Puffed Sleeve Tutorial

Ever needed to make a puffed sleeve? Well, needless to say, so have I. Unfortunately, puffed sleeves (with the exception of fashion for small children) slipped out of the way of fashion after the 1930's and 40's making finding a sewing pattern that includes them somewhat difficult. So, my challenge was taking the below pattern for an Edwardian Style gown (Simplicity 9716) that had the bodice portion I wanted with a short straight sleeve and modifying it into a puffed sleeve (with a gathered bottom) for my Neopets Tooth Faerie cosplay. I wasn't able to find a ton of helpful information on this through my internet searching, and so decided to put together this tutorial detailing exactly how I went about the alteration process for anyone else that might possibly need it. I hope this is helpful! Step # 1: As you will need to alter the original pattern piece to make it into the puffed sleeve, cut out the straight sleeve pattern piece (from whatever pattern that you are using) and then trace and cut out a copy of this onto another piece of paper.

Puffed Sleeve Tutorial

Step # 2: Using your ruler, divide out the copied pattern piece into 8 parts. Parts 2-6 in the middle should all be the same width while parts 1 and 8 on the outside edges will be wider. (This will vary based on the size of the original pattern piece) Example: For mine, I divided parts 2,3,4,5,6, and 7 into 1.75 inch equal pieces. The outside edges 1 and 8 are both 3.5 inches wide. After dividing out the pattern piece into 8 parts, draw a straight line in the widest part of the pattern, below the curved portion. Now, cut the pattern into the 8 parts. Step # 3: Now that you have your 8 pattern parts, get a large piece of paper (much wider than the original sleeve pattern) and draw a straight line across it (this will act as your guide for placing the 8 pattern parts). Next, start taping the cut out parts onto the new paper, making sure that the line on the cut out parts matches up with the line on the new sheet of paper. I put 1 inch between all my parts, but the width for this can vary depending on how small or large of a puff you want. Less width will make a smaller puff, more width between parts will make a larger puff. My cat decided that he would make himself helpful for this part....

Puffed Sleeve Tutorial

Step # 3 (cont.): After measuring and taping down all 8 of your parts, you should have this (notice how the lines all match up?) Step # 4: The last step in making the puffed sleeve pattern is to make a new curve at the top and bottom, as shown below. Cut out your new pattern piece and move on to cutting out fabric. After that, just follow the instructions that came with your original pattern for sewing the straight sleeve as these will apply to the puffed one. There will just be a lot more gathering than what would have been needed to ease the top of the sleeve.

Puffed Sleeve Tutorial

Below is a picture of my sleeves after being sewn in and gathered at the bottom with the purple trim added. A final picture will be added after completion, closer to mid-May this year.

Puffed Sleeve Tutorial Variations

While I only used one possible variation on the puffed sleeve, there are other variants that can be used as well depending on your needs. The two below follow the same process only with different spacing between the eight parts. Puffed Sleeve with a straight bottom: Straight Sleeve Top with a puffed bottom: Good luck with your puffed sleeve endeavors! =D If there are any questions or comments regarding the tutorial, please contact me at: yukishiro@yukishirocosplay.com