. - YouLookFab Forum

Sadie

Active Member

The Jenna roll:
http://www.whowhatwear.com/how.....leeve-roll
Works even with flimsy or slippery fabrics.

10 years ago

danskogirl

Active Member

Commiserating with you. I really like my Pleione blouse except for those d*&n floppy tab sleeves.

What I do is roll my sleeves inward, so the "cuff" is on the inside, rather than the outside. The width of my forearm keeps the sleeves from falling down. Not a perfect solution but it's the only way I've found to keep those sleeves from getting too floppy.

10 years ago

Destri

Active Member

Well I don't have that exact blouse but I have a button up shirt with that type of tab sleeve and, because of the fabric, it does exactly what you describe. It drives me batty too. I don't have the solution but have been considering trying to roll the sleeves up and safety pin them some way to see if that may work . . . I haven't gotten around to trying that yet.

10 years ago

carter

Veteran

Sadie and Danskogirl, I must be really uncoordinated. I tried both of those methods and could not make them work. I use the Jenna roll successfully with stiffer fabrics, but I just can't get this one to stay put. My daughter rolls under, and it works great for her. Again, mine slipped and poufed all over the place.

Destri, so glad I'm not the only one! I did resort to safety pinning. Better, but not pretty. I thought maybe moving the button over would at least give it some tractionon my forearm. Just not sure.

10 years ago

karymk

Veteran

Carter I think it's just the nature of crepe not to roll neatly. I never buy tops like this mostly because I can't get a cardigan over them neatly, or even a blazer for that matter. I do love the color though. The roll isn't really that bad looking though so maybe you should try and get a few more wears out of it and then if you still can't deal, take the blouse to a tailor and have her make it into a sleeveless top that you can easily slide stuff over and that looks neat and tidy when worn alone.

10 years ago

carter

Veteran

Oh, Karen! Turn it into a sleeveless blouse! Totally brilliant. I would likely get much more wear out of it that way. Heaven only knows what my ridiculously over-priced tailor would charge. I'll have to check into it.

10 years ago

Diana

Veteran

Fashion tape?

I just let my sleeves like this do their thing. But I'm a lot more RATE than you.

10 years ago

Suz

(website)

Veteran

I'm not RATE and I admit that sleeves like this tend to irritate me a bit -- but I usually manage to get them rolled somehow and then allow them to do their thing thereafter. On a silk top I have, it actually looks quite nice -- it creates an attractive angle. On the Pleione top I have, it's not quite as nice, I think. I also agree with Karen -- they are the devil to layer over. And I think making them sleeveless would be great for you! You live in a hot climate, you have great arms, and anyway, they made a sleeveless version of this top -- you could take a picture to the tailor to show what it would look like.

10 years ago

always trying

Veteran

I have one like that too. I just gave up on folding it and wear it as long sleeve. the cotton ones stay up nicely, but the other slippery fabrics are never "gonna" do what you want them to do!

10 years ago

Cococat

Veteran

I do the Jenna roll, but I didn't know it had a name. It works well on most fabrics.

Can someone please enlighten me. What is RATE.

10 years ago

Nebraskim

Veteran

I think RATE means "rough around the edges."

10 years ago

Cococat

Veteran

Oooooh, thank you Nebraskim.

10 years ago

Robin

Active Member

Having the sleeves altered in some way was my first thought.

Your tailor might be expensive, but probably no more expensive than buying a new blouse would be.

Since you love the colour, and have the piece already, I say go for making it sleeveless if that's what you love!

Your reply

10 years ago

Anonymous

I commiserate. I really like the idea of removing the sleeves. I think it would look great that way and you would get a lot of use out of it.

10 years ago

Mander

(website)

Veteran

What about rolling them up the way you want them, and then hand sewing into place? I have a jacket-like thing with little rolled cuffs on the sleeves that flopped around awkwardly, so I sewed the cuffs down using a very basic hidden stitch so that they don't come un-rolled.

