Tailoring Glossary: Terms From Baste to Waist Suppression

Alteration

A change made to a finished garment to improve its fit, such as shortening sleeves or taking in the waist. How much a tailor can change depends on the seam allowance left inside; see what a tailor can alter.

Anchor button (jigger button)

The inside button on a double-breasted jacket that holds the underneath front panel in place, so the overlap stays flat.

Armhole (scye)

The opening in the jacket body into which the sleeve is sewn; tailors call it the scye. A high, small armhole lets you raise your arm without the whole jacket lifting.

Balance

The relationship between the front and back lengths of a jacket. With correct balance the hem hangs level and the fronts fall straight, neither swinging open nor overlapping.

Barchetta

Italian for 'little boat': a breast pocket that curves upward at the ends like a hull. It is a signature of Neapolitan tailoring.

Baste

To hold pieces of fabric together with long, loose, temporary stitches, usually in white thread. A basted garment can be taken apart, recut and reshaped easily. In Britain basting is also called tacking.

Basted fitting (the baste)

The first fitting of a bespoke garment, cut in the customer's fabric but only loosely stitched together. The cutter chalks changes on it and often takes it apart to correct the pattern.

Bespoke

A garment cut from a paper pattern drafted from scratch for one customer and refined over several fittings, with much of the work done by hand. The word comes from 'bespeak', to order in advance; see what bespoke means.

Block pattern

A standard base pattern in set sizes that a maker adjusts for each customer. Made-to-measure and ready-to-wear clothes start from a block; a bespoke pattern is normally drafted from scratch.

Boutonnière

French for buttonhole: the buttonhole on the upper left lapel, made for a flower or a pin. On a good jacket it is cut open, sewn by hand and backed by a small loop that holds a stem.

Break

The fold that forms at the front of a trouser leg where the hem meets the shoe. Trousers can have no break or a quarter, half or full break; see trouser breaks.

Bridle

A narrow strip of linen tape sewn along the roll line of a jacket's canvas. It stops the roll line from stretching, so the lapel keeps its roll and the chest sits close to the body.

Bunch

A book of fabric samples from a mill or a merchant, used to choose suiting. Each sample usually lists the fabric's weight and composition.

Button stance

The height of the jacket's fastening button. A higher stance covers more of the shirt and tie; a lower one lengthens the V of the jacket front.

Canvas

The springy interlining, traditionally wool or cotton woven with horsehair or goat hair, that sits between the outer fabric and the lining and shapes the jacket front. In a canvassed jacket it floats, held by stitches instead of glue; see fused vs canvas.

Chalk stripe

A soft, slightly blurred stripe, wider and less sharp than a pinstripe, that looks as if drawn with tailor's chalk. It is most common on flannel.

Chest piece

Extra layers of horsehair canvas laid over the main canvas at the chest and usually covered with soft domette. They give the jacket a clean, full shape below the collarbone.

Coatmaker

The tailor who sews a jacket together from the pieces the cutter has cut. In a traditional workshop, coats, trousers and waistcoats are made by different specialists.

Cupro (Bemberg)

A smooth, breathable lining fabric made from regenerated cellulose fiber derived from cotton linter. Bemberg is a well-known brand name for it.

Cutter

The person who measures the customer, drafts the pattern, cuts the fabric and runs the fittings. In bespoke, the cutter is usually the customer's main contact.

Dart

A narrow, tapered fold sewn into fabric to shape it around the body. On a jacket, front darts run from the chest toward the hip pocket and shape the waist.

Domette

A soft, loosely woven interlining with a fleecy surface, laid over the chest piece to soften the chest and stop the coarse hair canvas from working through to the outside.

Double-breasted

A jacket whose fronts overlap widely and fasten with two columns of buttons, usually four or six in total. An anchor button holds the inner panel in place.

Drape

How a fabric hangs and falls. In cutting, a drape cut adds fullness across the chest and shoulder blades so the fabric falls in soft vertical folds; the London drape is associated with Savile Row houses such as Anderson & Sheppard.

Drop

In ready-to-wear sizing, the difference in inches between the jacket chest size and the trouser waist. A size 40 jacket sold with 34-inch trousers has a 6-inch drop, the usual American standard.

Ease

The extra room a tailor adds to body measurements so you can breathe, sit and move. A slim cut has little ease; a classic cut has more.

Facing

The layer of outer fabric that lines the inside front edge of a jacket, from the lapel down to the hem, so the lapel shows the suit fabric when it turns back. On a dinner jacket, the facing is the silk covering the lapels.

Felling

A small, nearly invisible hand stitch that fastens one edge of fabric flat onto another, such as a lining onto the inside of a jacket.

Finish fitting

The last fitting of a bespoke garment, on the nearly finished suit, to make small final adjustments before collection.

Fishtail back

A trouser waistband that rises at the back into a V-shaped split. It is cut for braces, the British word for suspenders, and lets the seat move freely.

