Basting Stitch

The Basting Stitch is a long, loose stitch designed to hold fabrics together temporarily, but is intended to be removed.  For example, basting the side seams of a skirt to check the fit, then the final seam is sewn and the basting stitch is removed.

Applications

Basting

Basting stitches are used to temporarily hold fabrics together, for example, when you want to check the fit of a garment before sewing the actual seam. Select the Basting Stitch. It is helpful to also slightly reduce the upper thread tension as well (this makes it easier to remove the temporary basting stitches later). Sew the row of basting stitches, and check the fit of the garment. When satisfied with fit, adjust the stitch length setting as needed for the project, and be sure to put the upper thread tension back to its original position. Sew the permanent seam. Remove the temporary basting stitches.