Maresan

Hi, I have a pattern that calls for gathered sleeves on a top I'm sewing. I want to insert the sleeve without gathers and wondered how alter the pattern to make it work. Any help would be appreciated.

nativetexan

Oh Nancy's Notions would know. Do you have another pattern with sleeves you could look at? I haven't done clothing in a long while but know the sleeve should fit the opening. maybe you could pin the paper pattern to the body section folding in a bit at a time. Then use that to cut your fabric or make a new pattern piece first from the adjusted one. Good luck.

Maresan

Thank you for all the good ideas which I'm going to try. Also I never thought of Nancy's Notions. Much appreciated.

madamekelly

You can also look up www.fittostitch.com She does nothing but show how to alter patterns for your self. I watch her every Saturday here.

Maresan

Thank you, never heard of this but will check it out.

riutzelj

if you haven't cut the top out yet, you can slit the pattern and overlap the top of the sleeve pattern until it will fit inside the armsyce ( arm hole) of the pattern. If you have cut it out, you can make tiny pleats to take up the extra fabric. Keep in mind that the extra may not all be a design feature, it may be needed for ease of fit as well over the upper arm. This is the reason for my preference being to use tucks, pleats or easing to keep some of that extra fabric still in the upper arm even if i don't want the poof of the gathering.
If you don't want to gather because of technical difficulties try this: run a line of gathering stitches at at 6/8" and at 1/2", the gather and stitch at the 5/8" seamline. The double gathering rows tend to control any issues with gathering in small spaces.

scarlet14

I think it would be very hard to work in all that fullness but if you try---put the sleeve against the feed dogs---they will help work in the fullness---you could also call Sewing with Nancy---I have and they are very helpful

w1613s

I am still primarily a garment sewer with experience fitting, making, repairing, and altering costumes and clothing.

After I finishing writing this I decided to inserting a comment on how I would do this before I go any farther. What I am saying is clearer if you know my bottom line suggestion before I go on. Using the good ideas of my fellow garment sewers, I would make a muslin, a sample garment. Bearing in mind the above bit that sorta answers what kind of sewing I generally do, I would absolutely make a sample garment. Muslin if you would be working with a non-stretchy fabric or something that has a close approximation of the stretch in the proposed garment.

So on to the technical stuff. Questions: 1) Who is the garment intended for: male, female; general age bracket; will use the garment how; what fabric and any other pertinent information? 2) What time of the year will the garment be worn? 2) Exactly what do you mean by gathered? Around the entire sleeve? Around part of the sleeve? If around part of the sleeve, what part of the sleeve? What will the garment wearer be doing when the garment is worn?

Story to clarify the importance of the above. There was a drum corps (120 member group of approximately 120 members - brass and percussion) that was having trouble with their uniform jackets. They were too tight across the shoulders and under the arms and upper chest when the players were marching and playing on the field. The answer turned out to be specialized gussets inserted under the sleeves of the uniform jackets. A total of about 240 gussets, more or less, for the entire corps. Yeah, a lot of ripping and inserting and sewing but the gussets did the job. The sleeves stayed sewn, the players could move and breathe, and I got real appreciation for gussets.

Make the muslin first. And let us know how it all turns out, please. Pictures?

Pat

Before

I just re-read the above and it sounds a little prune-y. Sorry, but all those questions are the ones I ask before I sew because they all have to so with the final fit of the garment. They are important because there are various kinds of ease that are designed into a garment and if they aren't considered, the garment doesn't fit right or look right or move right.

Lady Diana

Are you referring to full puffy gathered sleeves, or are you talking about the gathers that ease in a sleeve? There is a huge difference. The latter is much easier to do, especially if you are using knit.....just let us know.

Maresan

Thanks for all the comments, suggestions, advice. I'm referring to a sleeve that is puffy gathered and what I am trying to do is have no gathers. I can't figure out a way to cut the sleeve pattern down to eliminate the gathers and I've already cut out the pattern on the fabric I'm using. However, I found another pattern, an old one I had, which has a set in sleeve, no gathers, and I cut that out with some left over fabric and trying to put that in, which so far is working. I am a quilter and haven't sewn garments in years but its nice to try again. I'll keep you all posted and again, thank you.