Flannel

A soft wool fabric with a brushed, slightly fuzzy surface, woven from woolen or worsted yarn. It is warm and matte, and a classic choice for winter suits and gray trousers.

Forward fitting

The stage after the baste, on a partly finished garment: pockets cut, lapels shaped and sleeves set, but buttonholes and sleeve ends left open.

Fresco

A wool suiting woven from tightly twisted yarns in an open plain weave, so air passes through and creases fall out. It is one of the best fabrics for hot weather.

Full canvas

A jacket with a floating canvas running the full length of the front, from shoulder to hem, with no fused layer.

Fused

A jacket whose front interlining is bonded to the outer fabric with heat-activated adhesive instead of being stitched in. It is quicker and cheaper to make than canvas.

Gimp

A firm cord sewn into the edge of a hand-made buttonhole to raise it and help it keep its shape.

Glen check

A woven pattern of small checks grouped into larger checks, usually in two contrasting colors. It takes its name from Glen Urquhart in Scotland; with a thin colored overcheck it is often called a Prince of Wales check.

Gorge

The seam where the collar is sewn to the lapel. A high gorge makes the lapels look longer; a low gorge makes them look shorter and broader.

Grain

The direction of the threads in a woven fabric. Pieces cut on the straight grain hang true; pieces cut diagonally, on the bias, stretch and mold more easily.

Hacking pockets

Hip pockets set at a slant, a detail borrowed from riding jackets. They give a jacket a sporting, country look.

Half canvas

A jacket with a floating canvas in the chest and lapels and a fused lower front. It is a common middle ground in price and quality.

Hand

The feel of a fabric: smooth or dry, soft or crisp, springy or limp. Tailors judge a fabric by its hand as much as by its look.

Herringbone

A twill weave whose diagonal lines reverse direction at regular intervals, forming rows of V shapes like the bones of a fish.

Hopsack

An open basket weave with a visible, slightly nubbly texture. It breathes well and is a classic fabric for navy blazers.

Horsehair canvas

Canvas woven with horsehair, usually combined with wool or cotton, used in a jacket's chest for its spring. It helps the chest recover its shape after it has been crushed.

Houndstooth

A broken check of small, jagged four-pointed shapes, usually in two colors. In Britain it is also called dogtooth, and very small versions puppytooth.

Inlay

Extra seam allowance left inside a garment, most often at the trouser seat and the jacket's back and side seams, so it can be let out later.

Interlining

Any layer sewn or fused between the outer fabric and the lining to add shape or support, such as the canvas in a jacket front or the stiffening in a shirt collar.

Jetted pocket (besom pocket)

A pocket opening finished with two narrow strips of fabric and no flap. It is the cleanest pocket and the standard on dinner jackets.

Kissing buttons

Sleeve buttons sewn so close that their edges just touch. Buttons that overlap slightly are called stacked or waterfall buttons.

Lapel

The part of the jacket front that folds back below the collar. The three main shapes are notch, peak and shawl.

Lapel roll (roll line)

The roll line is the fold along which the lapel turns back. A lapel that rolls over it in a soft curve, instead of lying flat along a pressed crease, usually signals a canvassed front.

Lining

The smooth inner layer of a jacket, usually cupro, viscose or silk, that helps it slide on and hides the construction. A half lining leaves much of the back open to keep the jacket cooler.

Lounge suit

The British term for an ordinary business suit. On an invitation it means a suit and tie, not a dinner suit.

Made-to-measure

A garment made from a house's block pattern, adjusted to the customer's measurements and usually sewn in a factory. It sits between ready-to-wear and bespoke.

Milanese buttonhole

A lapel buttonhole sewn entirely by hand over a cord, giving a raised, rounded edge. It is decorative and a sign of hand finishing.

Mohair

Fiber from the Angora goat, often blended with wool. It gives suiting a crisp hand, a slight sheen and good resistance to creasing.

Nap

The raised fibers on the surface of a fabric such as flannel, corduroy or velvet. Every piece must be cut with the nap running the same way, or the color looks different from panel to panel.

Notch

The wedge-shaped gap at the gorge between the end of the collar and the top of the lapel. It gives the notch lapel its name.

Pad stitching

Rows of small diagonal stitches that join the canvas to the lapels and under collar and shape them into a curve. Done by hand, it gives a softer, livelier roll than machine pad stitching.

Pattern

The set of paper templates for every piece of a garment. A bespoke pattern is drafted for one customer, corrected after each fitting and kept on file for future orders.

Peak lapel

A lapel whose upper edge sweeps up into a point toward the shoulder. It is traditional on double-breasted jackets and dinner jackets.

Pick stitching

A line of small stitches set just in from the edge of the lapels and pockets. Done by hand it is a sign of careful finishing, though machines can imitate it.

Pinstripe

A very thin, sharply defined stripe, usually light on a dark ground. It is narrower and crisper than a chalk stripe.

Pitch

The angle at which the sleeve is set into the armhole. When the pitch follows how your arms hang, the sleeve falls cleanly without twisting or creasing.

