| Term |
Definition |
| Aetz |
Imitation lace made on a Schiffli loom. The end result of the aetzing process. |
| Aetzing |
The process of eliminating the base fabric leaving only the threads remaining, resulting in lace. |
| Allover |
Continuous embroidery which covers all of the fabric from selvage to selvage. |
| Applique |
1. An embroidered motif, aetzed or cut, which can be used as a separate embroidered figure (Schiffli embroidery). 2. Fabric, which may or may not be previously embroidered, sewn to another piece of fabric or to a garment. |
| Argyle |
Multicolored diamond pattern used in knitwear, especially socks and sweaters. |
| Backing |
Woven or nonwoven material used underneath the item or fabric being embroidered to provide support and stability. |
| Badge |
An insignia of identification |
| Beaded placket |
Design detail at the opening of the placket that is formed by rolling the underside of the top placket to the face creating a piped or ridge detail at the edge. Sometimes the beading is in a contrast color. |
| Bean Stitch |
Three stitches applied back and forth between two points, in the same space as one regular stitch. This stitch is used to provide secure registration in place of a repeated, single stitch outline that may not align properly. |
| Biowashed |
Caps are dyed normally and then very gently washed with stones in a chemical solvent to create a very subtle worn look. |
| Bird's eye |
Small diamond pattern accentuated by a dot in the middle, resembling the eye of a bird. Commonly used in suitings. |
| Blatt Stitch |
A term used in Schiffli embroidery, referring to zig zag stitches laid close together. In Multihead embroidery, the term is Satin Stitch. |
| Blends |
Two or more types of staple fibers in one yarn to achieve color mixtures, unusual dyeing variations, or better performance characteristics. The most common blend is cotton and polyester. |
| Bobbin |
A pre-wound reel or spool of thread, usually plain white. The contents of the bobbin, the bobbin thread, are stitched to the back of the fabric. |
| Bonding |
The joining together of two fabrics permanently with a bonding agent (also known as heat sealing). |
| Bore |
A sharp pointed instrument used to puncture goods, part of the Schiffli embroidery machine. |
| Boring |
Open-work incorporated into embroidered designs; a sharp-pointed instrument punctures or bores the fabric, and stitches are made around the opening to enclose the raw edges. |
| Boucle |
A yarn with loops producing a rough, nubby appearance on woven or knitted fabric. |
| Brights (Color Families) |
Grouping made up of vibrant, primary colors such as blue, green, red, and yellow. |
| Buckram |
Liner which adds support to the front of a cap. |
| Bullion |
A hand made emblem, made with brass or silver hollow thread. These finished emblems are a product of India or Pakistan. |
| Cartoon |
Prior to the modern method of digitizing on-screen, an enlarged picture or cartoon of a design was drawn, using the industry-standard six to one ratio (the cartoon being six times larger than the resulting design). |
| Chain Stitch |
Named for its resemblance to a chain link, this stitch is usually applied using a single head embroidery machine. |
| Chalk stripes |
White or light-colored stripes woven against a dark background, like a chalk mark on a blackboard. They are usually more widely spaced than pin stripes. |
| Chenille |
A form of embroidery, widely used in the college apparel markets, in which a large loop stitch is left on the top of the fabric. This embroidery utilizes the chain stitch described above. |
| Color families |
Traditional tones are classic and timeless shades often deep and saturated. These colors include navy blue, forest green, burgundy, olive, along with khaki and cream. |
| Column Stitching |
Tightly placed zig zag stitching. Straight or curved, it is commonly used in lettering and in borders. Also known as Satin Stitching or Steil stitching. |
| Compacting |
Mechanical process in which knit fabrics are compressed in the lengthwise direction to tighten the construction and control shrinkage. |
| Complex Fill |
A digitizing term used to describe a pre-defined section of a design that includes areas of knock out (fabric show through). |
| Condensed Format |
Type of embroidery machine output format. The recording of only the points digitized which are later expanded to include all the stitches the machine will stitch in the format required. |
