POET 7
Ahead of August 8th 2025 and to celebrate 7 years since creating the Poet Shirt block, Holly spent some time reimagining the shirt in seven different ways.
Below are some rough thoughts Holly had on the making process ~
A Reversible and Patchworked, Padded Poet Jacket. A labour of love. Adapted from the size A block. A long time coming, an idea for years. Something similar before, smaller scale coasters and scrunchies.
Offcuts from previous projects were pressed, and cut into rectangular shapes then patchworked together roughly in shape to match the Poet’s front, back and side pattern pieces. Next the wadding was stitched and quilted down.
Drawing freehanded shapes; both curves, and angular. Masculine and feminine. With squiggles and words, guided by the patchwork, the machine, my hands.
Created organically from colour palette, shape, and line. Worlds within worlds. A piece to admire.
Made of a sweet pink striped Oxford shirting, designer surplus. Size AA with body and sleeves cut to a Length 1. Soft curved hem with internal binding. I thought of my mum as I made this one. The colour of pink I think will work well with lots of other colours in HB Wardrobes too. I collected a few of this tone during one period of time.
A Poet Shirt in navy poplin. Matching Jimmy Pants which became a companion piece for all seven Poets, but was made with this one in mind. I used a slime top thread so that the wearer can follow it along the inside of the garment. I made it show on the outside sometimes, on purpose. Taking a moment to pause. I really enjoyed admiring this as it came together.
I wanted each of the seven Poet's I made be connected to each other in some way. Whether that was a colour of thread, or a button, or a hem detail. A piece of work, continuous, evolving.
Padded Poet Jacket made of Archive cotton seersucker in Black with LIMIT choc stripe cotton lining. Adapted from the size A block but cut wider to allow for layers to be worn under. I wear my own special version of this for inside / outside / always.
Squiggles I sewed on freely as my mind wandered and my machine and sore wrists and hands felt like it. There’s a POET and HB ARCHIVE written and hidden within 〰️
I’ve been wanting to make this Padded jacket for years and am often asked if I will do something like it. Thrilled to have finally set aside the space and time to think / commit / play and get out of my brain, into the world.
Cream seersucker with Cinnamon contrast buttons and external binding at hem. Cut like the tuxedo hem with French seams at the side. I used my own original Tux shirt as a guide for cutting. Inspired by a memory of matching shirts my sister and I got when we visited Edinburgh as children. Mine had green velvet as contrast on a white shirt, and Laura’s had red. I made two Poet’s at the same time, choosing later which one I would keep and wear for my oldest friends’ wedding. I chose the periwinkle, and you can choose the cinnamon.
Denim Poet Jacket. Sort of traditional yet also reimagined. Made from designer surplus 100% cotton, a denim with a patchwork looking weave. Once washed the fabric becomes textured like a seersucker, then smooths out when pressing. An incredible texture that I really enjoyed working with, learning with my hands and sewing machine the characteristics as I went.
I tried a new button hole technique by creating a split seam placket, messing up a few times to try and figure out how it would work. There were similar finishing methods as I do for the Harvey’s. I changed mind on the length, cut it off, then used the offcuts to create a band at the hem. Each pattern piece was laid and cut so that the checks didn’t match, enough at least to make sure it wasn’t too symmetrical, although the back yoke is perfectly matched. The right amount of rough around the edges, ya know.
The collar was cut from a falling apart pattern piece I made, tracing from a friend's second hand shirt years ago. The collar pattern I loose every so often, then find again in old note books. My friend's shirt was made of a green stripe cotton, he says now it's long gone. But I still think about it often.
I couldn’t choose between buttons and in the end it turned out I didn’t have to. Shell and covered denim were used because that’s all I had. A joy and also a lot of patience to make this piece, it tired me out !!! But luckily, I really like the final result.
In early 2020 after a few years of shifting length /collar/ hem/ details I finally standardised the Poet’s pattern onto card, size graded and made some shirts in what is now called Length 1.
I sewed two from a blue stripe designer surplus. One ended up belonging to Zoe and the beginning i think of imagery for HB today. The other ended up with one of my muses, which I still can’t really believe.
Once this fabric was gone, I found a cobalt striped cotton and included them in my first Pop Up on Nicholson Street in November 2021.
A couple years later and I made friends with Sasha at a collage club, turns out she'd bought one from that Pop Up and now I am very lucky that she's become one of my closest friends! She took these photos, let us take some of her and grew the garden we are playing in.
Made from a heavier weight cotton, and the end of a small cut I had left over from a LIMIT pre order earlier this year. I cut the shirt’s hem length like the Bowling Shirt, straight with a split at side seam. I kept the sleeves full length. Buttons are white poplin like my own Tuxedo Hem.
The final puzzle piece for the Poet's 7th birthday, a celebration of blue stripes, memories and friendship.
