14/01/2021
Designers use pleats in their designs for both practical reasons, for example, to provide freedom of movement to the wearer, as well as for purely stylistic reasons.
Pleating involves folding fabric into different shapes creating differences in the volume and texture of the fabric. Pleating fabric involves having a mould made up of two pieces of card that are folded identically so that they can fit together with an outer wrapper to protect the pattern during the heating process. To pleat fabric, it is sandwiched between two pieces of card which are laid flat on a table. The lower card followed by the fabric and then the upper card on top to form the sandwich. These are then folded in to shape and rolled up tight. An outer wrapper is then used to protect the parcel as it is then placed in a steam cabinet to heat the fabric and set it into the required shape. After the pattern has cooled down sufficiently the fabric can be removed and it should now maintain the shape of the pattern used to pleat it.