| Contrasting |
Using an embroidery thread color different from the color of the garment. For example, yellow and white thread used to embroider a navy blue shirt. |
| Coordinating |
Thread colors are chosen that coordinate with the garment. For example, a navy blue shirt with a dark green collar and cuffs would have a dark green embroidery. |
| Cover stitch |
Multineedle decorative topstitch traditionally used on underwear, T-shirts, henleys, and long johns, but more recently used as a fashion/design detail on a variety of knits. |
| Cover stitching |
Using two needles to overlap threads underneath, covering the over-edged seams with a smooth-seamed layer of threads. |
| Cross grain |
Grain or fibers stitched diagonally or irregularly. |
| Denim weights |
Weight is determined by weighing one yard of fabric. Some popular denim weights are: 5 oz., 7 oz., 9.5 oz., 10 oz., 11.5 oz., 12 oz., and 14.5 oz. |
| Density |
Amount of stitches in a given area. |
| Drop needle |
Knitting technique that disengages a knitting needle so as to prevent knitting a stitch. This results in a vertical rib-like appearance. Typically this technique is done on interlock (double knit) constructions. |
| Dyeing |
Method used to impart color to textiles. It involves the use of complex organic or chemical dyestuffs, which under proper conditions will actually combine with the textile fibers. There are many ways fabric can be dyed. |
| Dyeing - Indigo |
Indigo dye is a substance taken from the indigo plant. There are many chemical imitation indigo dyes. Indigo dye color can only be achieved through a process of dyeing, where yarn is dipped into a dye bath and is then allowed to oxidize. The number of dips determines the depth of the indigo color, the more dips, the darker the color. |
| Dyeing - Piece |
Fabrics are dyed solid colors after they have been woven or knit, but before they are sewn into a garment. Piece dyed goods can be used in making solid and color-blocked shirts. |
| Dyeing - Pigment |
Textile color by the use of pigments differs from reactive dyes in that pigments do not combine with the fiber molecules as reactive dyes do. Pigments hold onto the textile materials with resin binders in much the same way that paint holds to a wall. It is intentionally expected that pigments will wash out through repeated washings. |
| Dyeing - Reactive/Wet prints |
Reactive print dyeing process produces rich colors that are very colorfast because the dye absorbs or is bonded into the fibers. Reactive dyes produce bright colors on cottons and can dye acrylics, nylon, silk, wool, and blends of these fibers. These prints produce a nice, soft hand. This process is used on print shirts. |
| Dyeing - Top |
Yarns are dyed before the yarn is spun when the yarns are in the top state, which gives an uneven dyed or heather appearance to the yarn. Top dyeing results in a natural look of the two colors blended. This process is used on heathered and natural color shirts. |
| Dyeing - Vat |
Vat dye is obtained through oxidation. It is usually very bright and will hold up better when bleached than most other dyes. The process is very colorfast in all respects. This is an expensive procedure and is used mainly on high-end products. |
| Dyeing - Yarn |
Yarn is dyed prior to the weaving or knitting of the goods and after the spinning of the yarn. Done in either total immersion or partial immersion of the yarn. This process is especially used in patterns such as jacquards and stripes that require knitting. |
| Earthtones (Color Families) |
Neutral shades reminiscent of colors found in nature, such as deserts, mountains, and valleys. Many of these shades serve as a base of apparel, particularly in clothing (suits, etc.). Colors include tan brown, sage, and charcoal. |
| Emblem |
Embroidered design with a finished edge, commonly an insignia of identification, usually worn on outer clothing. Also known as a crest or patch. |
| Embroidery |
Art of creating and producing ornamental needlework consisting of designs worked on fabric with high luster threads either by hand or machine. |
| Facing |
Material hooped or placed on top of fabrics that have a definable nap or surface texture, such as corduroy and terry cloth, prior to embroidery. The facing compacts the wale or nap and holds the stitches above it. |
| Fair Isle |
