Basic Textile Questions and Answers

1. What is Fiber?
Ans: Fiber, which is either spun (or twisted) into yarn or else directly
compressed into fabric.
2. What is yarn?
Ans:Yarn, which is woven, knitted, or otherwise made into fabric.
3. What is fabric?
Ans: Fabric, which by various finishing processes becomes finished
consumers goods.
4. Define Natural fibers?
Ans: Natural fibers that occur in nature can be classified as vegetable,
animal, and mineral.
5. Define Man made fibers?
Ans: The natural material of cellulose has been taken from cotton
linters and wood pulp, processed chemically, and changed in form and
several other characteristics into fibers of various lengths.
6. Define mineral fibers?
Ans: Glass fibers are produced by combining silica sand, limestone, and
certain other minerals.
7. Define metallic fibers?
Ans: Produced by mining and refining fibers such metals as aluminium,
silver and gold.
8. Define rubber fibers?
Ans: Made from the sap tapped from the rubber tree.
9. Give any three animal fibers?
Ans: Wool, Silk, Hair.
10. Give any three cellulosic fibers?
Ans: Rayon, Acetate, Triacetate.
11. Give any four vegetable fibers?
Ans: Cotton, linen, jute, hemp.
12. Give any three mineral fibers?
Ans: Glass, ceramic, graphite.
13. What is cotton fiber?
Ans: The cotton fiber grows in the seepod, or boll or the cotton plant.
Cotton yarn is used to make fabries for all type of apparel, home
furnishings and industrial applications.

14. What is linen fiber?

Ans: Linen fiber is obtained from the stoke of the flax plant linen yarn
can be very strong and lustrous and in used for apparel, have furnishings
and upholstery.
15. What is silk fiber?
Ans: Is a fine continuous strand unwound from the cocoon of a moth
caterpillar known as the silk worm. Silk is composed of protein. Lustrous,
smooth, light weight, strong, and elastic. Used for apparel home
furnishings, and upholstery.
16. What is nylon?
Ans: Nylon is thermoplastic, resilient, elastic and very strong. It is used
for a wide variety of apparel, have furnishings and industrials products.
17. What is polyester?
Ans: Polyester fibers are thermo plastic, they have good strength and
are hydrophobic, do not absorb water well. Used for a wide variety of
apparel, home furnishings and industrial fabrics.
18. Define spandex?
Ans: Spandex fibers are extremely elastic. They are used for such
purpose as foundation garments, hosiery, swim wear and sports wear.
19. Name two kinds of spinning machine?
Ans: Ring frame, mule frame.
20. What is the standard of cotton yarn count?
Ans: The standard for the yarn count in cotton is I pound of fiber drawn
out to make 840 yards of yarn. The resultant thickness or size is known as
count number 1 or Ne1.
21. What is ply yarns?
Ans: Two or more strands or yarns are twisted together; they are
designed as ply yarns.
22. What is ASTM?
Ans: American Society for Testing and Materials.
23. What is ISO?
Ans: International Organization for Standardization.
24. What is ANSI?
Ans: American National Standards Institute.
25. What is ICS?
Ans: Integrated Composite Spinning 84

Garments/Apparel Questions and Answers

1. What is seam?

Ans: Seam is joining of pieces of fabric together with stitching.

2. What is French seam?
Ans: French Seam is narrow seam within a seam, used on fabrics which
ravel easily .
3. What is trimming?
Ans: Trimming is Evenly cutting away part of the seam allowance .
4. What is seam Allowance?
Ans: Seam Allowance is the Width between fabric edge and seam line .
5. What is Plain Seam?
Ans: Plain Seam is the Most common type of seam, Suitable for all areas
of a garment and fabrics except for sheers and laces.
6. What is Gathers?
Ans: Gathers meanstheTiny, soft folds of fabric formed when a larger
piece of fabric is sewn to a smaller piece
7. What is seam finish?
Ans: Seam Finish istheTreatment on seam edges to prevent raveling and
make the seam stronger and last longer.
8. What is Basting?
Ans: Basting is the Temporarily joining layers of fabric together.
9. What is Grading ?
Ans: Grading means theTrimming each seam allowance to a different
width.
10. What is Back stitching?
Ans: Sewing backward and forward in the same place to secure
stitching, is known as Backstitching.
11. Dart
Ans: A stitched fold that provides shape and fullness to a garment so
that it fits the curves of the body
12. What is Hem?
Ans: A finished edge on a garment, one of the last steps in sewing a
garment is called the hem.
13. What is Notching ?
Ans: Cutting V-shaped sections from the seam allowance is called
notching.
14. What is Clipping?
Ans: Making straight cuts into the seam allowance is called clipping.
15. What is Topstitched Seam ?

