Garment Enrichment - Different types of structural decorations

Garment Enrichment

Irrespective of age, sex and nationality every individual wants to look as his best, which is rightly catered by garments. A plain piece of fabric will make one dull, therefore every garment is enriched with some decoration and trimmings. They are like two sides of a coin, which can be used seperately or together. They used seperately or together. They are a must for any garment, to be well made and finished. On the other hand these enrich the garment thus cutting a pattern, is not enough to finish a garment but one must consider the need for decoration and select proper trimmings, simple to suit the pattern, then only the construction is taken into account.

Decoration

Decoration means enrichment of garments. They can be done on the surface of the garmnet to enhance the look or made to sew as a part of the garment. Decoration vary depending upon garmnet, person using and figure types.

Types of decoration

1. Structural decoration: Structural decorations are decorations introduced in the structure of the garment. This begins with good structure or cut, strengthened and controlled by fit and workmanship. This also adds fullness to the garments.

2. Surface or Applied decoration: Applied decoration consists of self-material as well as contrasting materials and colours worked up ingeniously and applied artistically but not added as a 'stuck-on-trim'.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF STRUCTURAL DECORATIONS:

1. Darts: Dart is a fold of fabric stitched from a specified width to nothing at one or both ends. These are used to make flat fabric fit on curved lines, according the body shape. They are usually biangular. Darts are made in different parts of the garment, like neck line, shoulder etc.

2. Gatherings: Gathering means to draw together into a mass. Gathering is one form of introducing fullness. These are made used, when large material is to set in a small art of the garment. When several rows of evenly spaced garthers are used they are known as 'Shirring'. Gathers may be used for neatness, loose fitting, comfort, free movement, and gracefulness.

3. Pleats: Pleats are folded mass of material that provide fullness, when evenly spaced and perpendicular to the floor, thus achieving the straight silhouette. There are various types of pleats as, side, box, double box, inverted, kick, pinch, straight, cartridge and sunray pleats.

4. Tucks: Tucks are similar to pleats, but are sewn through out their length. Hence fullness is available only below the tuck. There are a number of tucks as cross tucks, shell tucks, curved and scalloped

5. Smocking: This a decorative work particularly valued because of it's beauty on children's garments, and other smocked jackets. It is a kind of decorative stitch done by pulling certain amount of material to gather. They vary their stitches, as honey comb, hooking bone, double, etc.

French smocking is out standing type, where this gathers a large of material. There are 4 types. First draw the pattern on the material as shown in the figure in �' or 1" squares. There in the thread must be left loose, for the next square and the stitch must be continued. This adds beauty and fullness.