Pleats

Folds of fabric at the front of trousers, just below the waistband, that add room through the hip and thigh. Trousers without them are called flat front.

Pressing

Shaping and smoothing a garment with steam, heat and pressure. Tailors also use the iron to shrink and stretch wool into curves as they build a jacket.

Quarters

The front edges of a jacket below the fastening button. Open quarters curve away to show more trouser; closed quarters fall straighter and look more formal.

Ready-to-wear

Clothing made in advance in standard sizes from a graded pattern and fitted afterward by alteration. It is also called off-the-rack or off-the-peg.

Rise

The distance from the crotch seam to the top of the waistband. A high rise sits near the natural waist; a low rise sits on the hips.

Rock of eye

Cutting by trained judgment and experience rather than strictly by formula. A cutter uses rock of eye to adjust a pattern for posture and build.

Roped shoulder

A shoulder where the top of the sleeve sits slightly higher than the shoulder line, forming a visible ridge. It is common on structured English jackets.

Sack suit

The traditional American suit cut: a straight jacket without front darts, with natural shoulders and an easy fit through the body.

Selvage (selvedge)

The finished edge of a woven fabric, where the crosswise yarns turn back. Many mills weave their name into it.

Shawl lapel

A lapel cut in one continuous curve from the back of the neck to the button, with no notch or gorge. It is used mainly on dinner jackets.

Side adjusters

Buckles or button tabs at each side of the trouser waistband that tighten the waist, used instead of a belt.

Sleevehead

The rounded top of the sleeve, sewn into the armhole. Many jackets support it with a strip of padding so it hangs smoothly from the shoulder.

Spalla camicia

Italian for 'shirt shoulder': an unpadded Neapolitan shoulder in which a fuller sleevehead is eased in by hand, leaving small ripples along the seam.

Su misura

Italian for made to measure, literally 'on measure'. Italian tailors use it for their custom work, which can mean true bespoke or a made-to-measure program, so ask which you are getting.

Super number

A label such as Super 120s that states the maximum average fiber diameter of the wool in a fabric. Higher numbers mean finer, softer wool, not a more durable fabric; see Super numbers explained.

Surgeon's cuffs (working cuffs)

Jacket sleeve buttonholes that open and close. They are usual on bespoke jackets and are cut only once the sleeve length is confirmed.

Swelled edge

A raised line along the edges of the lapels and fronts, made by a row of stitching set in from the edge. It adds a sporting look that suits tweeds and casual jackets.

Tack

A temporary stitch used to mark or hold fabric. Tailor's tacks are loose loops of thread that transfer pattern marks through two layers of fabric at once.

Take in and let out

To take in is to make a garment smaller by sewing a seam deeper; to let out is to make it larger by releasing seam allowance from the inlay. Taking in is almost always easier.

Ticket pocket

A small extra flap pocket set above the right hip pocket. It is a mostly English detail, usually said to have begun as a place to keep a train ticket.

Toile

A trial garment made in inexpensive fabric, often cotton muslin, to test a pattern before the final fabric is cut. Some makers use one in place of a basted fitting.

Trimmings

Every material in a garment except the outer fabric: linings, canvas, pocketing, thread, buttons and tapes.

Trunk show

A visit by a tailor to another city, where customers are measured and fitted in a hotel suite or showroom. Many London and Hong Kong tailors travel abroad this way.

Turn-up (cuff)

A band of fabric folded up and stitched at the bottom of a trouser leg. Turn-up is the British word; Americans say cuff.

Tweed

A rough, thick woolen fabric traditionally woven in Scotland and Ireland, often in mixed colors. Harris Tweed is protected by law and must be handwoven in the Outer Hebrides.

Under collar

The underside of a jacket collar, usually made of melton, a dense felted wool that holds its shape. On a hand-made jacket it is shaped with rows of pad stitching.

Unstructured

A jacket with little or no padding, canvas or lining, which follows the body softly. It is lighter and more casual than a structured jacket.

Vent

A slit in the back hem of a jacket that lets it open when you move or sit. A jacket can have no vent, a single center vent or two side vents.

Waist suppression

How much a jacket narrows at the waist compared with the chest. Strong suppression gives an hourglass shape; little suppression gives a straighter, boxier line.

Waistcoat (vest)

A sleeveless garment worn over the shirt and under the jacket. Americans call it a vest; in Britain a vest is an undershirt.

Welt pocket

A pocket whose opening is finished with a single upright strip of fabric, the welt. The breast pocket of a jacket is usually a welt pocket.

Woolen

Yarn spun from carded wool fibers lying in all directions, and the soft, fuzzy, warm fabric woven from it. Tweed and many flannels are woolen.

Worsted

Yarn spun from long, combed wool fibers lying parallel, and the smooth, strong fabric woven from it. Most business suits are worsted; see worsted vs woolen.

Yoke

The panel across the back of a shirt's shoulders. A split yoke, cut in two pieces, lets the shirtmaker fit each shoulder separately.