Ans: A plain seam with a row of machine stitching on one or both sides
of the seam line is known as the top stitched seam.
16. What is Alter?
Ans: Alter means to change the pattern or garment so that it fits the
body and represents body measurements and proportions.
17. What is Applique.?
Ans: Applique is A cut-out decoration, design or motif applied to base
fabric.
18. What is Armscye?
Ans: Armscye means the Armhole; opening for a sleeve.
19. What is Asymmetrical ?
Ans: Asymmetrical means the One-sided, not geometrically balanced.
20. What is Baste?
Ans: Baste is the Stitches made by hand or machine to hold fabric
pieces together temporarily.
21. What is Bias?
Ans: Bias is the Diagonal direction of fabric. True bias is at a 45-degree
angle to the grain line.
22. What is Binding?
Ans: Binding is the Strip to encase edges as a finish or trim.
23. What is Blind hem?
Ans: Blind hem means the Sewing a hem invisibly with hand or machine
stitches.
24. What is Blouson?
Ans: Blouson means the Bloused effect of fullness gathered in at and
falling over a seam, typically the bodice over a skirt.
25. What is Bodice?
Ans: Bodice means the Portion of garment above the waist.
26. What is Bolt?
Ans: Bolt is the Unit in which fabric is packaged and sold by the
manufacturer. Usually contains 12 to 20 yards.
27. What is Boning?
Ans: Boning means the Flexible strips used to stiffen seams or edges.
28. What is Casing?
Ans: Casing is a folded-over edge of garment or area through which
elastic or ribbon is threaded.
29. What is Chevron?

Ans: Chevron is a V-shaped stripes.

30. what is Clean finish?
Ans: Clean finish means the method for finishing the raw edges of
pockets, hems or seams.
31. What is Clip?
Ans: Clip is a cut in fabric to allow ease on curves or corners. Also used
to indicate notches in garment pattern.
32. What is Closure?
Ans: Closure means that which opens or closes a garment (buttons,
snaps, etc., or the area on which they are Placed)
33. What is Colorfast?
Ans: Colorfast means the Fabric that will not fade or run during cleaning
or laundering.
34. What is contrasting?
Ans: Contrasting means the Opposing; showing off differences of color,
fabric, shading, etc.
35. What is Crease?
Ans: Crease is a line made by folding the fabric and pressing the fold on
this specified line .
36. What is Dart?
Ans: Dart is a tuck in the fabric that helps in fitting the garment over the
body curve.
37. What is Dolman?
Ans: Dolman means the Sleeve set into a deep armhole so as to
resemble a kimono sleeve.
38. What is Double-breasted front?
Ans: Double-breasted means Front closing that overlaps enough to allow
two rows of buttons.
39. What is Drum Lining?
Ans: Drum lining is the Lining not sewn into garment seams.
40. What is Ease?
Ans: Ease is the even distribution of slight fullness when one section of a
seam is joined to a slightly shorter section without forming gathers or
tucks. Used to shape set-in sleeves, princess seams, etc.
41. What is Edge stitching?
Ans: Edge stitching is the Stitching placed 116 inch from the edge; may
be stitching detail, such as topstitching or stitching done to finish the
outer edge of a seam or facing edge.

42. What is Empire?

Ans: Empire is a High waistline bodice with a loose, straight skirt.
43. What is enclosed seam?
Ans: Enclosed seam means the seam allowance along a faced edge that
is stitched and turned to form an enclosed seam between two layers of
fabric.
44. What is Eyelet?
Ans: Eyelet is a small, round, finished hole in a garment or fabric.
45. What do you mean by fabric hand?
Ans: Fabric hand means the way a fabric feels and drapes; its flexibility,
smooth- ness and softness.
46. What is facing?
Ans: Facing is to finish an edge by applying a fitted piece of fabric,
binding, etc. Also the right side of the fabric.
47. What is Fell stitch?
Ans: Fell stitch is a Neat, tiny, vertical stitches used in tailoring.
48. What is Finger Press?
Ans: Finger press means the Pressing a small area by crease with the
fingers.
49. What is Finish?
Ans: Finish is any means of completing a raw garment edge to keep it
from raveling, rolling or fraying.
50. What is Flap?
Ans: Flap is the shaped garment piece attached by only one edge, such
as a flap pocket.
51. What is Flare?
Ans: Flare is a Portion of garment that spreads out or widens.
52. What is Fly?
Ans: Fly means the fabric used as lap to conceal an opening in a
garment.
53. What is Fold line?
Ans: Fold line is the line where fabric is folded, usually vertically, when
cutting out a garment. It is common for the center front of a garment to
be placed on a fold line.
54. What is Fusible web?
Fusible web is a web-like adhesive that melts when you apply heat and
moisture.
55. What is Gather?

