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A silhouette in which the waist seam of a dress sits at or below the hip rather than the natural waistline, characteristic of the loose, boyish flapper styles of the 1920s.

A version of a PDF sewing pattern formatted to print as a single large sheet at a copy shop, sized to the international A0 paper standard.

A semi-synthetic fibre made from cellulose acetate, offering silk-like sheen and drape at low cost but weak wet strength and low heat tolerance; common in lining fabric.

A smooth, lightweight lining fabric made from acetate fibre, offering silk-like sheen and drape at low cost but requiring low-heat pressing.

A synthetic fibre engineered to mimic wool's warmth and softness at lower cost, lightweight but prone to pilling and heat sensitivity.

Clothing engineered for exercise and sport, typically constructed from moisture-wicking, four-way stretch synthetic knit fabrics with flatlock seaming.

Garments modified or designed with alternative closures, openings, or seams to make dressing easier for people with disabilities, limited mobility, or sensory sensitivities.

A dress form with dial-controlled sections that can be resized to approximate a range of body measurements for fitting multiple sizes on one form.

A waistband too loose or tight is altered by taking in or letting out the side seams, adding elastic panels, or moving buttons and hooks. Check the fix doesn't distort the closure or shape.

British designer and Savile Row-trained tailor known for dramatic, technically complex runway shows and precise tailoring, who led his own label from 1992 and Givenchy from 1996 to 2001.

A soft, warm animal-hair fibre from alpacas, lighter and often warmer than wool with minimal lanolin, used in coating and knitwear.

Cotton fabric with bold, wax-resist-dyed patterns, industrially produced in Europe from the 19th century in imitation of Indonesian batik and adopted as a distinctive West African fashion textile.

A pullover or zip-front hooded jacket, often with a drawstring hood and hem, designed for wind and water resistance.

A Vietnamese national dress consisting of a long, fitted tunic with side slits worn over loose trousers, developed in its modern form during the 1930s from earlier court dress.

A machine embroidery technique combining a placement stitch, a fabric piece, and tack-down and cover stitches to attach and finish a fabric applique.

An open-toe presser foot offering a clear view of the needle and stitch line, used for satin stitching and detailed applique work.

French for 'workshop,' used in the fashion world to describe the studio space where a designer's garments are actually made, especially at couture houses.

The portion of a bodice draft that shapes the back torso pattern, incorporating the shoulder blade dart or ease, waist shaping, and armhole curve calculated from back body measurements.

Padded, adjustable shoulder straps constructed with webbing and sliders, engineered to distribute a backpack's weight and attach securely to its body at multiple points.

Rigid or semi-rigid panel, of plastic canvas, cardboard, or heavy interfacing, inserted into the bottom of a bag to help it hold its shape and stand upright.

The state of a garment hanging evenly on the body with its seams and grainlines running true, without twisting toward the front, back, or one side.

A regenerated cellulose fibre processed from bamboo pulp, marketed for softness and breathability though chemically similar to viscose rayon.

A short, dense zigzag or hand-worked reinforcement stitched at points of stress, such as pocket corners or fly ends, to prevent seams from tearing open.

A wax-resist dyeing technique in which molten wax is applied to fabric to block dye from certain areas, producing intricate patterns; long practiced in Indonesia, especially Java, and recognized by UNESCO in 2009.

Surface embellishment technique in which beads are stitched individually or in strings onto fabric with a beading needle and thread to create texture, pattern, or sparkle.

A sleeve fitted at the shoulder that flares progressively wider toward the wrist, producing a bell-shaped silhouette at the hem.

A trademarked lightweight cupro rayon lining fabric prized for a silk-like hand, breathability and antistatic properties compared with polyester linings.

Originally a term for custom tailoring made entirely to one individual customer's specifications, now used more loosely for any made-to-order garment.

A method of making a garment, typically a suit, individually from a unique pattern drafted to one client's measurements, involving multiple fittings and largely hand-sewn construction.

An early, not-yet-finalized version of a sewing pattern sent out to testers for feedback before the pattern's official public release.

The diagonal direction across a woven fabric, at 45 degrees to the grainlines, along which fabric has maximum stretch and drape; used for bindings and fluid-cut garments.

Edges or seams that stretch and lose their shape happen when fabric cut near the bias grain is handled without support. Stay-stitch bias edges promptly after cutting and avoid pulling the fabric while sewing.

A narrow strip of bias-cut fabric sewn to an edge and turned to the inside, used to finish curved edges with minimal bulk.

A pattern alteration that adds or removes width in the upper sleeve to match an arm circumference that differs from the block's assumed bicep measurement.

The measurement taken around the fullest part of the upper arm, used to check and adjust the fit of a sleeve pattern.

A two-piece swimsuit consisting of a separate top and bottom that expose the midriff, typically constructed from stretch swim fabric.

A looped edge stitch that wraps around a raw or folded edge, used to finish edges or attach appliqué.

A hem stitched so the stitching is nearly invisible from the right side, worked by hand with a blind hemming stitch or by machine with a blind hem foot.

A presser foot with a guide bar that runs along a folded hem edge, positioning the needle to catch only a thread or two for an invisible hem.

A stitch pattern combining several straight stitches with a single zigzag jog, used with a folded hem to catch fabric almost invisibly from the right side.