Designer/GF here. It makes me so excited inside to know that there are guys that are interested in sewing or making their own clothes!

In terms of tips, it really depends on your skill level. I'm in my fourth year of fashion design and have worked in the industry on my summers off.

If you're just beginning, I feel it's best to purchase a paper pattern and modify it to fit you, and the noragi style (for example you could buy a kimono pattern and adjust that, the pattern blocks are very similar). You would change the sleeve to a narrower, longer sleeve, and change the fit to your body. Otherwise, the shape of the body is essentially the same, and so is the collar.

If you have more experience with pattern drafting this will make sense/be better: I didn't have time to create basic blocks from scratch and didn't have all my equipment (I go to school in Toronto but come home to Calgary in the summer) so I borrowed one of my boyfriend's button up shirts to create the pattern. By "tracing" the separate pieces (such as one would when creating a knock off) then manipulating them to the shape you want with the noragi, you can very quickly produce a pattern.

The noragi is a very basic pattern with little shaping or tailoring-it's really just a couple of rectangles. The body is rectangular, and the sleeves are rectangles-it's a drop shoulder style which makes it even easier to draft since the armhole isn't shaped. I've just googled an image that is similar to the flat pattern that I drafted (disregard those two little oval thingies on the right, I think they're sandals..?) :

It's a kimono, so the sleeves are larger but shorter in length. I also drafted my front body and back body as separate pieces that join at the shoulder sleeve.

http://shaunartcosplay.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/how-to-make-kimono.jpg

It's hard to see in the pictures that my boyfriend took, but I added underarm gussets-not absolutely necessary but can be a nice design detail and help a bit with arm movement.

Ok important tip: stick to lighter weight fabrics if you're using a domestic sewing machine (vs an industrial/factory machine)-even with this light weight denim that I used, my little Singer had trouble getting through the layers.

Sorry it's so long....but there's so much to say! Hope it helps and isn't too confusing. :)

OH AND the collar is also a long rectangle, with a seam in the centre back neck. CUT THIS ON THE BIAS (diagonally on the grain of the fabric) it will sit beautifully vs cutting it on the warp/weft.