Gather (sewing)

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Paul Revere in a shirt gathered at shoulder and cuffs, 1776. J S Copley - Paul Revere.jpg
Paul Revere in a shirt gathered at shoulder and cuffs, 1776.

Gathering turns the edge of a piece of fabric into a bunch of small folds that are held together by a thread close to the edge. Gathering makes the fabric shorter where it is stitched. The whole of the fabric flares out into irregular, rolling folds beyond the gathered stitching. Gathering can be done by hand, with a machine, automatically, with elastic, or through channels. [1]

Pleating and shirring are two different types of gather sewing.

In simple gathering, parallel rows of running stitches are sewn along one edge of the fabric to be gathered. The stitching threads are then pulled or "drawn up" so that the fabric forms small folds along the threads. [2] [3]

Gathering seams once involved tedious hand sewing of basting, which was time-consuming, especially with heavy fabric. However, finer gathers could be achieved. Now, a quick and easy way to make a gather is to use a wide zigzag stitch with a sewing machine. Both the upper and lower thread are pulled long and placed in front of the sewing machine. Then zigzagging is carefully sewn over the two threads without catching the threads in the process. Finally, the upper and lower threads are pulled to gather the fabric. [4] [5]

This photo shows a quick and easy method of machine gathering. This zigzag gathering technique is the strongest and most sturdy method of gathering. Gathering Technique.jpg
This photo shows a quick and easy method of machine gathering. This zigzag gathering technique is the strongest and most sturdy method of gathering.

Types

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sewing machine</span> Machine used to stitch fabric

A sewing machine is a machine used to sew fabric and materials together with thread. Sewing machines were invented during the first Industrial Revolution to decrease the amount of manual sewing work performed in clothing companies. Since the invention of the first sewing machine, generally considered to have been the work of Englishman Thomas Saint in 1790, the sewing machine has greatly improved the efficiency and productivity of the clothing industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Appliqué</span> Piece of textile ornament, or work created by applying such ornaments to a ground fabric

Appliqué is ornamental needlework in which pieces or patches of fabric in different shapes and patterns are sewn or stuck onto a larger piece to form a picture or pattern. It is commonly used as decoration, especially on garments. The technique is accomplished either by hand stitching or machine. Appliqué is commonly practised with textiles, but the term may be applied to similar techniques used on different materials. In the context of ceramics, for example, an appliqué is a separate piece of clay added to the primary work, generally for the purpose of decoration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sewing</span> Craft of fastening or attaching objects using stitches made with a needle and thread

Sewing is the craft of fastening or attaching objects using stitches made with a sewing needle and thread. Sewing is one of the oldest of the textile arts, arising in the Paleolithic era. Before the invention of spinning yarn or weaving fabric, archaeologists believe Stone Age people across Europe and Asia sewed fur and leather clothing using bone, antler or ivory sewing-needles and "thread" made of various animal body parts including sinew, catgut, and veins.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lockstitch</span> Stitch made by sewing machines

A lockstitch is the most common mechanical stitch made by a sewing machine. The term "single needle stitching", often found on dress shirt labels, refers to lockstitch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hem</span> Garment finishing method

A hem in sewing is a garment finishing method, where the edge of a piece of cloth is folded and sewn to prevent unravelling of the fabric and to adjust the length of the piece in garments, such as at the end of the sleeve or the bottom of the garment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Overlock</span> Multi-thread stitch produced in a single production step with an overlock sewing machine

An overlock is a kind of stitch that sews over the edge of one or two pieces of cloth for edging, hemming, or seaming. Usually an overlock sewing machine will cut the edges of the cloth as they are fed through, though some are made without cutters. The inclusion of automated cutters allows overlock machines to create finished seams easily and quickly. An overlock sewing machine differs from a lockstitch sewing machine in that it uses loopers fed by multiple thread cones rather than a bobbin. Loopers serve to create thread loops that pass from the needle thread to the edges of the fabric so that the edges of the fabric are contained within the seam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Curtain</span> Cloth or other material used to block out light

A curtain is a piece of cloth or other material intended to block or obscure light, air drafts, or water. A curtain is also the movable screen or drape in a theatre that separates the stage from the auditorium or that serves as a backdrop/background.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Darning</span> Sewing technique for repairing holes or worn areas in fabric or knitting using needle and thread

Darning is a sewing technique for repairing holes or worn areas in fabric or knitting using needle and thread alone. It is often done by hand, but using a sewing machine is also possible. Hand darning employs the darning stitch, a simple running stitch in which the thread is "woven" in rows along the grain of the fabric, with the stitcher reversing direction at the end of each row, and then filling in the framework thus created, as if weaving. Darning is a traditional method for repairing fabric damage or holes that do not run along a seam, and where patching is impractical or would create discomfort for the wearer, such as on the heel of a sock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tack (sewing)</span>

