A Pilot Study on Sewing Skills for Sustainable Fashion Focusing on the Starting Knot

As part of sustainable fashion, the long-term use of clothing is an action in our daily lives. For clothes to last, they need to be cared for and repaired, such as sewing on missing buttons and hooks or mending holes. In other words, everyone needs to have basic sewing skills. In Japan, from elementary school to high school, there are home economics classes where basic sewing is taught as part of the curriculum. However, the reality is that many students are unable to tie a starting knot. In this study, as a pilot study, we examined the skill level of a healthy Japanese university student in tying a starting knot. Three types of cotton yarn with different fineness were used to tie a starting knot. The study was conducted under three conditions: no reference, textbook, and video. The number of knots produced under each condition was 50, for a total of 450 knots.The average number of knots observed was 90.7% (no reference), 15.3% (textbook), and 4.0% (video). Statistically, the Fisher exact test showed a significant difference between no reference and with references. Textbook and video viewing were shown to be effective for no loops. In addition, based on the analysis of variance results for knot size and yarn end length, we expected video to be effective in skill acquisition due to its high information content. In general, a larger longitudinal modulus of elasticity or cross-sectional secondary moment results in a smaller deflection. Therefore, it was expected that thinner yarns would have a greater effect on loop formation, but there was no effect on the number of loops in this experiment. In the future, we plan to increase the number of subjects, perform hand movement analysis and eye tracking, and produce movies reflecting the results.