Sewing in a sleeve can seem nearly impossible without the right technique and patterns. In the following article you can find out more about sewing in different types of sleeves and how they should look like and why. Follow our sleeve sewing instructions for an easy sewing process.
Content
- Different types of sleeve patterns
- How to sew a set-in sleeve
- How to sew a two-piece sleeve
- How to sew a sleeve on a jersey shirt
- How to sew a raglan sleeve
Different types of sleeve patterns
To understand your sleeve pattern, it is important to know the different types of sleeve caps. For a more casual or oversized fit, you will have a flattened sleeve cap, which does not have to fit perfectly to the body. That’s why they have just a tiny amount of fullness, or no fullness at all (See graphic 1.). Those are mainly used for leisure wear and loose fits.
The higher the sleeve cap, the tighter the sleeve will fit to your arm. High sleeve caps are therefore mainly used for formal wear such as fitted blazers and dresses (See graphic 3.).
How to sew a set-in sleeve
Sewing a sleeve into your garment can be tricky and confusing for beginners. That’s why we made a “step-by-step set-in sleeve sewing instruction” for you to follow.
The first and most important step is to check if your sleeve patterns are prepared correctly. To make sure your sleeve will have the right fit, the pattern should have a front armhole notch, a central notch for the shoulder, and a back armhole notch. In our example we are going to show you how to sew a sleeve on a dress. The same method can be used for every other set-in sleeve, for example when using a balloon sleeve pattern. Scroll further down to find other types of sleeve sewing instructions if your sleeve pattern pieces look different.
How to sew a sleeve on a dress
Due to the fullness, the length of the armhole will be too long to fit on the shoulder seam of the dress. The reason for the extra length is to give the shoulder enough space to move. To avoid that problem, it is a common technique to use a basting stitch to hold the sleeve in the right place.
Begin to sew the sleeve by using a longer stitch length and sewing a provisional basting stitch on the seam allowance of the sleeve cap (the part of the sleeve, that lies between the two notches). Don’t bar track this stitch as you will pull on it later to gather the sleeve. Leave the threads hanging approximately 14in (10cm) at the beginning and end.
Place the right sides of your sleeves together and pin them together to close the seam.
When your sleeve is nicely closed iron the seam allowances apart for a clean finish.
As explained earlier the sleeve contains fullness for a good fit and is thus wider than the armhole. To compensate the width, gather the sewn section evenly on the armhole by using the loose thread ends. When the sleeve has reached the same circumference as the armhole you can knot the thread ends.
Then you can insert your sleeves right sides together into the armhole and sew a seam. Here, make sure that the notches fit on top of each other and that the edges are exactly pinned together. Note: Make sure that the front of the sleeve (one notch) is also sewn to the front of the top and the back sleeve (two notches) is sewn into the back.
Iron the seam allowances flat afterwards and turn around your garment to check out the result.
Check out this example for a dress sleeve pattern.
How to sew a two-piece sleeve
The sleeve type you are choosing depends on the style of your garment. If you are aiming for a more advanced fitted look, we suggest you use a two-piece sleeve. These types of sleeves are usually found on formal clothing such as blazers, button-up shirts or sheath dresses.
Follow our two-piece sleeve sewing instruction to create a perfect fit. In our example we will show you how to sew a two-piece sleeve into a shirt, but you can use that method on other garments as well.
How to sew a two-piece sleeve into a shirt
First, you should make sure your sleeve pattern is ready to go. On the left you can see how a two-piece sleeve looks like.
As the name suggests, you should have two pattern pieces for your two-piece sleeve construction. The larger piece will later form the upper part of the sleeve and the smaller piece will form the lower part of the sleeve.
Additionally, the pattern should have a front armhole notch, a central notch for the shoulder, and a back armhole notch. If you want a slit at the bottom of the sleeve, it should be marked with the correct length.
Begin with taking the second sleeve pattern piece and pin the long, right sides together. After that you can close them up to the hem.
Iron the seam allowances apart afterwards.
Then sew on the sleeve cap with a straight stitch with a stitch length of 5.0 and a seam allowance of 3/16in (0.5cm). Don’t lock the beginning and end, instead let the ends of the thread hang 4in (10cm) after the beginning and end. That will help you to adjust the fullness later.
The next step is to place the sleeves right sides together, then pin the sleeve sides together and close it up to the hem.
