Tailored Sleeve Draft

Drafting A Tailored Sleeve.

48). As a pattern cutter with fifty years experience, I am not  a fan of pattern drafting by system or formula, although I make an exception for sleeve drafts.

Drafting a sleeve is far easier than draping one, generally more accurate than creating one by eye, and easier than draping one on the stand.

A professional pattern cutter will usually create patterns for just one size – Commonly 40” for men and size 12 for women. And they will have an extensive library of previous patterns to reference, as well as an accurate mannequin to work with.

Home  sewers, and amateur tailoring enthusiasts will often use a drafting system, as they just enjoy the process of creating their patterns this way.

The problem with learning how to draft a tailored sleeve  is that few  drafts allow you to understand what you are doing and why. Most drafting systems are based on a formula or scale that is a mystery  to most people.

For me, It is important to understand the relationship between one measurement and another rather than just to follow a given formula.

The armhole height, width, and circumference are the most important measurements to create your sleeve.

Measurements.

Measurements required to draft a tailored sleeve are :

• Armhole Scye Circumference.
• Scye Width.
• Scye Depth.
• Armhole Height.
• Overarm Length.
• Bicep Circumference at armhole base.
• Elbow Circumference.
• Cuff Circumference.
• Total Sleeve Cap Ease.

The sleeve height is the first measurement to consider, and affects the sleeve width, depending on the amount of ease. This is the average height from the base of the armhole to the front and back shoulder.

This height is different when measured on the pattern than in situ, where it is shortened by the curve of the body. The shoulder pad depth also affects the armhole height.

Initially I want to know how much ease the sleeve head has, what is the relationship between the scye width and bicep width,  and what is the relationship between the scye depth and sleeve head height.

It is more important to understand what you are doing rather than to just be able to copy a system without understanding why you are doing it.

For beginners, when  you try to follow draft instructions the sleeve doesnt turn out quite how you expect it to, and they don’t have the experience to adjust it, or put it right.

Often sleeve drafting systems are full of jargon and strange formulae. Almost as if it were meant to be a mystery that beginners should not comprehend.

Some formulae include seam allowances in their drafts, which can confuse things even more. This is more true of tailoring drafts than pattern maker drafts. My preferred sleeve drafts do not have seam allowances included, as it adds to the confusion.

The Tailored Sleeve Shape.

An experienced  tailor or pattern cutter becomes familiar with what a sleeve shape should look like. A pattern maker will be more familiar with a given size and shape, while a tailor should be familiar with a range of shapes and sizes.  It takes years of experience to develop this familiarity.

You need to remember that sleeve and armhole shapes are totally different depending on whether your patterns have seam allowances or not. If you become familiar with how a sleeve should look with seams, you may not be so familiar without seams.

Depth Of Scye.

The depth of scye is measured from the nape of neck to the bottom of the armhole. Most ready to wear (RTW) jackets are made with a scye depth low enough to fit as many people as possible.

A bespoke jacket can be made with a higher armhole, providing for more movement and arm lift. But how do you calculate depth of scye for drafting ?

Draping A Sleeve.

For most beginners it is far easier to draft a tailored sleeve than to drape one on the stand. It takes a lot of practise to master the art of sleeve draping.

Few pattern cutters will drape a tailored sleeve from scratch, but many will adapt an existing sleeve to fit a new armhole by adjusting and modelling.

Using A French Curve.

I would suggest putting away your french curves, plastic curves, or other shaping tools  if you want to create perfect curves for your sleeve head. Shape your curves by eye instead.

The Armhole.

The flat 2D armhole on a jacket pattern is not the same as that same armhole when you place it on  a body or a dummy, as it has to curve round the contours of the upper body.

So, the scye depth on the body will be 2 cms shorter than the pattern  itself. The scye width will be narrower on the body than on the pattern, but the sleeve will have to curve round the bicep.

As with a growing number of professional pattern cutters, I like to make my initial patterns in thin paper so that I can pin the pieces together and place  on a mannequin to test the initial shape.

I mark the seam lines on my pattern, fold one edge, and pin that edge on to the corresponding seam edge.

Unlike  fabric, paper has no give, so any faults will be greatly exaggerated in the paper pattern, but you should spot any glaring faults before putting in to cloth.

You will need to pin an appropriate sized shoulder pad on the mannequin before testing the sleeve. The pad affects the height of the sleeve, and also where the base of the scye sits on the body.

The armhole height on the mannequin is shorter than the flat pattern height. If the mannequin has an arm you will also see why you need to add to the sleeve height and width in order to go round the curve of the bicep.

