How to Pin a Zipper on Fabric

Before you can sew a zipper to a garment, bag or piece of fabric, you need to pin it in place. Centered zippers, which use a small flap of fabric on each side to cover the zipper, are the easiest to pin and install. Each zipper has several parts you need to know about. The zipper teeth are the metal or plastic coils in the center of the zipper. The zipper tape is the thick, ribbon-like fabric on each side of the zipper. The zipper pull is the metal or plastic tab you grasp to open and close the zipper, and the zipper stop is the small piece of metal or plastic at the bottom of the zipper teeth.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Zipper
• Fabric
• Matching thread
• Straight pins
• Sewing machine
• Iron
• Lightweight fusible interfacing (optional)

Prepare the Zipper

1. Purchase a zipper that’s slightly longer than the opening you want to use it in.

2. Pick a zipper that matches the color of the fabric as closely as possible.

3. Remove the zipper from the packaging, if applicable.

4. Remove any staples or tags in the zipper.

5. Unfold the zipper.

6. Press the zipper tape using a low-temperature iron if it is recommended by the manufacturer’s directions. This helps the zipper lie flat while you’re pinning it and keep it from bunching up.

How to Pin a Centered Zipper

7. Sew the seams around the opening as usual.

8. Set the sewing machine stitch length to the maximum number.

9. Baste the edges of the fabric opening together using 5/8 inch seam allowance.

10. Iron the seam allowance flat.

11. If the fabric is thin or very stretchy, you may want to add lightweight interfacing along the zipper opening. Cut a strip of interfacing the width and length of the seam allowance and iron it to the seam allowance following the package directions.

12. Place the zipper teeth side down on the seam allowance so that the top edge of the zipper pull is just below the top of the opening.

13. Center the zipper teeth over the seam in the fabric.

14. Pin the zipper tape to the seam allowance only. Do not pin the zipper tape to the outer layer of fabric.

15. The zipper is now ready to be sewn to the fabric.

Tips & Warnings

• Small pins with plastic heads that are easy to grasp work best for pinning zippers.
• Seam allowance is the distance between the edge of the fabric and the stitches. Many machines have markings to help show you the seam allowance measurement.