Traditional knitted patterns or horizontal bands of geometric and floral designs against a contrasting background. Named after Fair Isle, the most southern of the Shetland Isles off the northern coast of Scotland, where authentic Fair Isle sweaters are made by hand from Shetland wool. |
| Fisherman knits |
Distinctive knitted patterns that originated on the Aran Islands off the coast of Ireland. Each family had its own highly recognized patterns, which were used to identify the remains of fishermen lost at sea. |
| Full-fashioned |
Knitting process whereby the pattern shape of an individual garment piece is formed on the knitting machine as opposed to being cut from a piece of cloth. Full-fashioned garments are typically expensive sweater knits where the sleeve is knit together with the body of the machine. Full fashioned collar trims allow for one to control the shape/angle of the collar points. |
| Garment-washed |
This means a cap has been sewn and made and then washed in a washing facility. This creates the popular faded, worn look around the edges and looks more natural than the material pre-washed caps. |
| Gauge |
Measure of the fineness or coarseness of knit fabrics. Refers to the number of loops (knit stitches) in an inch. The higher the gauge, the finer the fabric. |
| Grommet-sewn slot |
Caps that have a back strap made of cotton or leather and buckle, and have a slot where the end of the strap tucks into the hat. This slot can either be trimmed with stitching creating a sewn slot, or with a metal creating a grommet. |
| Gun club check |
Double-check design that uses three colors to form a larger check over a smaller check. |
| Gusset |
Inlaid piece of fabric, usually triangular, between arm and body of shirt. Allows ease of movement. |
| Half-moon label mount |
Fabric sewn inside the back of the garment just below the neck to add hanger appeal and to allow for placement of the label without visible stitches. |
| Hand |
Quality of characteristic of fabrics perceived by sense of touch, e.g., softness, firmness, drapability, fineness of the feel. |
| Heather yarn |
Tow (or more) toned yarn which is knit or woven to create a soft tonal effect. |
| Henley |
Knit shirt with buttoned placket at the neckline with no collar. Copied from a shirt originally worn by a rower in Henley, England. |
| Jewel Tones (Color Families) |
Are still deeper, saturated, more vibrant colors that include brights, such as emerald green, ruby red, and sapphire blue that cross seasons. |
| Leather |
Has subcategories, including genuine (top-grain or full grain leather from the outermost layer of hide); splits (underlayers split off from the top grain, usually having a surface treatment to simulate color and grain of genuine leather), and processed leather (one type of skin or hide made to resemble another type usually called "bonded leather" or "laminated leather"). |
| Lettering |
Embroidery using letters or words. Lettering, commonly called "keyboard lettering," may be created from circuit boards that allow variance of letter style, size, height, density, and other characteristics. |
| Locker loop |
Looped piece of fabric in the neck of a garment for the convenience of hanging the garment of a hook. Can also be located at the center of the back yoke on the inside or outside of the garment. |
| Locker patch |
Semi-oval panel sewn into the back of the garment just under the collar seam to reinforce the garment to minimize stretching when hung on a hook. |
| Midtones (Color Families) |
Transitional colors such as dusty blue, rose pink, sunflower yellow, and salmon that cross seasons and climates, and are less intense than jewel tones. |
| Monogram |
Embroidered design composed of one or more letters, usually the initials in a name. |
| Nail head |
General term for a variety of small woven patterns, including bird's eye, dots and small houndstooth. It is usually associated with clear finished worsted suitings, such as sharkskin. |
| Nap |
Raised surface or pile of a fabric, such as fleece, formed by distressing it. |
| Ombre |
Design that has graduations in color, usually it is shades of one family of color or can change colors, such as from green to blue. |
| Panels |
Five and six-panel caps. Six panels sewn together from the crown of the cap creating a seam down the front of the cap. Good for embroidery, but not a good choice for printing. A five-panel cap has five panels sewn together to form the crown of the cap.Since there is not seam down the front of the cap, five panels are an ideal choice for printing and embroidery. |
