French seam

American  

noun

Sewing.

1. a seam in which the raw edges of the cloth are completely covered by sewing them together, first on the right side, then on the wrong.

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French seam British  

noun

1. a seam in which the edges are not visible

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Etymology

Origin of French seam

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

None of her machinists knew how to sew a French seam.

From Time Magazine Archive

Sew the two sections of the Sampler together with the French seam.

From Handicraft for Girls A Tentative Course in Needlework, Basketry, Designing, Paper and Cardboard Construction, Textile Fibers and Fabrics and Home Decoration and Care by McGlauflin, Idabelle

Know how to run a seam, overcast, roll and whip, hem, tuck, gather, bind, make a French seam, make buttonhole, sew on buttons, hooks and eyes, darn and patch.

From Scouting For Girls, Official Handbook of the Girl Scouts by Bacon, Josephine Dodge Daskam

Finish all seams with the French seam except where the ends of the ruffle are joined with the hemmed seam.

From Handicraft for Girls A Tentative Course in Needlework, Basketry, Designing, Paper and Cardboard Construction, Textile Fibers and Fabrics and Home Decoration and Care by McGlauflin, Idabelle

Seams: Plain seam, plain and band seam; French seam; bag seam on warp; bag seam, one warp and one bias; bag seam, two biases.

From The Making of a Trade School by Woolman, Mary Schenck