Ans: Gather means to draw up fabric fullness on a line of stitching.

56. What is Gore?
Ans: Gore i s a tapered section of a garment; wider at the lower edge.
57. What is Grade?
Ans: Grade means to reduce the bulk of enclosed seams by trimming
the individu al seam allowances different widths, clipping inward curves
and corners, notching convex curves, and trimming away excess fabric at
outward corners.
58. What is Grosgrain?
Ans: Grosgrain means the Silk fabric or ribbon having heavy crosswise
ribs.
59. What is Gusset?
Ans: Gusset is a fabric piece inserted at the un der arm to give ease in
the sleeve area.
60. What is Hem?
Ans: Hem is the finished portion on skirts, jackets and sleeves held in
place with a hemming stitch.
61. What is Interfacing?
Ans: A carefully selected fabric placed between the garment and the
facing fabric for added body, to give support, and to maintain shape.
62. What is Join?
Ans: A term used in pattern directions that usually means to stitch
together the pieces re ferred to using normal seam allowances and regular
stitches.
63. What is Keyhole?
Ans: A rounded neckline with an inverted, wedge-shaped opening at
front or back.
64. What is Lapels?
Ans: A Part of a garment that turns back, especially the front neck- line
fold of a jacket.
65. What is Layout?
Ans: Cutting chart on instruction guide sheet showing the place ment of
pattern pieces.
66. What is Line?
Ans: Line means Style, outline or effect given by the cut and
construction of a garment.
67. What is Marking?
Ans: Marking is the Transfer of construction symbols from paper pattern
to fabric.

68. What is Match?

Ans: To bring notches or other construction markings on two pieces
together.
69. What is Miter?
Ans: Miter To form a diagonal seam at a square corner.
70. What is Motif ?
Ans: A Unit of design; used as decoration or pattern.
71. What is Nap?
Ans: A Soft surface with fibers that lie smoothly in one direction.
72. What is Notch?
Ans: Notch means the Cutting wedges from seam allowances of an
outward curve. Also a pattern symbol transferred to fabric to indicate
seaming.
73. What is Notions?
Ans: Items other than fabric or a pat- tern required to complete a
garment, such as buttons, thread, zipper, etc.
74. What is Pattern markings?
Ans: The symbols for construction printed on the pattern, such as for
darts, buttonholes, notches, dots or tucks. They are transferred from the
pattern to the fabric by means of tailors tacks, notches, chalk, basting or
tem porary fabric markers.
75. Whah is Peplum?
Ans: Peplum is a Small flounce or extension of garment around the hips,
usually from the bodice.
76. What is Pin basting?
Ans: Pin basting is the technique of Pinning seams before stitching.
77. What is Pinking?
Ans: Cutting raw edges with pinking or scalloping sheers to prevent
raveling.
78. What is Pintuck?
Ans: A narrow channel of fabric stitched together to form tuck design
detail, used in French hand sewing.
79. What is Pivot?
Ans: The Stitching around a corner by leaving the needle in the fabric,
raising the presser foot, and turning the fabric in a new direction.
80. What is Placket?
Ans: Garment opening fastened with zipper, snaps or buttons. Finish
applied to sleeve opening with cuff.