Commercial jacket armholes tend to be much lower than for bespoke jackets. They have to be made to fit a wide variety of builds and tastes, so the armhole is made looser and lower than needed. A higher armhole tends to give a better arm lift than a lower armhole.

Mens tailored jackets often have the shoulder seam angled  toward the back so as to make it not visible from the front. In this case it is advisable to have a notch in the true shoulder position.

This also helps with familiarising you with how the sleeve should look. The shoulder notch is an indication of how the sleeve will pitch on the body.

When you are experienced in drafting and making sleeve patterns you get to know what the shape should look like. You know where the shoulder position and notches should be for correct pitch.

Sleeve Angle.

The closer the arm is held to the body, the higher the sleeve cap will be, and the more ease will be required for the cap.

Elbow.

The elbow length  is positioned at the true waist level. The circumference is dependent on your own preference, but also affected by bicep and cuff circumferences.

The Front Scye.

The front scye does not usually have any sleeve ease. The sleeve is normally sewn in flat in this area. In most drafts the front scye of the sleeve is the same shape as the armhole, but this does not allow for any arm lift.

If you want to put more lift in the lower sleeve you will have to raise the sleeve under arm, while widening the bicep.

The Sleeve Draft.

Most sleeve drafts include the top sleeve and under sleeve are drafted on top of each other.

Most sleeve systems allow for the forearm seam to be displaced toward the back  so as to be not visible from the front. The hind arm seam is also displaced at the armhole. thist means that the front under seam has to be stretched on to the top sleeve, while the top hind arm seam has to be eased in to the under sleeve.

Armhole Scye.

In most sleeve drafts, there is no ease allowed at the front armpit. The sleeve is normally constructed to be the same shape as the armhole at the base of the armhole. This means that there is no lift allowed for. The sleeve is made for an arm that is held straight by the sides, rather than lifted at an angle.

The Sleeve Pitch.

Our arms tend to pitch slightly forward, and we tend to move them more forward than back. So, we need to pitch our sleeve pattern slightly forward too. A common fault with sleeves is that they can pitch toward the back.

Some types of sleeves are cut with an exaggerated forward pitch, especially for people who have jobs that require lifting, driving, or riding. A jockey would be an extreme example. The riding position would necessitate an exaggerated forward pitch.

The front and back pitch points dictate the pitch of the sleeve. Most sleeve drafts place the front pitch notch 2 cms up from the front gorge. The back pitch notch is generally at half the distance from nape to scye depth.

The Pivot Sleeve.

The pivot sleeve allows for extra arm lift by introducing an invisible gusset under the arm.

If you were to unpick a section of the underarm on a normal tailored sleeve about 4” wide, you will find that you can lift the underarm vertically without lifting the jacket body.

This creates a diamond wedge shaped gap that can be incorporated into the sleeve shape. The extra fabric will sit tight under the armpit.

This is because the underarm is in fact flat under the arm, and not curved as the armhole itself. But if you just try to add in a 4” wide strip below the conventional sleeve, the various angles will pull and distort the garment.

In an off the peg jacket, this gap will be higher and wider, because it is normally constructed deeper than a custom armhole.

Underarm Gusset.

Sometimes sleeves can be created with sewn in gussets to provide the same effect as  act-on gusset. In this case a a triangular or rhomboid shaped gusset is sewn into the underarm.

This is often used in alterations, where a larger range of movement is required by the wearer.

Arm Lift.

Most tailored sleeve drafts are made without any allowance for arm lift. The draft is made for an arm that is held by the side, perpendicular with the floor. A sleeve with more lift may be constructed for an arm held at an angle away from the body. The further away from the body the arm is, the less ease is required in the sleeve head.

High Cut Armholes.

Inexperienced pattern cutters can be of the opinion that if there is not enough allowance for arm lift the armhole needs to be lowered. The opposite is in fact true. Lowering the armhole leads to more restriction and less mobility.

Ready to wear suits tend to have low cut armholes in order to fit as many people as possible. A high cut armhole may seem too tight for someone used to a lower cut, but does in fact allow for greater mobility of the arm, a slimmer body fit and a narrower sleeve.

Checking The Finished Pattern.

When you have finished your pattern, the first thing to check is that all the balance notches match up, and there is the correct amount of ease.

Next it is important that when the sleeve is sewn together, all the seams run smoothly into each other. If there is not a smooth run on the pattern then the garment will be distorted.

Balance Notches.

It is very important to check your balance notches. Generally a tailored sleeve requires at least  six notches – Shoulder point; Underarm; Front balance pitch; Back balance pitch; Front chest; Back blade.

