous shirts, show them to all your clergy girlfriends so they can storm down the tailor's door.