81. What is Pre-shrink?

Ans: Washing/dry-cleaning fabric to allow for shrinkage of fabric before
the garment construction.
82. What is Princess line?
Ans: Garment fitted with seams instead of darts.
83. What is Ravel?
Ans: Ravel means the fray in the cutting edges of the fabric.
84. What is Raw edge?
Ans: Raw edge is the Unfinished edge of fabric.
85. What is Right side of fabric?
Ans: Right side is the Finished side of fabric, outside of garment.
86. What is Rip?
Ans: To remove stitches improperly placed; also tearing fabric along the
straight grain.
87. What is Roll?
Ans: Roll is the desired curve and fold (commonly on a collar); shaping
established by pressing, pad stitching, etc.
88. What is seam?
Ans: Seam refers the Two or more edges of fabric held together by
sewing. Seam should be well constructed and appropriate for the fabric,
type of garment, and the location on the garment.
89. What is Seam allowance?
Ans: Seam allowance means the Width of fabric beyond the seam line,
not including the garment area.
90. What is Seam binding?
Ans: Seam binding is the Ribbon-like tape used to finish edges.
91. What is secure?
Ans: Fasten permanently by means of a knot, backstitching, etc.
92. What is Self fabric?
Ans: Self fabric means the same material as the rest of the garment.
93. What is Selvage?
Ans: Selvage is the Lengthwise finished edges on all woven fabrics.
Running parallel to the lengthwise grain.
94.What is Semi-fitted?
Ans: Fitting to conform partly, but not too closely, to the shape of the
figure.

95. What is Serger?

Ans: A machine that overcasts and trims an edge simultaneously.
96. What is Shank?
Ans: The Link between button and fabric to allow for the thickness of
overlapping fabric.
97. What is Sheath?
Ans: Sheath means the Close-fitting dress with a straight skirt.
98. What is Shirt waist?
Ans: Dress with bodice details similar to a shirt.
99. What is Shrinking?
Ans: Constricting fabric with steam or water to eliminate excess in a
specific area. Also done to fabric before cutting out a garment to prevent
further fabric shrinkage.
100. What is Silhouette?
Ans: Silhouette means the Outline or contour of a figure or garment.
101. What is Single-breasted?
Ans: Center front closing with enough flap to allow one row of buttons.
102. What is Slash?
Ans: A Cut taken in fabric to facilitate construction or turning of fabric at
a point or corner.
103. What is slip stitch?
Ans: A hand stitch used to join two layers of fabric from the right side.
104. What is Stay?
Ans: Stay it Means of maintaining the shape of a garment area, by
using a small piece of fabric or tape that is sewn to an area of the garment
to reinforce and secure a position.
105. What is Stitching?
Ans: Stitching in the technique of sewing a straight stitch
inconspicuously in the seam well on the correct side of a previously
stitched seam. Used to complete waist- bands, cuffs, collars, and French
bias binding.
106. What is a take?
Ans: Tack Joining two garment layers with small, loose, hand stitches
or thread loops.
107. What is Tailoring?
Ans: Tailoring means the Construction technique requiring special hand
sewing and pressing to mold fabric into a finished garment.
108. What is Taper?

Ans: Cutting or stitching at a slight diagonal, generally to make

gradually smaller.
109. What is Template?
Ans: Template is a shape made of a stiff sub- stance, such as freezer
paper, usually the size of the finished design. (i.e., pocket, applique shape
or quilt pattern)
110. What is Tension ?
Ans: Tension Amount of pull on thread or fabric during construction.
Also the relationship of the needle and bobbin thread and how they
interlock to form the sewing machine stitch, creat- ing a balanced, looser
or tighter stitch.
111. What is Thread count?
Ans: Thread count means the Number of threads in 1 square inch of
fabric.
112. What is Topstitching?
Ans: Line of machine stitching parallel to a seam or edge, done from
the right side of a garment.
113. What is Trim?
Ans: To cut away excess fabric is called Trim .
114. What is Trimming?
Ans: A Feature added to a garment for ornamentation, such as braid or
self - fabric.
115. What is Twill tape?
Ans: A Firmly woven tape used for tailoring to reinforce and prevent
stretching.
116. What is Underlining?
Ans: Lining joined in garment seams that is used to give shape or
support.
117. What is Under stitching?
Ans: Under stitching is Folding the entire seam allowance to the facing
side or under- side and then stitching on the correct side of the facing
close to the seam edge. This allows the seam to lie flat and keeps the
seam edge from showing on the correct side of the garment.
118. What is Vent?
Ans: A faced or lined slash in a garment for ease.
119. What is Welt?
Ans: Welt is a Strip of material stitched to a seam, border or edge.
120. What is Wrap-around?
Ans: Wrap-around means the Garment or part of a garment wrapped

around a person, such as a skirt.

121.What is Wrong side?
Ans: Wrong side means the inside of a garment or back side of fabric.
122. What is Yoke?
Ans: Yoke is the fitted portion of a garment, usually at shoulders or
hips, designed to support the rest of the garment hanging from it.