French Sewing vocab Flashcards
(109 cards)
1
Q
avantbras
A
forearm
2
Q
bâtir
A
to baste
3
Q
boutons/boutonnières
A
buttons/buttonholes (“1 bouton pour la taille” = “1 button for the waistband”)
4
Q
boutons pression
A
snaps (the kind you press, or hammer, that show from the front, not the sew
5
Q
les bretelles
A
straps
6
Q
coté
A
side (“Fermer les cotés…” = “Close the sides…” or “…du coté plat de la poche…” = “… the flat side of the pocket…”). I also saw it used to describe a side gusset, on the tee pattern with the 4 hanging points that are tied into knots.
7
Q
coucher
A
to place (“Coucher les coutures vers la poche.” = “Place the seams towards the pocket.”)
8
Q
coudre
A
to sew
9
Q
coudre à points de surjet
A
to serge (though it literally means “to sew back and forth joining stitches”)
10
Q
ceinture
A
waistband; also belt or sash
11
Q
chevaucher
A
overlap
12
Q
col
A
collar
13
Q
col châle
A
shawl collar
14
Q
coutures
A
seams
15
Q
couture(s) du cote
A
side seam(s)
16
Q
couture(s) de dessous de bras
A
underarm seam(s)
17
Q
cranter
A
to notch
18
Q
dessus
A
top (“sur dessus de poche” = “on top of the pocket”, “dessus de manche” = “upper sleeve”)
19
Q
dessous
A
below or underside (“dessous de manche” = “under sleeve”); “dessous” can also mean lingerie (similar to “undies”) or interlining
20
Q
devant
A
front
21
Q
doublure
A
lining
22
Q
dos
A
back
23
Q
droit fil
A
straight of grain
24
Q
emmancher
A
to fit one part into another, often with a fiddly bit that needs to be adjusted, such as easing a sleeve into an armhole
25
emmanchure
armhole
26
empiècement
yoke. Note that in the directions for the skirt I made with the twisted drape, they refer to the drape pattern piece as an "empiècement." My French friend thought this strange. She said usually an empiècement refers to a sewn
27
en piquant
(while) catching
28
éncarter
press ("éncarter les coutures au fer" = "press seams open")
29
encolure
neckline
30
endroit
right ("endroit con endroit" = "right side to right side")
31
endroit du patron
right side of pattern
32
endroit du tissu
right side of fabric
33
entoiler
to interface
34
entoilage
interfacing
35
entoilage thermocollant
fusible interfacing
36
entoiler
to interface ("entoiler les parementures" = "interface the facings")
37
entournure
armhole
38
l'entrejambe
inside leg ("fermer l'entrejambe" = "close the inside leg seam" (from ankle to ankle)
39
envers du tissu
wrong side of fabric
40
les épaules
the shoulders ("assembler les épaules" = "sew the shoulder seams")
41
double epaisseur
double thickness
42
épingler
to pin
43
faufiler
to baste
44
le fil
thread ("1 fil de couleur contrastante épais" = "1 [spool of] topstitching thread in a contrasting color")
45
finition
finishing
46
les flèches
arrows ("coucher les plis selon les flèches du patron" = "form the tucks according to the arrows on the pattern")
47
fond
background ("fond de poche devant" = "front pocket back", as in a front jeans pocket)
48
la fourche
crotch ("fermer la fourche" = "close the crotch seam (from bellybutton to bottom)")
49
le genou
knee
50
de hanches
hipline
51
haut
top
52
jupe
skirt
53
lainage
woolens ("tissu type lainage" = "wool type fabric")
54
laine
wool
55
lisiere
selvedge
56
liens
ties ("faire 4 liens" = "make 4 ties")
57
ligne de pliure
fold line
58
ligne de taille
waistline
59
largeur pied de biche
the width of the presser foot
60
maille
a knit stitch
61
maintenir
to tack (hold temporarily)
62
manche
sleeve
63
milieu
center ("faire la couture milieu dos" = sew the center back seam)
64
molleton
flannel or fleece—a fabric with some loft, perhaps a Pellon
65
les œillets
eyelets, as in the metal kind you press, or hammer ("Poser l'œillet selon repère du patron." = "Apply the metal eyelet where indicated on the pattern.")
66
ourlet(s)
hem(s)
67
pantalon
pants
68
la parement
facing
69
parmenture
facing
70
parmenture du meme tissu
self facing
71
parmenture de la talle
waistline facing
72
passepoil
piping
73
patron(s)
pattern(s)
74
des pattes de boutonnage
buttonhole placket (or tab) ("Entoiler la moitié des pattes de boutonnage"
75
le pince/les pinces
dart/darts ("fermer les pinces" = "close the darts)
76
piquer
to stitch/sew (verb). While the Au Bonheur patterns use the verb "piquer" to indicate stitching, it seems to be a bit inexact. The actual translation of "piquer" is "to sting" or "to bite". "Piquer a la machine" = a machine stitch. The word for a particular type of stitch is "point".
77
piquer le bord
edgestitch
78
piqure de soutien
staystitch; literal meaning is "support stitch"—soutien means "support", soutien
79
plaquer
flatten ("plaquer la poche" = "flatten the pocket")
80
les plis
tucks or folds ("piquer les plis" = "sew the tucks")
81
pliure
to fold ("dans le pli" = "on the fold")
82
point
stitch (noun)
83
point de croix
cross stitch
84
point de devant
running stitch
85
pointe de poitrine
bust point
86
poche(s)
pocket(s)
87
rabattre
to fold ("puis rabattre les plis" = "then fold the tucks")
88
rep
ribbing made from silk, cotton, or wool ("1m de reps pour les liens" = "1 meter of ribbing")
89
repasser
to iron ("repasser pour aplatir" = "iron flat")
90
les repères
marks ("utilisant les repères B et A" = "using marks B and A")
91
revers
reverse, as in reverse side of the fabric ("pull á col revers" = "pullover with reverse collar"). Also used to describe something that turns back on itself, such as a lapel, a cuff that is formed by folding back the sleeve hem, or a pocket that has a turned
92
scotcher
tape ("scotcher les pièces 6a and 6b..." = "tape pattern pieces 6a and 6b...")
93
le serre cordon
cord stopper (for round elastic)
94
simple epaisseur
single thickness
95
sous
piquer
96
surjet
whipstitch. While the translation for surjet is "whipstitch", most instructions using the term mean a serged stitch (using a serger or overlocker).
97
surjeteuse
a serger (overlocker)
98
surpique
topstitch
99
surpique nervure / surpiquées nervurées
topstitch the seam(s) close to the edge (edgestitch)
100
soufflet
gusset
101
tissu
fabric
102
tissu fantaisie
literally translates to "fancy fabric", but is used to mean "novelty fabric" or "contrasting fabric"
103
tissu souple
"supple" or "pliant" fabric
104
tissu uni
solid color fabric
105
triplure
underlining
106
valeur
amount or width ("surpiquer valeur pied de biche" = "topstitch the width of the presser foot")
107
veste
jacket
108
volant
flounce or ruffle
109
zip
zipper; this is not the "official" word for zipper, which is "fermeture éclair", but is used by these patterns ("le zip invisible" = "invisible zipper")
