If you’re diving into the world of sewing for the first time, all the sewing terms and crafting lingo can seem completely overwhelming. If you’re trying to figure out whether a tailor’s ham is edible or you don’t know your armscye from your elbow, I’ve got you covered.
Here is a helpful sewing glossary of some of the most common sewing terminology that will help all sewing newbies feel a little more at home in the sewing world.
Are you more of a visual learner? I added some images and useful videos from some experts to help define the sewing terms along the way.
Common Sewing Terminology
A
Appliqué – The act of sewing a decorative fabric piece onto another fabric surface.
Armscye – The armhole opening in a bodice where the sleeve is attached.
Awl – Also known as a stitching awl or sewing awl, this small pointy tool is used for piercing fabrics like leather or canvas. Awls can be used to create holes when making eyelets.
B
Backstitch – Backstitching on a sewing machine involves sewing a few stitches in reverse at the beginning and end of a seam to secure the stitches and prevent them from unraveling.
Basting – Basting uses temporary, long stitches used to hold fabric in place before permanent stitching.
Bias – The diagonal direction of fabric, which has the most stretch.
Bias Binding – a strip of fabric cut on the bias (diagonal grain) to provide stretch, used to neatly finish raw edges like necklines, armholes, and quilts.
Blind Stitch– a nearly invisible machine stitch used to join fabric edges without visible stitching on the right side, commonly used for hems (blind hems).
Bobbin – this is a small spool that holds the lower thread in a sewing machine, and works with the top thread to create stitches.
Bodice – The top portion of a garment, usually a dress, from the neck down to the waist.
C
Casing – A fabric tunnel used to insert elastic, drawstring, or boning.
Clip – Small cuts made in seam allowances to reduce bulk and allow for shaping.
Cover Stitch Machine – A specialised sewing machine that creates professional hems. Great for stretch fabrics.
Cut-on-the-fold – A sewing pattern instruction where you need to align the edge of the paper pattern with the folded edge of your fabric. The result is symmetrical piece when unfolded.
Cutting Mat – A self-healing surface mat used for protecting workspaces and ensuring precise fabric cutting, often marked with grid lines for accuracy. If you use a rotary cutter, you’ll need a cutting mat.
D
Dart – A folded and stitched section of fabric that shapes a garment.
Double Stitch – Two rows of stitches for extra durability. Check out this video by Brittany J. Jones for Simplicity for a demonstration.
Drape/ Draping – The process of arranging fabric on a dress form to create a garment’s shape and design before cutting or sewing.
Dress Form – A mannequin torso used for draping, testing the fit of garments or making adjustments. Dress forms either come in various measurements and proportions or can be adjustable. Companies like Bootstrap Fashion can help you create DIY dress forms.
E
Ease – this refers to the extra room in a garment that allows comfortable movement and wear. Design ease is when extra fabric is added to create a stylish look and wearing ease is the added fabric needed to account for walking and sitting, for example.
Edgestitch – A stitch sewn very close to a fabric edge to create a neat finish.
Embroidery Machine – A specialised sewing machine designed to automatically create decorative stitching, patterns, and designs on fabric. They do this using pre-programmed or custom digital embroidery files.
Eyelet – this is a small, reinforced hole in the fabric, created using stitching or metal rings (grommets). These are often used for laces, drawstrings, or decorative purposes.
F
Facing – A fabric piece used to finish raw edges, like necklines and armholes.
Feed Dogs – Two rows of “teeth” that sit in the sewing machine underneath the presser foot. These feed dogs move and guide the fabric along as the stitches are being formed. They can be lifted or lowered depending on the type of sewing you’re doing.
French Seam – An enclosed seam with no raw edges, ideal for delicate fabrics.
G
Gathering – A technique of sewing long, loose stitches that create small fabric folds that add volume to a garment when the stitches are pulled tightly. Commonly used in skirts and peplum tops. Here is a video demonstration from the Hobbycraft Youtube channel.
Grade – To trim seam allowances to reduce bulk. When referring to sewing patterns, to grade means to increase or decrease a pattern between sizes.
Grainline – The direction of fabric threads, indicated on patterns.
H
Hem – A finished edge at the bottom of a garment.
Hook & Eye – A small fastening method used in closures.
Haberdashery – A department or shop that sells sewing supplies like thread, buttons, zippers, ribbons, and other notions needed for dressmaking and crafting
I
Indie Patterns – Short for independent patterns. Refers to sewing patterns that have been independently made by an individual or a small business.
Interfacing – A material added for stiffness or reinforcement in collars and cuffs. This can be fusible using an iron or can be sewn onto another fabric.
Interlining – This is a layer of fabric added between the outer fabric and lining of a garment to provide extra structure, warmth, or weight.
In-seam pockets – Pockets that are sewn into the side seam of a skirt, dress or trousers, and the pocket bag is hidden inside the garment.
Invisible zipper – This is a type of zipper sewn into a garment so that its teeth are hidden, leaving only the pull tab visible.
J
Jersey – A soft, stretchy knit fabric.
Join – The point where two fabric pieces are sewn together.
K
Knit Fabric – A stretchy fabric made by looping threads rather than weaving.
Keyhole Opening – A small slit in a garment, often closed with a button.
Knife Pleat – This is a type of pleat where all the folds are pressed in the same direction to create a smooth, uniform appearance.