Iron the seam allowances apart afterwards.
The sleeve has fullness for a good fit and is therefore wider than the armhole. Gather the sewn section on the sleeve head evenly using the loose ends of the thread. When the sleeve has reached the same circumference as the armhole, you can knot the thread ends.
After knotting the threats, you can pin the sleeves right sides together into the armhole and sew. Make sure that the notches fit together and that the seams are pinned exactly together. Be careful to make sure that the front of the sleeve (one notch) is also sewn to the front of the bodice and the back sleeve (two notches) to the back. Here you can find an example for a long sleeve blouse sewing pattern.
How to sew sleeves on a shirt
In the following jersey sleeve instruction, you will learn how a jersey sleeve looks like and how to sew your jersey pattern the correct way. Jersey knits are a popular choice for T-shirts because they are stretchy, soft and comfortable. However, they can be tricky to work with. Here are a few things to make it easier for you.
- Sewing with a ballpoint needle will prevent the fabric from puckering.
- Sewing with a stretch stitch, which is designed to move with the fabric.
- It is important to not overstretch the fabric, to avoid having a wavy seam.
- Always press your seams to let your seams set.
We will now give you a step-by-step instruction how to sew a sleeve into a jersey T-shirt. This method can be used on different types of jersey sleeve patterns, for example when sewing long sleeves or using dress sleeve patterns.
For the following instruction, we use images from the DIY fashion label JULIANA MARTEJEVS. Find the whole tutorial on how to sew a jersey oversized t-shirt on the JULIANA MARTEJEVS YouTube channel.
The first step is to fold the sleeve in the middle and pin the sleeve seam right sides together. Now you can close the sleeve seam. Iron seam allowances afterwards, so that they lie flat. Then press the seam allowances open, turn the top over and iron over the seam allowance on the right side of the fabric. That will make sure your garment is going to sit right.
Then, pin the sleeves and the shirts right sides together on the armhole. It is important to make sure that the seam of the sleeve is pinned to the side seam of the shirt and that the seam allowances are apart. Keep in mind that the back part of the sleeve is pinned into the back part and the front part of the sleeve is pinned into the front piece. You can recognize this by your notches!
Sew the sleeve into the armhole. Important: The sleeve has extra width. This means that the length is slightly longer than the length of the armhole. Therefore, when sewing, stretch slightly on the layer of the sleeve so that the lengths are the same and can be sewn on top of each other. If your sleeve is very overlapping, you can also sew on the section of the arm cap first and then close the side seam in one go.
Here you can find an example for an Oversized T-shirt sewing pattern and a women’s short sleeve shirt pattern.
How to sew a raglan sleeve
Guide yourself along the following “raglan sleeve sewing instruction” for a perfect sewed raglan sleeve. For other instructions such as “how to set in a sleeve construction” or “set in a two-piece pattern sleeve construction” look further up in this article.
The raglan sleeve is a sleeve type which is set into the garment at the shoulder rather than at the armhole. That creates a nice, continuous line from the shoulder to the wrist. It allows the shoulder section to move freely and is therefore often used in lounge- and sportswear.
Sewing a raglan sleeve can be tricky, but we are here to help with our “Raglan sleeve sewing instruction” you will be able to learn how a raglan sleeve looks like and what you need to consider when sewing a raglan sleeve.
This is how the raglan sleeve pattern should look like:
We will now give you a step-by-step instruction how to sew a raglan sleeve into a sweater. We use images from the DIY fashion label JULIANA MARTEJEVS. Find the whole Tutorial on how to sew a raglan sweater on the JULIANA MARTEJEVS YouTube channel.
This method can be used on different kind of garments as well.
Firstly, place the two sleeve pieces right sides together and pin the long side of the pattern pieces together. Then you can sew the pinned sections together. Press the seam allowances flat open afterwards.
Fold the sleeve in half right sides together now and pin to the short side of the sleeve. Now, you can sew the pinned section together. Iron the seam allowances apart, then iron over the right side of the sleeve as well.
Then, pin the sleeve to the armhole, right sides together. Be careful to make the side seams meet each other exactly.
After that sew the pinned section together. The seam allowances should be laying apart when sewing over it. Lastly, you should press the seam allowances open and you’re ready to go.
Here you can find a good example for an raglan sweater sewing pattern.
Have fun sewing your own perfect sleeves!