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Garment Defects And Quality Control

Garment defects are an endless concern for the apparel industry, frustrating all stakeholders, including fashion designers, product developers, manufacturers, and consumers. These defects can lead to problems such as material waste, production delays, and unhappy customers.

Garment defects breakdown.

Garment defects can be divided into numerous types, and each type has several specific defects depending on the garment type and materials used. However, as a general overview, we will group the most common defects based on the areas where issues can arise:

  • Fabric Defects: These can arise from issues with the material itself before it’s even sewn. Examples include shade variation, dirt or scratches, uneven dyeing or printing, holes or tears, and knots.
  • Cutting & Spreading Defects: Mistakes made during the initial fabric layout and cutting phase. These could be improper trimming and uneven parts.
  • Sewing Defects: Issues that arise during the stitching process. These are common and include open or broken seams, dropped or skipped stitches, uncut or loose threads, wrinkled seams, and mismatched thread colours.
  • Finishing Defects: Problems during the final treatment stages of garment production. These might include improper hemming, faulty zippers, loose buttons or buttonholes, and ironing or pressing marks.
  • Packing Defects: Issues during the packaging and labelling process. For instance, incorrect folding or packing and missing or wrong labels.

This information is a part of the research conducted for our third book, Strong Seams, a seam catalogue focused on garment durability and quality. 

We couldn’t include all the research in the book. However, we believe it’s worth sharing with people like you who are also interested in quality and long-lasting garments.

We hope the material is helpful. If you want to know more about our book Strong Seams, please visit the following link: book Strong Seams (link)

Consulted and Related Sources

  • Bubonia, J. E. (2014). Apparel Quality: A Guide to Evaluating Sewn Products. Fairchild. ISBN 978-1609015123.
  • Cole, J., & Czachor, S. (2008). Professional Sewing Techniques for Designers. Fairchild Books. ISBN 978-1563675164.
  • Gerry Cooklin. (2006). Introduction to Clothing Manufacture (2nd ed.). Blackwell Science. ISBN 978-0632058464.
  • Ghiuzan, L. (2024). Manufacturing Excellence and Quality Management in Sustainable Fashion Apparel. VersaCharm Books. ISBN 978-0975645605.
  • Kilgus, R., Ring, W., & Hornberger, M. (2013). Clothing Technology. Verlag Europa-LehrmittelNourney. ISBN 978-3808562263.
  • Cooper, T., Hill, H., Kininmonth, J., Townsend, K., & Hughes, M. (2016). Wrap. Design for longevity: Guidance on increasing the active life of clothing. Retrieved
  • QIMA. (n.d.). Secrets of the Big Brand Garments Quality Inspection Procedure. Retrieved from https://www.qima.com/quality-control-services/garments-quality-inspection-procedure
  • Ziynet Ondogan, Emine Utkun, Oktay Pamuk, and Esra Zeynep Yıldız. (2010). Research Gate. Sewability in Apparel Industry. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283119506_Sewability_in_Apparel_Industry