How to Attach a Yoke

There are a few methods for attaching a yoke when sewing a garment. The method I use encloses the seams within the yoke and achieves a ready-to-wear look.

First, with right sides facing, sandwich the back piece between the two yoke pieces (yoke and yoke facing). Pin, sew and press.

Next, with right sides facing, pin the two front pieces to the yoke, leaving the yoke facing unattached.

At this point, most commercial pattern will tell you to press under the raw edge of the facing and stitch down along the edge. But, if you look at most ready-to-wear clothing, yokes are not attached this way and are instead self enclosed. To achieve this look, turn the yoke facing so that the right side of the facing and the right side of the shirt face each other. Line up the raw edges, pin and sew. This creates another sandwich. It also twists the shirt which can be awkward, but leaves plenty of room to sew.

Grade the seams, turn yoke right side out and press.

Voilá, there you have it! A lovely yoke with enclosed seams. Jen of Grainline uses a similar method to enclose the seams, without having to twist the garment to do so. She has great video on her blog illustrating her method. Find it here.