DARTS,GEATHERS AND

PLEATS
Darts
• Darts are used to shape fabric to fit the body. It create new designs for garments, and specially used for ladies

garments.

• They provide fullness to body curves, save fabric wastage and also use to remove excess fabric. Darts are

needed to turn two-dimensional shapes into three-dimensional shapes and to fit clothes closely to the body.

Sometimes darts are used decoratively to provide a design line and are not used for fitting.

• The dart is one of the most flexible and creative parts of the pattern. The space (excess) between the dart legs

can be used in a variety of creative ways, limited only by the imagination of the designer. Dart excess used as

design is referred to as dart equivalent. Dart equivalents are illustrated as tuck-darts, pleats, flares, and gathers.
Basic Terms
Dart 
• A wedged shaped cut out in a pattern piece used to create shape and control the fit
of a garment.
Dart Leg
• Two lines that come together at a predetermined point on a pattern.
Dart Intake
• The amount of fabric excess that sits between dart legs.
Pattern Manipulation
• It is when you either slash and spread/close or pivot a pattern piece to alter it from
it’s original shape. Often times, a well fitting simple sloper is used when applying
either of these techniques.
Applying Dart Manipulation
• The technique is applied when
the dart of working patterns
(bodice, skirt, sleeve, or any
working pattern) are relocated
in the process of creating design
patterns.
• To create a design pattern, the
design is analyzed first to
identify the location of the dart
or equivalent before
manipulating the pattern.
DART MANIPULATION TECHNIQUES

• Dart manipulation mainly starts with a basic sloper, which they then convert into
their stylish designs.

• Their are three dart manipulating techniques in flat patterns. These are suitable
for manipulate dart to any location.

• The slash & spread or pivot method mostly use to transfer darts to the bust,
neck, armhole or anywhere you want.
• Pin and pivotal dart transfer technique.

• Slash-spread transfer and overlap technique

1. Pin and Pivotal dart
rotation technique
• Pattern designers use pivoting methods to make
fashion changes.
• They move darts or add fullness by anchoring the
basic pattern with a pin and moving the pattern
in, out, and around.
2. Slash-spread dart rotation
and overlap technique
• Pattern graders use the
slide motion to change
pattern sizes.
• They slide patterns up,
down, and to the side to
gradually increase or
decrease from one size to
the next. Use this sliding
motion to add or subtract
length.
3. Dart equivalents technique

• Pleats or gathers in the fabric can be used as for the same purpose as a normal
stitched dart.

• These are called dart equivalents.

• The dart excess can be used to create a wide variety of other design features such
as, tucks, gathers, pleats, and even cowls. 

• The dart or its equivalent will always radiate from the pivot point. 
Different types of darts
• The different types of darts are discussed below: 
• Straight dart

• Curved outward dart

• Curved inward dart

• Neckline dart

• Double pointed dart 

• Dart in interfacing
1. Straight dart:
• It is a straight line of stitching from the point to the seam line.
• This can be noticed in the underarm of the front bodice, back skirt,
shoulder, elbow and back neckline.
2. Curved outward dart
• The stitch line curves outward along the path from the point to the
seam line.
• This gives a comfortable fit to the garment. This is sometimes used on
a bodice front to make a mid-body fit snug.
3. Curved inward dart
• The stitch line curves inward from the point to the seam line.
• This facilitates a better fit along the body curve.
• It is frequently used in pant and skirt fronts.
4. Neckline dart
• This is usually a solid line marking on the back neckline indicating a
straight dart of 1/8″ 
5. Double pointed dart
• This dart is unique as it tapers in a straight
line from the middle to both the ends and is
clipped at the widest part.
• It is usually made from the waistline (widest
point). It finds application in princess and A-
line dresses, blouses and jackets.
Pleats
• A pleat is a type of fold formed by doubling fabric back upon itself and securing it in
place.
• It is commonly used in clothing and upholstery to gather a wide piece of fabric to a
narrower circumference
Types of pleats
• Accordion
• Box
• Cartridge
• Honeycomb
Accordion pleat/Knife Pleat
• Knife pleats are probably the most commonly used.
• They consist of two folds of equal width – an outside fold, which you
can see, and an inside fold hidden behind.
Box pleat
• Box pleats are made up of two (usually wide) knife pleats facing away
from each other. 
Cartridge pleat
• Cartridge pleating is a technique for even
pleats to draw a large amount of fabric
(skirt panels) down to a small measurement
(waistband).
Honeycomb pleat
Smocking is the technique of creating a series of
pleats and then stitching these pleats together at
certain points in order to create designs.
Honeycomb smocking is a type of smocking
where the end results give you a beautiful
diamond design.
GATHERS
• Gathering is a sewing technique for shortening the length of a strip
of fabric so that the longer piece can be attached to a shorter
piece. It is commonly used in clothing to manage fullness.
• In simple gathering, parallel rows of running stitches are sewn
along one edge of the fabric to be gathered. The stitching threads
are then pulled or "drawn up" so that the fabric forms small folds
along the threads