I was recently asked by one of my 7 Steppers about how to wear shorter sleeves over longer ones and it’s a topic I haven’t covered before, yet it’s a part of my outfits quite frequently, so here are some tips to do it well.
1. Long Sleeves With Cuff Detail
A key to making this a more interesting look, the longer sleeves can have something interesting in the cuff to make it a feature as it peeks out of the shorter sleeve on top.
Here it’s just a small frill of the snakeskin-patterned green top with the kimono-style jacket over the top.
Then these shirt cuffs have two larger frills and I love to wear them underneath a cashmere jumper and pull up the sleeves to reveal the shirt’s dramatic frill cuffs.
2. Patterned Long Sleeves Under Shorter Sleeves
Alternatively, you can try a patterned top under a plain overlayer so that again there is something decorative about the end of the sleeve that pokes out of the shorter over layer like my leopard print top under a blue 3/4 sleeve blazer.
Here is the same leopard print under the green kimono jacket
And here is a blue and white floral shirt under a short-sleeved faux fur jacket
Thinking you might like to try this look? Here are some examples of tops that would work well under a 3/4 length jacket or top
Shop this board here
3. T-shirt over Long Sleeve Knit
This isn’t something I do (though you’ll see it a lot on the TV show Big Bang Theory), and it works best when your tee has some sort of graphic or pattern on it which is why you wear it over a figure-hugging long sleeve knit (you don’t want a loose-knit under a tee shirt as it will add bulk). The tee has some sort of pattern and interest which is why you don’t want to hide it under your long sleeve knit.
Shop these styles here