| Pastels (Color Families) |
Soft sunwashed colors such as sky blue, seafoam green, coral, baby pink, and butter yellow that are used predominantly in spring and summer deliveries and in warmer climates. |
| Pencil rub |
Low-cost way of producing a "sample" of an embroidery design. Consists literally of a piece of tracing paper placed over a sew-out and rubbed lightly with a pencil to produce an impression for the embroidery. |
| PFD |
Products that are specially manufactured for dyeing; 100% cotton thread, oversized cut to allow for shrinkage; no optical brighteners for even dye coverage. |
| Pigment dyed |
Caps are colored with a particular pigment that reacts with the washing to create a faded look. |
| Pincheck |
Very small check pattern that is popular for suits, sportswear and outerwear. |
| Plackets |
(Slits in apparel forming a closure). A small boxed area at the bottom of where the buttons are. |
| Profile |
Height of a cap's crown. Low-profile is approximately 3.5". Regular profile is approximately 3.75". Pro-style is somewhere in-between the two. |
| Rack stitch |
Knit pattern produced by a shift in the needle bed that creates a herringbone effect. |
| Raglan |
Raglan sleeve is stitched under the arm and in two parallel lines leading from the armpit to the neck. It makes for ease of movement. |
| Singles |
Term used to indicate the diameter of a yarn. The smaller the number, the thicker the yarn. |
| Stock designs |
Digitized generic embroidery designs that are readily available at a cost below that of custom-digitized designs. |
| Storm flap |
Strip of fabric sewn under or over the front zip or snap closure of outerwear garments to form a barrier against wind and moisture. |
| Swiss |
Satin stitch embroidery. Embroidery remains a government-support industry in Switzerland today. |
| Tackle twill |
Letters or numbers cut from polyester or rayon twill fabric that are commonly used for athletic teams and organizations. Tackle twill appliques attached to a garment have an adhesive backing that tacks them in place; the edges of the appliques are then zipzap stitched. |
| Tattersall check |
Simple check pattern with a loud appearance, made with two colors against a white or contrasting background. Gaudy combinations of bold colors are common. Checks are usually about a half-inch square. |
| Tonal |
Using a matching color thread to embroider a garment. For example, a navy shirt tonal embroidery would use a matching navy thread to create an embossed look. |
| Tone on tone |
Different shades of the same color as the garment are used for embroidery thread. For example, a navy blue shirt with a light blue and royal blue embroidery. |
| Torqued |
Natural twisting that occurs when a circular knit fabric is in a relaxed state. A circular knit is knit in a spiral motion and therefore "straight" stripes want to twist. This phenomenon usually occurs in poor quality jacquard knits and is minimized by compacting and the use of stabilizing resins. |
| Twill tape |
Narrow herringbone twill weave tape used as reinforcement at the stress areas - neck, shoulders, pockets - of a garment. It is also used as a design element, often inside plackets. |
| Unstructured slouch |
Caps with no buckram are unstructured. Many of the latest caps have the "floppy" look. Can be scrunched up and stuffed in a back pocket. |
| Urethane coatings |
Water and stain repellents are applied to the nylon fabric surface to add to the appearance of luggage. |
| Vegetable (Color Families) |
Rich, saturated colors that are used primarily in fall and winter deliveries. They include the colors eggplant, pumpkin and gold that are inspired by the hues of vegetables and fall foliage. |
| Vinyl |
Stain resistant plastic material used for coverings and trims in luggage. Available in a wide range of colors. |
| Warp |
Lengthwise grain in woven fabric. |
| Weft |
Crosswise grain in a woven fabric. Weft is also known as "fill." |
| Welt |
1. Strip between a shoe sole and upper through which they are stitched or stapled together. 2. A double edge, strip, insert, or seam for ornament or reinforcement. |
| Windowpane |
Simple, boxy check or plaid pattern using a minimum of colors and thin lines to form large squares or rectangles with clear centers, like windowpanes. |
| Yarn |
Grouping of fibers or filament which is twisted together to make a continuous strand. |
| Yoke |
Contoured portion of a garment, usually at the shoulder or hip. |
