Making Clothes: English Vocabulary List

a person who creates custom-made clothing, specializing in the design and construction of dresses

"The dressmaker made a gown."

"My grandmother was a talented dressmaker who created beautiful custom wedding dresses for many clients."

a three-dimensional model of the human body used by dressmakers and designers for fitting and designing clothing

"The dressmaker's model was used."

"The dressmaker's model was essential for ensuring the perfect fit of the intricate evening gown."

a person whose job is making clothes, especially for men

"The tailor made a suit."

"The tailor altered the suit to fit perfectly taking in the waist and shortening the sleeves so the client looked sharp for his job interview."

a small pad used to hold and store sewing pins and needles during sewing

"She sticks needles in pincushion."

"She kept her sewing pins stuck in a tomato shaped pincushion next to her sewing machine."

a type of pin that has a simple spring-loaded mechanism and is used to fasten or secure items temporarily

"The safety pin holds fabric."

"She used a safety pin to temporarily fix the torn strap of her bag until she could sew it properly."

a small protective cap worn on the finger to prevent injury while pushing a needle through fabric when sewing

"She protects finger with thimble."

"She wore a metal thimble on her middle finger to push the needle through the thick fabric without hurting herself."

a line of stitching that joins two or more pieces of fabric together

"The seam is straight."

"The seam of his pants ripped when he bent over showing a small hole along the stitching line."

a decorative design made by cutting out and stitching a different piece of fabric or material onto a larger piece to create a pattern or picture

"Colorful fabric applique."

"The dress had beautiful colorful applique designs on the sleeves and neckline."

to sew a decorative piece of fabric or material onto a larger piece of fabric

"She will applique flowers."

"She learned how to applique colorful fabric shapes onto a plain blanket to make a beautiful handmade gift for her new nephew."

a small metal fastener that is used to hold two pieces of material together, consisting of a hook that catches onto a small loop or eyelet

"The hook and eye closes."

"The back of the dress closed with a small hook and eye at the top of the zipper for extra security."

to embellish fabric, clothing, or accessories by sewing beads onto them

"She will bead the fabric."

"The seamstress decided to bead the neckline of the blouse with tiny pearls for added elegance."

a machine used to sew fabric and other materials together with thread

"She used her sewing machine to make a dress."

"Her grandmother's old sewing machine still worked perfectly for hemming pants and mending ripped seams."

a slender, pointed tool used for sewing fabrics and other materials

"The sewing needle is sharp."

"She threaded the thin sewing needle with great difficulty because her eyesight was not as good as it used to be."

a small cylinder that holds thread, which is used in a sewing machine or a hand-held sewing tool

"The bobbin holds thread underneath."

"The sewing machine ran out of thread so she had to wind a new bobbin before continuing her project."

(trademark) a material with two different surfaces one of which sticks to the other by some small hooks, when pressed, used as a fastener

"His shoes use velcro straps."

"The child's shoes closed with velcro straps making it easy for him to put them on by himself."

to attach something with velcro fasteners

"Velcro the straps tightly together."

"The astronaut's helmet was velcroed to the spacesuit to keep it securely attached during the spacewalk outside the international space station."

a simple, straight stitch used for basic sewing

"The running stitch is basic."

"She used a simple running stitch to baste the two pieces of fabric together before sewing them permanently on the machine."

to create clothing, fabric, etc., typically from wool or thread, using a machine or a pair of long and thin needles

"She will knit a wool sweater."

"My grandmother taught me how to knit warm wool sweaters for the cold winter months in our region."

a fabric created by interlocking loops of yarn using needles or a machine

"The knit sweater is warm."

"She wore a soft knit sweater made of fine cotton thread that was lightweight but still warm."

a basic stitch used in knitting where the working yarn is passed through a loop on the knitting needle, creating a new stitch

"The knit stitch makes fabric."

"The knit stitch is the most basic stitch in knitting creating a series of interlocking loops on the needle."

describing something that has been made by interlocking loops of yarn with knitting needles

"My mother made a knitted sweater."

"My grandmother made me a knitted sweater that is warm and comfortable in the winter."

a detachable sewing machine part used to hold fabric in place while sewing

"The presser foot holds fabric down."

"She lowered the presser foot onto the fabric before starting to sew keeping the material flat against the machine."

a person who works in the clothing manufacturing industry

"The garment worker sews fast."

"The garment worker sewed labels into shirts for ten hours a day in a cramped windowless factory."

a component of a sewing machine that moves the fabric under the needle during sewing

"The feed dog moves fabric."

"The feed dog is the toothed metal part under the needle that moves the fabric forward while you sew."

a type of fastening system consisting of hooks on one side and loops on the other, which adhere when pressed together

"Hook-and-loop fastener means velcro."

"The backpack strap closed with a hook and loop fastener which is commonly known by the brand name Velcro."

the metal plate with holes through which the needle passes to create stitches in sewing machines

"The needle plate has hole."

"The needle plate on the sewing machine has a small hole for the needle to pass through into the bobbin case below."

a thin, pointed metal or plastic rod with a head on one end, used in sewing to hold fabric together temporarily

"She uses straight pins."

"She used a straight pin to hold the pattern in place on the fabric before cutting around it with scissors."

yarn used for hand-knitting projects, typically made of various fibers and colors, and used with knitting needles or other tools to create knitted fabric

"The knitting yarn is wool."

"She bought soft blue knitting yarn to make a sweater for her new baby nephew."

a long, thin, pointed tool used in knitting to hold stitches and manipulate yarn

"She drops a knitting needle."

"She clicked her metal knitting needles together as she worked on a scarf for her husband."

a cutting tool with a circular blade that rotates, typically used in sewing, quilting, and other crafts to cut fabric or other materials with precision

"The rotary cutter slices fabric."

"She used a sharp rotary cutter to slice through multiple layers of fabric at once with a rolling motion."

a small tool used in sewing to remove stitches or seams, typically with a sharp blade and a pointed end for cutting and unpicking threads

"The seam ripper removes stitches."

"She used a seam ripper to carefully remove the stitches she had sewn in the wrong place."

a chalk-like tool used in sewing to mark fabric for cutting, sewing, or other adjustments

"She marks fabric with sewing chalk."

"She marked the fabric with blue sewing chalk to indicate where to cut and where to sew the seams."

a sewing tool with a wheel used to create patterns or markings on fabric

"Use the sewing roulette."

"The sewing roulette is used to transfer patterns onto fabric before cutting and stitching."

scissors with serrated blades used in sewing to create zigzag edges on fabric to prevent fraying

"Pinking shears prevent fraying."

"She cut the edges of the fabric with pinking shears to prevent them from fraying."

scissors with angled blades for cutting fabric, thread, or other materials at an ergonomic angle for improved comfort and precision

"Bent scissors cut fabric easily."

"Bent scissors have handles that angle upward allowing you to cut fabric smoothly while keeping the blades flat on the table."

specialized scissors designed for cutting fabric, with long blades and sharp points for precise and clean cuts, often used by tailors and dressmakers

"Tailor's scissors are very sharp."

"The tailor's scissors were very large and heavy designed to cut through thick wool and multiple layers of fabric."