French Sewing Glossary

I started this glossary in this post. I am pulling it out as a separate blog entry. I am continually adding to it as I use the Au Bonheur patterns.

Please let me know if you find any errors or come across any phrases that should be added. Thanks!

Last updated: 4/1/2016. Thanks to Bessie Crocker for clarifying several of the terms, particularly about different types of stitches!

• avantbras - forearm
  
• bâtir - to baste
  
• boutons/boutonnières - buttons/buttonholes ("1 bouton pour la taille" = "1 button for the waistband")
  
• boutons pression - snaps (the kind you press, or hammer, that show from the front, not the sew-on type)
  
• les bretelles - straps
  
• coté - 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.
  
• coucher - to place ("Coucher les coutures vers la poche." = "Place the seams towards the pocket.")
  
• coudre - to sew
  
• coudre à points de surjet - to serge (though it literally means "to sew back and forth joining stitches")
  
• ceinture - waistband; also belt or sash
  
• chevaucher - overlap
  
• col - collar
  
• col châle - shawl collar
  
• coutures - seams
  
• couture(s) du cote - side seam(s)
  
• couture(s) de dessous de bras - underarm seam(s)
  
• cranter - to notch
  
• dessus - top ("sur dessus de poche" = "on top of the pocket", "dessus de manche" = "upper sleeve")
  
• dessous - below or underside ("dessous de manche" = "under sleeve"); "dessous" can also mean lingerie (similar to "undies") or interlining
  
• devant - front
  
• doublure - lining
  
• dos - back
  
• droit fil - straight of grain
  
• emmancher - to fit one part into another, often with a fiddly bit that needs to be adjusted, such as easing a sleeve into an armhole
  
• emmanchure - armhole
  
• 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-in yoke, like on a cowboy shirt.
  
• en piquant - (while) catching
  
• éncarter - press ("éncarter les coutures au fer" = "press seams open")
  
• encolure - neckline
  
• endroit - right ("endroit con endroit" = "right side to right side")
  
• endroit du patron - right side of pattern
  
• endroit du tissu - right side of fabric
  
• entoiler - to interface
  
• entoilage - interfacing
  
• entoilage thermocollant - fusible interfacing
  
• entoiler - to interface ("entoiler les parementures" = "interface the facings")
  
• entournure - armhole
  
• l'entrejambe - inside leg ("fermer l'entrejambe" = "close the inside leg seam" (from ankle to ankle)
  
• envers du tissu - wrong side of fabric
  
• les épaules - the shoulders ("assembler les épaules" = "sew the shoulder seams")
  
• double epaisseur - double thickness
  
• épingler - to pin
  
• faufiler - to baste
  
• le fil - thread ("1 fil de couleur contrastante épais" = "1 [spool of] topstitching thread in a contrasting color")
  
• finition - finishing
  
• les flèches - arrows ("coucher les plis selon les flèches du patron" = "form the tucks according to the arrows on the pattern")
  
• fond - background ("fond de poche devant" = "front pocket back", as in a front jeans pocket)
  
• la fourche - crotch ("fermer la fourche" = "close the crotch seam (from bellybutton to bottom)")
  
• le genou - knee
  
• de hanches - hipline
  
• haut - top
  
• jupe - skirt
  
• lainage - woolens ("tissu type lainage" = "wool type fabric")
  
• laine - wool
• lisiere - selvedge
  
• liens - ties ("faire 4 liens" = "make 4 ties")
  
• ligne de pliure - fold line
  
• ligne de taille - waistline
  
• largeur pied de biche - the width of the presser foot
  
• maille - a knit stitch
  
• maintenir - to tack (hold temporarily)
  
• manche - sleeve
  
• milieu - center ("faire la couture milieu dos" = sew the center back seam)
  
• molleton - flannel or fleece—a fabric with some loft, perhaps a Pellon-type fleece or batting
  
• 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.")
  
• ourlet(s) - hem(s)
  
• pantalon - pants
  
• la parement - facing
  
• parmenture - facing
  
• parmenture du meme tissu - self facing
  
• parmenture de la talle - waistline facing
  
• passepoil - piping
  
• patron(s) - pattern(s)
  
• des pattes de boutonnage - buttonhole placket (or tab) ("Entoiler la moitié des pattes de boutonnage" - "interface half of the buttonhole placket")
  
• le pince/les pinces - dart/darts ("fermer les pinces" = "close the darts)
  
• 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".
  
• piquer le bord - edgestitch
  
• piqure de soutien - staystitch; literal meaning is "support stitch"—soutien means "support", soutien-gorge means bra, as in "supports the throat"
  
• plaquer - flatten ("plaquer la poche" = "flatten the pocket")
  
• les plis - tucks or folds ("piquer les plis" = "sew the tucks")
  
• pliure - to fold ("dans le pli" = "on the fold")
  
• point - stitch (noun)
  
• point de croix - cross stitch
  
• point de devant - running stitch
  
• pointe de poitrine - bust point
  
• poche(s) - pocket(s)
  
• rabattre - to fold ("puis rabattre les plis" = "then fold the tucks")
  
• rep - ribbing made from silk, cotton, or wool ("1m de reps pour les liens" = "1 meter of ribbing")
  
• repasser - to iron ("repasser pour aplatir" = "iron flat")
  
• les repères - marks ("utilisant les repères B et A" = "using marks B and A")
  
• 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-down element.
  
• scotcher - tape ("scotcher les pièces 6a and 6b..." = "tape pattern pieces 6a and 6b...")
  
• le serre cordon - cord stopper (for round elastic)
  
• simple epaisseur - single thickness
  
• sous-piquer - understitch
  
• surjet - whipstitch. While the translation for surjet is "whipstitch", most instructions using the term mean a serged stitch (using a serger or overlocker).
  
• surjeteuse - a serger (overlocker)
  
• surpique - topstitch
  
• surpique nervure / surpiquées nervurées - topstitch the seam(s) close to the edge (edgestitch)
  
• soufflet - gusset
  
• tissu - fabric
  
• tissu fantaisie - literally translates to "fancy fabric", but is used to mean "novelty fabric" or "contrasting fabric"
  
• tissu souple - "supple" or "pliant" fabric - I think they mean knit fabric, but maybe drapey wovens as well
  
• tissu uni - solid color fabric
  
• triplure - underlining
  
• valeur - amount or width ("surpiquer valeur pied de biche" = "topstitch the width of the presser foot")
  
• veste - jacket
  
• volant - flounce or ruffle
  
• 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")
  

You might also check out this visual chart of hand stitches, or les points de couture.