L
Lining – An inner layer of fabric that provides structure and comfort. It can also be used to prevent some garments from being see-through.
Ladder Stitch – An invisible hand-sewing stitch used for closing openings.
M
Mark – Refers to placing markings or symbols from a sewing pattern onto fabric. These will often indicate where to start sewing, stop sewing, add buttons or fulfill some other instruction.
Muslin – A test garment made from inexpensive fabric (often muslin cloth, hence the name) before sewing the final piece. See toile.
Mitered Corner – A precise angled corner seam, often used in hemming. This is great for creating neat finishes on napkins and tablecloths.
N
Nap – The texture of a fabric that affects its appearance and direction. Fabrics like velvet and corduroy have a directional nap.
Notch – A small cut in the seam allowance to align fabric pieces.
Notions – A collective term for the sewing accessories needed to complete a sewing project. Notions can be anything like buttons, zippers, fasteners, elastic, trims etc.
O
Overlock – A type of stitch used to finish fabric edges and prevent fraying.
Overlocker – A type of sewing machine that simultaneously stitches, trims and finishes the raw edges of fabric with multiple threads. Also known as a serger in the U.S.
Overlay – A sheer fabric layer placed over another fabric.
P
Pintuck – This is a small, narrow fold of fabric sewn in place to create a decorative, raised effect on a garment or textile.
Placket – This is a reinforced opening of a shirt, dress or sleeve cuff that is usually finished with buttons.
Pleat – A fold of fabric pressed or stitched in place.
Pressing – The act of using an iron to press a seam open or press it down to one side. Pressing doesn’t use the same back-and-forth motion as ironing. Rather, like the name suggests, you use the heat to press seams flat after sewing to create a professional finish.
Pressing Cloth – Often made from silk organza or 100% cotton, a pressing cloth is used to protect delicate fabrics from burns and scorching.
Presser Foot – A sewing machine attachment that holds fabric in place.
Princess Seam – Often found on dress bodices, blouses and jackets, a princess seam is a vertical seam that adds shape instead of using darts.
Q
Quilting – A technique of stitching multiple layers together for warmth and texture. Also describes the art of quilt making.
Quilt Sandwich – The top layer, batting, and backing fabric in quilting.
R
Raw Edge – The cut edge of fabric before finishing.
Right-side (RS) – This is the face or the front of the fabric to be shown on the outside of the garment. In sewing patterns, you may see instructions like “sew right sides together”. This just means sewing the outside-facing sides together. The wrong side of the fabric is the side that remains inside the garment.
Rolled Hem – A narrow, neatly finished hem.
S
Scrap Buster – A sewing project that uses only scrap fabric.
Seam – A line where two pieces of fabric are stitched together.
Seam Allowance – The fabric space between the seam and raw edge. Most sewing patterns use seams allowances of ⅝” (1.6 cm) and ⅜” (1cm).
Seam Ripper – A tool used to unpick stitches in a seam.
Selvedge – This is the woven, finished edge that is parallel to the lengthwise fabric grain.
Serger – Another word for an overlocker, mainly used in the USA.
Sewjo – A playful twist on the term “mojo,” “sewjo” refers to the creative drive to sew. When that motivation fades, it’s often called “losing your sewjo”.
Shirring – A sewing technique that gathers fabric using multiple rows of parallel stitching with elastic thread to create stretch and texture.
Staystitch – A stabilising stitch that prevents stretching. Often used around curved seams like necklines and arm holes.
Stitch-in-the-ditch – Sewing in the seam line in order to securely attach a lining, a facing or bias binding directly underneath.
T
Tailor’s Ham – This is a firm, rounded cushion (shaped like a ham) used in sewing and pressing to shape curved areas like darts, sleeves, and princess seams.
Tailor’s Chalk – Used to make washable markings on fabrics.
Tension – The balance of thread tightness in a sewing machine.
Toile – Another word used to describe a mockup/ test garment. See muslin.
Topstitch – A decorative and reinforcing stitch along seams or edges.
Twin Needle – A type of sewing machine needle with two shafts that create two parallel rows of stitching simultaneously. This is often used for hemming and decorative stitching.
U
Understitch – A row of stitches that keeps facings from rolling out.
Upcycling – Reusing fabric or clothing to create something new.
V
V-notch – A small cut in the shape of a V to reduce bulk in curves.
Velcro – A hook-and-loop fastening system.
W
Warp & Weft – Warp threads run vertically, and weft threads run horizontally in woven fabrics.
Walking Foot – A sewing machine attachment that feeds fabric evenly.
X
X-stitch (Cross-Stitch) – A decorative hand-stitched embroidery technique.
Y
Yoke – A fitted section in garments like shirts or skirts for shaping.
Yardage – This is the total length of fabric needed or used for a sewing project, typically measured in yards or meters.
Yarn-Dyed – Fabric dyed before weaving for long-lasting colour.
Z
Zigzag Stitch – A versatile stitch for stretch fabrics and finishing edges.
Zipper Foot – A sewing machine attachment for inserting zippers.
Now you’ve got some essential sewing terms under your belt, I hope helping you understand patterns and techniques with ease. Whether you’re sewing garments, quilting, or altering fabrics, mastering these terms will boost your confidence and skill level.
If you’d like to learn more on your sewing journey, find out about 30 types of fabric that are great for beginners.
Happy Sewing!
