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Gathers

Gathers are bundles of fabric that add fullness when sewn into garments, often seen at waistlines, sleeves, cuffs or bodices. Gathers are formed by sewing two parallel rows of long machine stitches above the seam allowance and gathering the fabric to one-third to one-half of its original width. Gathering involves two parallel rows of stitching, shirring uses two or more rows of gathers for decoration, and smocking uses gathers with long stitches on the back and small stitches in the front. Common techniques for working gathers include two-thread gathering, zigzagging over a cord, or using a serger with differential feed.

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704 views

Gathers

Gathers are bundles of fabric that add fullness when sewn into garments, often seen at waistlines, sleeves, cuffs or bodices. Gathers are formed by sewing two parallel rows of long machine stitches above the seam allowance and gathering the fabric to one-third to one-half of its original width. Gathering involves two parallel rows of stitching, shirring uses two or more rows of gathers for decoration, and smocking uses gathers with long stitches on the back and small stitches in the front. Common techniques for working gathers include two-thread gathering, zigzagging over a cord, or using a serger with differential feed.

Uploaded by

Nadia Hammond
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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GATHERS

What are Gathers?

Gathers are bundles of a portion of fabric which help to increase


fullness and create a neater appearance when sewn into garments.
Gathers are often seen at waistline, sleeve, cuffs or a bodice yoke.
Household articles
HOW ARE GATHERS FORMED?

Gathers are formed using a long machine stitch to form two parallel rows of stitching
just above the seam allowance, ¼ away from each other. The fabric is gathered to
about one third to one half of the previous width to create soft even fold.
Differentiate between gathering,
shirring and smocking

Gathering involves using a long machine stitch to form two parallel


rows of stitching above the seam allowance

Shirring shirring is two or more rows of gathers that are


used to decorate parts of garments, usually the sleeves,
bodice or yoke

Smocking involves using regular gathers (or pleats) are taken on the fabric
with long stitches on the back and very small stitches in the front.
TECHNIQUES FOR WORKING GATHERS

● TWO THREAD GATHERING

This method uses two lines of machine basted stitches to gather the
fabric. It is easier to gather with longer stitch lengths, so we
recommend a length of 4-5mm for gathering stitches.

Sew both lines of basting stitches 1/4" apart within the seam
allowance. This provides less control over the final gathers, but is
easier on the final fabric. If your seam allowance is 5/8", sew your
two lines of basting stitches at 1/2" and 1/4".
TWO THREAD GATHERING
● ZIG ZAG OVER A CORD

This method works well for gathering heavier-weight fabrics. In this


method, a sturdy piece of yarn, cord or topstitching thread is run the
length of the gathered area. A zig zag stitch is stitched over the cord,
and the cord is pulled like a drawstring to create gathers. The zig zag
stitch width should be set wider than the cord so it doesn’t get caught in
the stitching, and the length depends on how much control over the
gathers is desired. A shorter length means more control over gathers
(creating finer gathers), while a longer length means less control over
gathers (creating larger gathers).
● ZIG ZAG OVER A CORD
● USING A SERGER

A serger with a differential


feed option can be set to
gather the fabric as it passes
under the presser foot of your
serger.

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