4.1 Garment construction tools, equipment, materials and supplies
Constructing a gents' garment needs the right sewing tools, machines, fabrics and small supplies at the work station before sewing starts. Good preparation saves time, protects the fabric and gives straight, strong seams. Tools are hand-held items, equipment means machines and larger items, materials are the fabrics that form the garment, and supplies are the smaller items such as thread, buttons and interfacing that are used up in construction. Example: a tailoring cooperative in Turbo lays out each machinist's kit (needles, thread, bobbins, seam ripper and pressing cloth) on a tray before a batch of school shorts is sewn.
Construction tools
| Name |
Specification |
Use |
| Hand sewing needles |
Sharps sizes 5 to 10 |
Tacking, hemming and sewing on buttons |
| Pins and pin cushion |
Stainless steel dressmaker pins |
Holding pieces together before stitching |
| Thimble |
Metal, fitted to the middle finger |
Protecting the finger when hand sewing |
| Seam ripper (quick unpick) |
Sharp point with a guarded blade |
Removing wrong stitches without cutting the fabric |
| Thread snips |
Small spring scissors |
Trimming thread ends at the machine |
| Tape measure and seam gauge |
150 cm tape; 15 cm sliding gauge |
Checking seam allowances, hems and button spacing |
| Tailor's chalk and tracing wheel |
Chalk wedges; serrated wheel |
Transferring pattern markings to fabric |
| Point turner |
Wooden or plastic |
Pushing out collar and cuff points cleanly |
| Loop turner |
Long wire with a latch hook |
Turning narrow tubes such as belt loops |
Construction equipment
- Lockstitch sewing machine: the main machine for seams, topstitching, collars and waistbands; industrial straight-stitch machines are used for speed.
- Overlock machine (serger): trims and neatens raw edges in one operation, used on side seams, inside leg seams and crotch seams.
- Buttonhole machine or buttonhole foot: makes even, bar-tacked buttonholes on shirts and waistbands.
- Iron and ironing board: a steam iron with a sleeve board and tailor's ham for pressing seams open as the garment is built.
- Machine attachments: zipper foot for flies, hemmer foot for narrow shirt hems, and an edge guide for even topstitching.
Materials
- Shirting fabrics: poplin, cotton, poly-cotton, oxford and chambray: light, firm, easy to sew and press.
- Trouser and shorts fabrics: drill, twill, gabardine, khaki and denim: firm weaves that hold creases and resist wear.
- Pocketing: light, strong cotton or poly-cotton for pocket bags.
- Interfacing: fusible or sew-in, used to stiffen collars, cuffs, button stands and waistbands.
Supplies
- Thread: polyester or poly-cotton thread matched to the fabric colour; heavier thread for topstitching jeans.
- Fastenings: shirt buttons, trouser buttons, hooks and bars, and metal or nylon zips (usually 18 to 20 cm for trouser flies).
- Waistband supplies: waistband interfacing or curtain, and elastic for casual shorts.
- Machine supplies: spare needles (size 80/12 for shirting, 90/14 to 100/16 for drill and denim), bobbins and machine oil.
- Labels: size, care and brand labels.
Preparing the work station
- Clean and oil the machine: remove lint from the bobbin area and oil according to the manual.
- Fit the correct needle: match needle size and type to the fabric.
- Wind bobbins: wind enough bobbins in the matching thread for the whole garment.
- Test the stitch: sew on a scrap of the same fabric and adjust stitch length and tension.
- Arrange the cut pieces: keep bundles in order of assembly, with markings visible.
- Set up pressing: heat the iron to the fabric's setting and keep a pressing cloth beside it.
The rest of this chapter
🔒Create a free account to open more of this chapter.
Free: practical guides, quick cards, workplace scenarios and more.
Create a free account 🔒4.2 Sewing techniques
Sewing techniques are the methods used to join, shape and detail the cut pieces of a garment. In basic gents' garments, the tailor must choose the right stitch for each job, the right seam for each part of the garment, sew details such as collars, pockets and…
🔒4.3 Garments assembling
Garment assembling is the process of joining the cut and marked pieces in the correct order to build the complete garment. Each garment has a standard order of construction: small parts and details are made first while the pieces are flat, then main seams are…
