How to Press Armhole Seams (Beginner Sewing Skills)
When you begin sewing, there are some unexpected difficulties that you always run into. One of those is armhole seams. It’s important to press these seams to give your garment a more finished and professional appearance, but they are just so darn awkward. The arm itself is much too narrow, and the armhole is pretty much impossible to iron on a flat surface.
Generally, it’s best to press arm seams using the aid of a pressing ham. This is essentially a stiff, stuffed pillow that you insert into the armhole and press the seam around. It helps you get around the awkward armhole circle to get the seam to lay flat.
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How to press an armhole seam around the curve
The absolute best way to press an armhole sleeve is by using a pressing ham (also called a tailor’s sausage). This is an excellent piece of equipment that is made to have all different sizes and shapes of curves to use when pressing your garment seams. For sleeve heads, we will use the longer, thinner pressing ham.
- Start by inserting the long tailor’s sausage into the sleeve. The garments should be inside out so that you can see the seams of the sleeve head.
- Place the top of the sleeve head on the edge of the ham. Use the iron to press the seam toward the shoulder/bodice.
- Section-by-section, adjust the sleeve around the ham to match the curve of the seam. Press the seam as you go.
- When you get to the bottom armpit of the sleeve, use the edge and tip of the iron. Flatten very small areas at a time using the triangular tip to press.
How to press the seams of a narrow sleeve
Sometimes sleeves are too narrow for a pressing ham to fit it. Sleeves on children’s garments, for example, are quite narrow and more difficult to press properly. In this case, you may have to create your own approximation of a tailor’s sausage that can work with your narrow sleeve.
The most basic way to do this is to roll up a length of wool or felt until it’s the right size for the sleeves in question. Use string or scrap strips of cloth to tie the roll together and keep it from unraveling while you press your seams.
If you want to make something that’s a bit more permanent, you can make an actual tailor’s sausage. This is a great tutorial for making a DIY tailor’s ham. Just be sure to adjust the shape so that it works for tiny size sleeves.
Which direction to press armhole seams?
Generally, you should press armhole seams toward the shoulder or bodice of the garment. This keeps the sleeve head from being too bulky and makes the seam appear slightly puffy when you wear it. For some designs, such as button-up shirts, it makes sense to add edge stitching to the shoulder in order to keep the seam pressing in the correct direction.
The main exception to this is when you want to make gathered sleeves with a distinct puff to them. In these cases, it can be helpful to press the seam back toward the gathered sleeve head to give the gathered seam more volume. This is, of course, much more effective if you’re using a stiff fabric that will hold its shape and structure more easily.
