The Wedding Dress Sleeves -- How To Make Petal Sleeve Pattern

I'm doing pretty well

on this wedding dress.

I'm right on schedule

of where I want to be.

There is just over 2 weeks left

until the wedding,

and I feel that I can

actually get this done afterall!

I'm came to a stand still

waiting for a fitting

and then placement of the lace,

so I decided to jump ahead a bit

and go ahead and get the

sleeve pattern drawn

and the sleeves ready for

the lace that will go on them.

The bride

wants petal sleeves.

This is one style

of petal sleeves to give you an idea

of what we are talking about here.

The only difference between the

sleeve that I am actually making

is that the petal "lap"

will be towards the back

of the sleeve

instead of the front of the sleeve

as shown here.

I put together a little picture tutorial

to show you how I did this pattern to come

up with the sleeves that will

go on this dress.

 You will need to find a sleeve pattern

to work with.

In this case, I found a short cap-like sleeve pattern.

I did actually lengthen it about 1/2" in length

to make sure there was plenty of

sleeve coverage that she needed.

The demo pattern does not have that added

amount to it.

You will then need:
* paper or tissue paper

(I used copy paper because I ran out of the tissue paper)

* pencil and eraser

*scotch tape

(if using the copy papers)

* a French curve ruller

 If you are using copy paper, tape it together to

produce the surface you will need to

lay the pattern out completely.

Carefully trace around the pattern

including any notches.

This is rather important because it will

help you know which is the front or back of the sleeve.

FYI:
If you don't know this already, the front of the sleeve

is always indicated with a single notch.

The back of the sleeve will always be indicated with a double notch.

 I then fold the pattern in half

matching the seam ends (under the arms)

and crease the pattern marking the pattern in half.

Lay the French curve about midway

between the center of the sleeve and the back notch

and trace a line.

Flip the French curve over

and trace a second line half way between

the center of the sleeve and the front notch.

 When you do this, make sure that

the two lines intersect

at the center crease.

Then, and this works better with tissue paper,

lay another layer of paper over the new pattern.

Trace the front of the pattern piece only.

You will have a shape something like this.

Label it 

PETAL SLEEVE FRONT.

Add any grain markings. 

 Cut out the back pattern piece

from your orginal drawing.

Label it

PETAL SLEEVE BACK

and mark any grain lines.

 You would then cut out

2 petal sleeve fronts

2 petal sleeve backs

both in fashion fabric

and

a lining fabric.

To line these up correctly once you have

applied the lining,

place the petal edge about

halfway between the notch

and the center of the sleeve.

There should be a smooth

curve at the top of the sleeve.

You would then baste together

the two sleeve pieces

and inset the sleeve using

your favorite technique.

Sorry if this tutorial seems a bit

fragmented.

I kind of rushed it because I'm under the

deadline that I am but

I felt it was worth sharing

in case anyone wanted to try this sometime.

Sew Happy,

I am sharing this tutorial
with a few of the linky parties
found on my Linky Party page.
Check them out!