Seam stress and blown seams
Also: seam slippage · blown seams · open seams
Seam stress is the strain, slippage, or bursting of a garment's stitched joins, where threads pull open and let daylight show through the seam. It appears at shoulders, side seams, crotches, and armholes, and because it undermines how the piece holds together it weighs on structural integrity.
How to detect it
- Gently pull the fabric either side of a seam and watch for a widening gap
- Hold high-stress seams (crotch, underarm, shoulder) to the light for pinholes
- Check for a row of stitch holes where thread has already snapped
Grade impact
Seam stress lands on Structural Integrity (25%). Slight puckering or a single loose stitch stays around Very Good (7); visible slippage that gaps open, or a fully blown seam, drops the item to Fair (5) or Poor (3–4) as a repair piece.
Fixability
Usually repairable. A restitch or serge closes an open seam and can recover grade, and slippage-prone loose weaves can be reinforced. Any repair must then be disclosed, since restitched seams change the original construction.
How to disclose it
Say where and how bad ('side seam starting to slip near the hem'). Photograph the gap against light. Seam failures spread under wear, so understating them reliably leads to returns.
Seam stress — frequently asked
- What's the difference between seam stress and a hole?
- Seam stress is the stitching giving way along a join, so the fabric separates where two panels meet. A hole is a break in the fabric itself. Seam failures are often repairable by restitching; a hole in the panel is harder to fix invisibly.
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