Learn about the cutting and sewing steps in jeans making (… and a discussion of the 3 main components)
The textile industry is likely to be one of the last to be replaced by robots. While some automation is done, robots still can’t sew garments from start to finish.
That’s why jeans designers still rely on good old hand-eye coordination, which means flesh and blood humans. It doesn’t matter how (in)expensive jeans are; It’s all done by hand. Whether you pay $20 or $200 (or more) for jeans, somewhere in the world someone cut and sewed them.
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Often, it’s the most visible features in jeans that give us value. Denim fabrics, designs, brands, or pre-distressed looks. But even with the best fabric, the coolest design, the hippest, or the most badass wash, it all depends on how well it’s cut and sewn.
With the ever-increasing demand for jeans, its production has long evolved into an assembly line, with workers dedicated to a single task to maximize productivity, but the quality of cutting and sewing remains just dependent on the skill of the drains.
In this second series on how jeans are made, I look at how to make jeans; How is it sewn, and what methods and machines are used? I’d say this step of making jeans is the least expensive and most underestimated.
The series on how to make jeans is in three parts:
: planning and development
: Cut and sew (this step).
: Finishing the garment
Design Informs Construction
In the previous installment of this series, you learned how designers make jeans, and how design affects the look, feel, and fit of your jeans. Paul Cruz summarizes:
Design is the starting point, and the point to come back to to see if you’re still on track. Decisions must be made with consideration for all people involved in jeans production.”
One very important aspect of design is architecture. That’s how jeans are cut and sewn. But before we get to that, let’s take a look at the materials you need to make jeans:
1: For wide loom denim, you need about 1.6 meters of fabric. For selvage denim, that number would be 2.5 meters (3-3.5 meters if you also use selvage for the fly and the belt).
For wide loom denim, you need about 1.6 meters of fabric. For selvage denim, that number would be 2.5 meters (3-3.5 meters if you also use selvage for the fly and the belt).
You also need yarn in hundreds of meters of sizes and colors depending on the design.
In most modern models you need six keys, ten if there are hidden keys in the jeans, twelve if they have them under the fly
You need at least one, four, or five buttons if they’ve got button planes—otherwise you need a zipper.
Covers for the front pockets.
Add a few handfuls, and you’re ready to go.
That’s a list of things. Now let’s dive in-depth into some of the basic cutting and sewing steps you need to turn anything into jeans.
Measure Twice, Cut Once
First, the fabric is examined for defects. Next, each roll cuts pieces, which can then be sewn together and washed to reveal shades. This is called a “blanket.” The factory marks queues in shipping blankets.
Once the rolls are marked, offices often form “families” with matching shades nearby and decorate their cutting tables accordingly. Each family will be trimmed, sewn, and washed separately. Laundry companies will adjust their fans during laundry to ensure the overall process is uniform.
You should also check the shrinkage of each roll before you start cutting. Patterners need to know how each roll curves to fit the model. Shrinkage tests are carried out by cutting fabric to about 1×1 meter square and sealing the edges. It is then washed at the same temperature as it will be washed in the washing machine to check the after-wash.
After testing, the pattern maker prepares a pattern for a specific fabric for as little fabric waste as possible. He uses a computer to walk all the pieces of the pattern to calculate the fabric efficiency. This is a case where size matters.
Key Point
The longer the cutting table is, the more fabric you save,” says Christina.
Cutting the Fabric
Once the fabric is ready to be cut, the pattern is printed on the paper and placed on the fabric on the cutting table until 100-sized pieces of denim are assembled, cut on a special saw and held by weights
It’s an important step. Even the best specimen will be nothing if not properly cut. And it’s hard. The denim should be properly marked, and then properly cut; Otherwise, the cuts don’t sew as designed.
An ordinary pair of blue jeans requires about 20 different wears, but it all depends on the style. Once cut, each piece is size-marked and assembled. After that, the meeting can begin.
From Thread to Treasure: The Four Stages of Sewing
Weaving is usually broken down into four steps totaling:
: Prep work
: Suture of the anterior
: The sewing of the back
: … And finally, a combination of jeans
Processing varies depending on configuration and quantity, and the finer details of how to do all of these steps are beyond the scope of this article. Regardless of the actual sequence, the following steps should be performed.
The first step is to do some prep work. Make a belt loop, sew a pocket front onto a pocket bag, and make a buttonhole strip.
Once this is done, the front can be sewn together including the front pocket, fly, and front rise.
Third, you sew a knot for the back of the jeans, then attach the back pocket, then lift the back.
The final step is to sew the front and back together. You start with the inseam, followed by the outseam, then the belt loop, waistband, and the very last step adds trim.
Top 3 Hot Button Issues in Sewing Jeans
At this point, it’s important to note that not all steps and boundaries are created equal. So some are well-known and talked about, like leg seams, hem seams, and thread styles/types.
Leg Seams
Some of the most difficult stitches to suture are the outer and inner borders of the foot. They have to be quite direct, and that requires practice to learn. Leg borders are usually made of broken borders, seams covered and stitched at the top, or flat felt seams.