In sewing, to tack or baste is to sew quick, temporary stitches that will later be removed. Tacking is used for a variety of reasons, such as holding a seam in place until it is sewn properly, or transferring pattern markings onto the garment. Tacking is typically sewn using a specialised tacking thread, which may snap easily in order for it to be easily removed from the garment when necessary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pleat</span> Deliberate fold in the design of a textile object or garment

A pleat is a type of fold formed by doubling fabric back upon itself and securing it in place. It is commonly used in clothing and upholstery to gather a wide piece of fabric to a narrower circumference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gather (knitting)</span>

In knitting, a gather draws stitches closer together within a row of knitting. Common methods include:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knitted fabric</span> Textile material made using knitting techniques, often by machine knitting

Knitted fabric is a textile that results from knitting, the process of inter-looping of yarns or inter-meshing of loops. Its properties are distinct from woven fabric in that it is more flexible and can be more readily constructed into smaller pieces, making it ideal for socks and hats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helen Blanchard</span> American inventor

Helen Augusta Blanchard was an American inventor who received 28 patents between 1873 and 1915. She was known for her numerous inventions dealing with sewing machines and sewing technology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shirring</span> Gathering fabric with multiple rows of stitching

Shirring is a decorative sewing technique that involves stitching together many rows of gathered fabrics. Shirring reduces the size of the original fabric while adding texture to the resulting decorative fabric.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dart (sewing)</span> A pointed fold used in sewing

Darts are folds sewn into fabric to take in ease and provide shape to a garment, especially for a woman's bust. They are used frequently in all sorts of clothing to tailor the garment to the wearer's shape, or to make an innovative shape in the garment. Fabric may be thought of as flat, and a dart has the effect of removing a wedge shaped piece and pulling the edges of that wedge together to create a shallow cone. This effect can be seen quite easily with a paper pattern by pulling together the edges of a dart intake as it would be sewn. Since fabric is generally more flexible than paper, the fabric will shift around the apex of the cone and form a softer, but still curved, shape. In a garment, a dart ends in a point at a full area of the body.

Sewing is the craft of fastening or attaching objects using stitches made with needle and thread. Sewing is one of the oldest of the textile arts, arising in the Paleolithic Era. Although usually associated with clothing and household linens, sewing is used in a variety of crafts and industries, including shoemaking, upholstery, sailmaking, bookbinding and the manufacturing of some kinds of sporting goods. Sewing is the fundamental process underlying a variety of textile arts and crafts, including embroidery, tapestry, quilting, appliqué and patchwork.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seam (sewing)</span> Sewn join between two pieces of textile material

In sewing, a seam is the join where two or more layers of fabric, leather, or other materials are held together with stitches. Prior to the invention of the sewing machine, all sewing was done by hand. Seams in modern mass-produced household textiles, sporting goods, and ready-to-wear clothing are sewn by computerized machines, while home shoemaking, dressmaking, quilting, crafts, haute couture and tailoring may use a combination of hand and machine sewing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blind stitch</span>

A blind stitch in sewing is a method of joining two pieces of fabric so that the stitch thread is invisible during the normal use of the finished product. Blind stitching uses a folded edge of the fabric to hide the stitches; therefore, this type of stitch can be used to create a blind hem or to join two folded edges together.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coverstitch</span> Kind of stitch

A coverstitch is formed by two or more needles which add straight stitches to the fabric and a looper thread on the opposite side of the fabric that zig-zags between the straight stitches. A coverstitch results in parallel lines of straight stitches on one side of the fabric and an overcast stitch on the reverse side. It is widely used in garment construction, particularly for attaching trims and flat seaming where the raw edges can be finished in the same operation as forming the seam.

References

  1. Wolff, Colette (1996). The art of manipulating fabric. Internet Archive. Iola, WI : Krause Publications. pp. 2, 3. ISBN   978-0-8019-8496-9.
  2. 1 2 3 Caulfield, S.F.A.; Saward, B.C. (1989). The Dictionary of Needlework (facsimile ed.). Blaketon Hall. p. 219-220. ISBN   0907854109.
  3. Picken, Mary Brooks (1957). The Fashion Dictionary (1973 ed.). Funk and Wagnalls. ISBN   0-308-10052-2.
  4. 1 2 "Garment Construction - how to gather a seam, learn to gather, a strong zigzag gathering method, gathering seam". www.lovetosew.com. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
  5. "Sewing Fabric Guide". 23 July 2023. Retrieved 2023-08-01.