Garment cutting in the twentieth century

by Günther F. Hertzer

On the same principle that the back lining of a coat is put in large, the sleeve lining ought to be put in large around the armhole, particularly the top sleeve lining, which should be at least ½ in. wider at each seam than the outside, running out to nothing at and below the elbow. Speaking of sleeve lining, it may be said here that fine tailoring may require the top of the sleeve lining to be felled all around, but it is often noticed that even on fine work the top part is sewed with a seam and the under side felled. Now, if we sew the top sleeve lining with a seam we may as well sew the under sleeve, for it makes clean work all around. It is done as follows: Sew the top sleeve with a seam as far as you can, then turn the sleeve lining right side out, gather up the whole sleeve lining from the bottom, and reach up through the front and sew around the balance. It is rather an awkward job for one not accustomed to it, but it works quite easily after a short trial. This would not have been mentioned here but for the fact that I have seen only one coat which had the sleeve lining sewed in that way, which was not made by me, and that coat was made in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Sewing in sleeves is a particular job in order to make them both alike, and it will pay a cutter to be particular in cutting the notches and requiring the jour. to place them together; or, if from any cause, notches on one sleeve are changed that the other sleeve is changed in the same manner.

Another fact must be observed: By sewing in the undersleeve a coat may be made a good deal larger or smaller. If the undersleeve is sewed in full and the lining gives, a coat may be made from one to two sizes larger than if the undersleeve is sewed in close, or the fullness laid in a fold. I have made many a three-seamed sack coat larger by enlarging the undersleeve and by well stretching the coat under the arm, and then piecing the lining down to the hips. A coat which is too small in the armholes and which is cut forward is usually ruined, because cutting the armholes forward will be at the expense of the width of the breast, but if a wedge is put in under the arm, either by stretching the bottom of the armhole or by the help of outlets, then the coat will be large enough in the arms and remain wide enough at the chest.

In general practice it is found that a great many coats fit better at the shoulders, without the sleeves in, and in all such cases it may be presumed that the top sleeve is too short, which causes the shoulder to break somewhere. Again a short top sleeve at the angles of 45 and 60 deg. causes the back sleeve seam and the whole back undersleeve to appear too long, while at the hand the sleeve is that much too short. The top sleeve is better if it laps ½ inch too much than ¼ inch too little at 45 and 60 deg.

Between the square and the low shoulder there should be a difference made in the sleeve head, independent of style. The low shoulder requires a flat sleeve on top of the shoulder, and such armholes should not be stretched much, while the more square shoulder may have a sleeve cut with a fuller head, and the armhole may be stretched more. The width of the shoulders varies in style also, and it must be observed that whenever the style of the shoulders is broad the sleeve head cannot be as full as it may be made on a coat with the shoulders cut narrow. On the present style of female sleeves we can notice that they are all cut narrow in the shoulders, and with an extremely full sleeve head. Such shoulders would look horrid, if they were cut very broad, and with such big sleeve heads running up, and above the shoulders, several inches.

In making up, the jour. and the cutter must work in harmony, and in all cases, the jour. ought to know if the coat is for a low or for a square shoulder, and he ought to be able to work the shoulders accordingly. There is no sleeve system in existence which is as good as this, and I claim that there is no probability that anything better will be brought forth. Others may be able to give it a finer polish, but the principle will remain.