Busted seams are usually used for the outseams. It is made by sewing the ‘right sides’ of the fabric together. For blue denim, the ‘right’ is blue. Then, the two layers of fabric are separated by iron—pieces of fabric from edge to weave. For shuttle loom denim, this is where your selvage edges will look like. Wide loom denim requires coating around the edges to prevent fraying.
Busted outseams are considered a traditional style. It’s how external limits have been created forever. The problem with broken external wires is that they are easy to tear because they are usually protected by only one wire.
Over-connected surface stitched seams are strong—the most common type for inner seams. They are sewn on the right side like the back seams. But since there are no selvage edges, the raw edges are sewn together by overlocking. Then, the seam allowance is folded and stitched on top. This makes one strand the outside of the inner strand. But there is an even more permanent way to sew the boundaries of the foot; Thin cuts.
Flat-cut stitches are sewn together on the wrong sides of the fabric with separate stitches. The short seam allowance is covered lengthwise and then stitched on top.
Lock Stitch vs. Chain Stitch
If there’s one thing that could keep enthusiasts going, it’s the age-old debate about whether they should be lock-stitched hems or chain-stitched. The lock stitch is the strongest by a small margin, while the chain stitch gives the most realistic fade.
In the early days of vintage denim, collectors relied on chain stitching to show off the lifespan of jeans, as they did with selvage hems.
The most valuable chain was made with Union Special 43200G. Introduced in 1939, this loom was designed to weave hemp. Union Special stopped production of the 43200G in 1989 after exactly 50 years.
But the fact that the machine is older now doesn’t (only) get denim heads jazzed up; it is known as roping where the seam is roped around itself and creates diagonal abraded lines as the denim is worn and washed.
This different attenuation is due to the characteristic feed difference of the device. This happens when the cotton folds the fabric together and the dog feeders move the lower part of the fabric while the top layer is loose between the presser foot and the cotton This creates a slight warp, creating a curl when washed the denim has shrunk.
The problem is—unless the jeans are washed, and the stitching is set- they break faster than a lock stitch. This is supposedly one of the reasons it was introduced in the first place: to make it easier for sewers to remove the lines if they make a mistake.
The lack of durability was considered a drawback, and chain stitching was phased out in the 1970s and ‘80s. These days, chain stitch belts are making a comeback! They are seen as an integral part of a quality and authentic pair of jeans. Mass-volume brands also use chain stitch, although the modern machines they use rarely have a very clear cord.
But because it has a chain stitch, you can’t trust it to have a loop. The Union Special doesn’t have the 43200G. Manufacturers of new screw sewing machines have made improvements that don’t eliminate clamps—all from good intentions. New chain sewing machines do not come standard with bags. Machines can also be used for other tasks that don’t require a bag, such as sewing gloves.
The problem seems to be that on some newer models, the width of the lines is turned off. Whether it is too much or too little affects the rope as well.
Type of Thread
Another thing to consider is the type of yarn, especially the difference between cotton and polyester yarn. Most all brands now use polyester yarn, because it’s better in stretch, Lennart tells me.
The downside to polyester yarn is that it is shiny, and the color stays the same even after countless washes. Cotton thread, on the other hand, loses its fabric. But it’s also much more fragile and breaks down much easier.
The solution is a combination of the two, a hybrid yarn known as a multi-pocket yarn. It has a core polyester with twisted cotton around it. This method has the strength of polyester and tenuous properties of 100% cotton yarn.
Try making jeans at home
Anyone who has ever tried to make their jeans knows it’s not easy! While you can make jeans at home with a very basic sewing technique, it takes a lot of specialized sewing machines and years of training to master.
Recently, there has been a resurgence of interest in the art of jeans. Especially in first-world countries that outsourced apparel production decades ago, aspiring denim designers (and -women) are setting up shop and making jeans themselves.
Some do it for fun, while others dream of becoming the next big hit in the denim game. But they probably all find that making good jeans isn’t easy, and they trade for even less. Lennart Nijgh says:
Of course, there are a few examples of successful self-taught craftsmen, like Jens Olav from Livid Jeans, but this is an exception. The majority of successful people in this business have years of education and/or experience working for other companies before they make it on their own.”
Still, many of denim’s new craftsmen don’t have any formal training in textile production. They’re denim devotees who are driven by passion and because they think it’s fun. In Christina Agtzidou’s experience, passion is important but not everything.
Conclusion
The article explains how to make jeans using the cut-and-sew process, highlighting the precision and skill required at each step. It emphasizes the importance of careful fabric selection, measurement, and cutting, followed by detailed steps for making tight, high-quality jeans.
Key aspects include choosing the leg, the argument that lies between lock stitch and chain stitch for the hem, the type of yarn used, and an emphasis on mixing polyester and cotton for strength and authenticity. Despite the lack of drive, Jean’s human expertise in manufacturing remains it is important. Ensuring both expensive and luxury pairs with careful attention to detail.
