High Armholes on MTM Jackets: How to Specify Them for a Factory
"When I lift my arm the whole jacket comes with it." That is the client sentence behind most searches for high-armhole suits. Clients feel the armhole long before they can name it, and a vague note like "more comfortable sleeves" sends a pattern cutter in the wrong direction.
This guide is for MTM shops sending orders to a factory. It covers what a higher armhole does, what to write on the order, and how to check it on the first garment.
What a high armhole actually changes
The armhole is the opening where the sleeve joins the body. When it sits higher and closer to the armpit, the arm can move without lifting the body of the jacket: the collar stays on the neck and the cuff stays near the wrist when the client reaches forward or raises a hand. A low, roomy armhole feels easy on the hanger and in the mirror, but the jacket rides up with every movement.
Higher is not automatically better. Too high or too tight and the armhole digs into the armpit, and a client with heavier arms or a broad back will feel it at once. The sleeve also has to be balanced to the new armhole, so pitch and the shape of the sleeve head move with it. That is why "raise armhole" works only as one line on a pattern instruction, not a whole one.
High vs low armhole: a quick comparison
Arm movement — Higher, closer armhole: Jacket stays in place when the arm lifts — Lower, roomier armhole: Body lifts with the arm
First impression in a try-on — Higher, closer armhole: Can feel snug at first — Lower, roomier armhole: Feels easy at once
Look — Higher, closer armhole: Cleaner line under the arm, slimmer sleeve — Lower, roomier armhole: More fabric under the arm
Suits clients who — Higher, closer armhole: Move, drive, gesture, present — Lower, roomier armhole: Want ease above all, or have very heavy upper arms
Risk — Higher, closer armhole: Digs in if overdone; sleeve must be rebalanced — Lower, roomier armhole: Collar gap and sleeve pull when moving
What to write on the order
The factory needs the symptom, the measurement context and your intent. Use the table below as a phrase bank.
"Jacket lifts when I raise my arm" — Write on the order: Armhole: raise and close slightly; keep sleeve width proportional — Check on the first garment: Photo with the arm raised to shoulder height
"Tight under the arm" in the try-on — Write on the order: Armhole: lower slightly / more ease under arm; note upper-arm measurement — Check on the first garment: Photo of the underarm, arm relaxed
Sleeve twists or pulls behind the arm — Write on the order: Sleeve pitch: rotate forward / back (state which) — Check on the first garment: Side photo, arm hanging naturally
Broad back, rounded shoulders — Write on the order: Posture note + back measurement; keep armhole close but give back ease — Check on the first garment: Back photo with both arms forward
Client wants a slimmer sleeve — Write on the order: Sleeve: slimmer upper arm, armhole to suit — Check on the first garment: Front photo, arm bent at 90 degrees
Add the try-on jacket size and what you saw in it ("try-on 40R: armhole low, lifts 3 cm at collar when reaching"). A comment measured against a known jacket is worth more than any adjective.
How we handle it on the factory side
At our made to measure suit factory, each MTM suit is cut on an adjusted block, so an armhole instruction changes the pattern for that client rather than being added as an alteration afterwards. Write it on the order, and it goes into the cut. If the instruction conflicts with the measurements — a very close armhole on a large upper-arm measurement, for example — we ask before cutting rather than guessing.
For a new client, or a new house style, prove the armhole on a first garment. The sample policy explains how that first garment is quoted and credited. Once a client's armhole is right, it stays in that client's pattern for repeat orders.
Checking the armhole from photos
If the client is not in your fitting room, our fit photo approval guide covers the standard angles. For armholes, add two shots: arm raised to shoulder height from the front, and both arms reaching forward from the side. Look at three things:
Does the collar leave the neck when the arm lifts?
Do the jacket's front edges spread apart?
Does the client wince at the underarm when the arm is relaxed?
Related fit decisions
Armhole height interacts with the shoulder. A soft, natural shoulder and a structured, padded one handle a close armhole differently; see soft vs structured shoulder. And if you are still sending measurements in different formats, our measurement form shows the fields we read.
How to reduce armhole size later
On a finished jacket, an armhole that is too big is hard to correct; the sleeve usually has to come off, and the result depends on the seam allowances left in. It is far cheaper to get the armhole right in the pattern. That is the argument for a first garment on any new client whose arm movement matters to them.
Have a client who keeps complaining about their sleeves? WhatsApp the fit issue
Send us the next difficult arm
Send your country, monthly volume, MTM or bulk, and the fit issue, with a photo of the arm raised. We will tell you what we would change on the pattern before anything is cut.
WhatsApp Shi Yuan · Email houzhenying226@gmail.com
Shi Yuan Suit Factory, Baodi, Tianjin, China. Made to measure from one piece. Acumenwear.com is our English export site.
