When this pattern was designed, we designed the sleeve to have very slight gathers at the top. It really isn't a tailored sleeve. Why did I do this? At the time, I was afraid sewing in a strait "eased" sleeve would be too hard for my beginning moms. I guess I was having flashbacks to my youthful teenage days when I was learning how to sew in a sleeve and I never could quite do it right. I didn't want this sleeve to be hard, so I added more fullness and small gathers. If you want a more tailored look, without any gathers, there are several options. First, when cutting out the sleeve, use the cutting line for the next smallest size between the notches. This will make the sleeve cap smaller so there will be less gathers. Then follow the instructions on the pattern. You may also even go down 2 sizes if desired. For more advanced seamstresses, you may also measure the armhole (5/8" in from the edge) with a curved ruler and then measure the sleeve cap (5/8" in from the edge). Reduce the overall sleeve cap to allow 1-2" of ease depending on your sewing skill and the look you desire. The less ease you allow, the flatter your sleeve cap will appear. A true eased sleeve has a very nice "rounded" look with no gathers or puckers whatsoever. Our new NC#210 pattern has a true eased sleeve. On that pattern we allowed between 5/8 and 1 inch total ease depending on the size you selected. There is very little ease, and it is a really prettty sleeve. We have not tried substituting this sleeve in the NC#204 pattern yet, but will do it and let you know how it turns out.

On the sleeve pattern itself, there is a line that says shoulder, but this is in the wrong position. Do not try to match this line to the actual shoulder of the dress, it will not work. This mark on the sleeve pattern was actually a design mark showing the exact 1/2 way line of the sleeve if you fold the sleeve in half. We apologize for this error. If you follow the sewing guide exactly, this will not present a problem as we didn't mention this mark in the sewing guide, The instructions say to ease the fullness over the entire shoulder area between the two notches. If however, you try to match this mark on the sleeve to the shoulder of your dress, it will not work