10 years ago

unfrumped

Veteran

I think it is the fabrication that just won't behave. I have same problem with poly and some silk.
I echo Mander, if you like the rolled sleeve. Often that just what I do like so I would consider tacking into place for me.
I think this type of blouse can also be great under jackets due to the neckline, but agree rolled sleeves interfere, so using as a "shell" could work also.

10 years ago

Laura (rhubarbgirl)

(website)

Veteran

I also try to check for this before I buy something, and avoid the most egregious offenders. Sometimes it's a trade off between the drapiness of the blouse fabric and the 'rollability' of the sleeves.

What about spray starch? I wouldn't starch the whole blouse, just the cuffs and lower sleeves. Modern starch is really easy to use, and if you're touching it up with the iron after you wash it anyway (dunno if you have to iron the Pleione blouses or not) it would only take a couple extra minutes.

10 years ago

tulle

Veteran

Those tab sleeves bother me, too--not so much because they sag when rolled, but because I find the look fussy and dated. When I get a shirt I like enough to keep despite the tabs, I tend to snip off both the tab and the button, and roll the sleeves like those of a regular long-sleeved shirt. (I just ignore the little reinforced square left behind.) Making the shirt sleeveless could also work, but be sure to check the depth of the armhole. Most sleeved shirts have armholes cut deeper than sleeveless ones; you could end up with a shirt that shows a lot of your bra.

10 years ago

catgirl

Veteran

I really dislike this too. I don't mind a messy roll but I dislike the saggy roll where only the tabbed part stays up and the rest sort of melts down your arm. I wish I had a fix, but meanwhile I've stopped buying this style in a flimsy fabric.

10 years ago

lyn67

Veteran

Commiserating with you. I hate when this happens. So stoped buying this kind of sleeves. What about a thin elastic band hidden in the roll to keep it up and comfortable?

10 years ago

texstyle

(website)

Veteran

Those tabs can drive us all crazy I think. I like the idea of getting it altered - if not into sleeveless, is there another option? Would the tab button area be obvious if it were removed and the sleeves were shortened to 3/4 length?

10 years ago

deb

Veteran

OK, I may be the odd man out, but I like the look of the unstructured tab roll. To my eye it softens the look of stiff fabrics like jeans. I also like it with soft bottoms like culottes. And the angled look Una describes is perfect to me. Just sayin...

10 years ago

Aida

Veteran

I'm with deb and Diana -- I just let those floppy sleeves flop. I do something like the Jenna roll, and with floppy/silky fabrics I purposely make it far more messy than I would with a stiffer fabrication; basically I try to add as many folds as I can so it doesn't look like I'm trying to be neat but just aren't (which is how a "neat" roll with this type of fabric usually comes across). Personally I don't find those little tabs outdated, it's a rather classic thing to my eye, but there's obviously a big personal preference with them. Wearing some today in fact, as sloppy as I can roll 'em

EDIT: Added a side photo, shows the messiness and fold layers better.

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10 years ago

abc

Veteran

I have sloppy sleeves today too!

Thx for the ideas on this thread.

10 years ago

pil

Veteran

Well, you could always do what I did with my tab sleeve blouse. I wore it to work and somehow managed to snag the front of it so badly that I won't be wearing it again more unless it's under a sweater, in which case the sleeves don't need to be rolled. And It was a blouse I liked

10 years ago

Anonymous

Maybe you could have the sleeves shortened to just below the elbow?

It doesn't look messy to me, it looks sensually restrained and appropriate, considering the nature of the fabric. A little softness added to an otherwise fairly crisp looking outfit.

I feel like a traitor to my own aesthetics suggesting an alteration and I hope you can get around this because you look gorgeous, I wouldn't change a thing.

10 years ago

catgirl

Veteran

Interesting... Is this the sleeve equivalent of the half tuck? Maybe I could wrap my head around that concept.

10 years ago

carter

Veteran

Ha! Una, that's a riot. Funny that you mention the half tuck. I find that too sloppy for me as well. The semi-tuck, though, is my all time favorite YLF discovery. Go figure!

10 years ago

Suz

(website)

Veteran

I like what Aida has done -- that's sort of what I aim for with this type of sleeve....

10 years ago

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