All notches are generally single notches, while the back balance notch is traditionally double. Some home dressmakers will use a protruding tag instead of a notch, because it is more easily visible.

Grainline.

If you are drafting a sleeve pattern then the very first line you draw is the grain line. The rest of the draft revolves around this line. The grain line is perpendicular with the floor.

Matching Stripes And Checks.

Matching stripes and checks can be very complicated, and requires a lot of skill, so is best left for another day.

False Forearm.

When I am teaching pattern cutting, for simplicity I tend to use a sleeve draft comparable  to the 50 – 50 English cut, where the top and under sleeves are similar in width.  I do not allow for a “false forearm” in my initial sleeve draft.

Doing it this way you soon discover that displacing the forearm seam creates a discrepancy in seam lengths.

The false forearm  displaces the forearm seam further under the arm so as not to show. When this is done, the under seam will need to be stretched onto the upper seam, otherwise the front edge will want to follow a straight line, rather than a curved one.

When the hind arm seam is displaced to hide this seam, it too causes a length discrepancy, but this time the top sleeve has to be eased on to the under seam.

Cuff Vent Construction.

The sleeve vent can be constructed in several different ways. The easiest and cheapest is a false vent.  But that is not what  most people want.

If you want a functional vent that opens with the buttons, then you need to for a non functional vent. If you want to be able to adjust the length, then a different construction method is required.

Each of these methods also requires the sleeve lining to be made accordingly.

When you finalise your pattern you need to check that when the cuff  is sewn the top and under vent lines up smoothly.

Seam Allowances.

I find it better to construct the draft without seams, although you may want to add seams to the finished pattern. The standard seam allowance for a commercial pattern is 1cm, with 4 cm hems.

Bespoke  tailors tend to draft with a seam allowance because it is quicker when making a bespoke pattern for an individual client.

Pattern Cutting Classes.

We run both face to face and online, one-to-one pattern cutting classes in various locations round London.

How High Should The Sleeve Head Be ? 

The sleeve head height is generally the first measurement to calculate.  Normally a tailored sleeve would be around 4 cms shorter than the average armhole height as measured on the flat pattern.

This may be adjusted for more or less ease. This represents the actual height of the armhole when it is in place on the body, rather than the height on the pattern itself, and includes  the shoulder pad.

How Wide Should The Sleeve Be ? 

The bicep is the widest part of a sleeve, but the sleeve head width at its widest part is determined by the head height and the amount of ease required. The head width  is normally a little narrower than the bicep width.

Sleeve Head Ease.

The amount of ease you add to a tailored sleeve  cap depends partly on how much “lift” you are giving to the underarm sleeve. If you have no lift, then you will have to add more ease. For a tailored jacket generally you do not allow for arm lift.

You can only add as much ease as can be practically sewn into the garment. The fact that much of the sleeve cap is on the bias means that fullness can be eased in smoothly.

Some bespoke tailors can put a lot of ease into a sleeve, depending on the fabric.

For a bespoke jacket it is as well to initially allow for a maximum amount of ease when drafting. This can always be reduced later.

Mass produced jackets can not manage  as much ease as a bespoke jacket. In modern jacket factories the sleeve is automatically eased to given ratios in specific areas.

Why Does A Sleeve Head Have Ease ?

A sleeve head has ease to allow for the fact that the arm is like a cylinder attached to the side of the body. The bicep has depth. It stands wider than the shoulder.

If it were not for the bicep the sleeve could just be as wide and as high as the armhole, with no ease at all. Instead of ease you could use pin tucks, or darts, but ease is the acceptable way.

How Much Ease Is In The Sleeve Head ?

This depends on the fabric and who is making the garment. Some fabrics will take much more ease than others. A factory made sleeve will likely have a limited amount of ease, while a hand tailored sleeve can have far more. A tailor can also shrink away the ease.

As the sleeve ease is meant to allow for the extra width and height required by the bicep, most if not all of the ease is on the outer part of the sleeve. The armpit area does not need any ease at all.

Generally a tailored sleeve would have around 3 cms – 4 cms ease  in total. Percentage wise a factory will normally use 6% – 8% of the total armhole circumference. A made to measure jacket may use 10% – 12% of the total armhole circumference.

When a tailor sets a sleeve into an armhole, he may use a number of methods to get a large amount of ease into the sleeve. This may involve a lot of steam iron  work.

A dressmaker can use the same methods, but may also use a piece of lofty bias that is stretched on to the sleeve head.

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