Can blazer sleeves be shortened from the shoulder instead of cuff?

[RoseGardener]

Got a nice db jacket with surgeon cuff, jacket is unstructured. The sleeves are almost 2” too long for my alligator arms. Can they be shortened from the top? As is there sleeves cover half of my hands

 

[Chowkin]

Sure. Had it done before. But if the cloth has a pattern then pattern matching of the sleeves with the body may pose a problem

 

[Anachronist]

The only reason to shorten from the shoulder is if you have working button holes. If you don't, there's no reason not to shorten from the cuff. As Chowkin said, with a patterned jacket, this may not work at all.

 

[GeorgFLB]

I think you should ask a tailor for advice. I also agree with Chowkin and Anachronist. Taking it up from the top is a lot trickier and not a lot of tailors know how to do it properly. I had this problem with my coat which almost got ruined by a tailor in Kensington because they didn't attach the sleeves back evenly.

 

[Vincent_TheHop]

Shortening jacket sleeves from the top/shoulder takes considerable more skill and time (money) than shortening from the bottom. If you want to preserve your surgeon cuffs, it might be the only option. 2" is a lot to remove and might lead to an awkward positioning of the buttons if shortened from the bottom. However, your Tailor should provide insight and options.