Adding a Zipper to Garment Pieces

Susan Kehila

Updated April 16, 2025 22:24

You may add a zipper to the following in a garment piece:

The edge of a piece
An open internal line
A cut mark line

To add a zipper to a garment, you can use the Assign tool, or drag the zipper.

Dragging the Zipper

To drag the zipper:

If the Materials tab is not already open, on the Resources tabs, click Materials.
If not already open, click the Garment tab.
Drag the zipper from the Trims section to the edge or line you want to add it to in the 2D window. The zipper is added to that edge or line. The optional second zipper edge connector is displayed.

Do one of the following:
1. If you want to attach the zipper to only the one edge or line, press Esc.
2. If you want to attach the zipper to another edge or line, click on the other edge or line. The zipper is attached to the second edge or line.

The following image shows a zipper being added to a garment.

Using the Assign Tool

To use the assign tool:

If the Materials tab is not already open, on the Resources tabs, click Materials.
If not already open, click the Garment tab.
In the Trims section, click the zipper.
On the Main toolbar, click Assign.
In the 2D window, click on the edge or internal line you want to add it to. The zipper is added to that edge or line. The optional second zipper edge connector is displayed.

Do one of the following:
1. If you want to attach the zipper to only the one edge or line, press Esc.
2. If you want to attach the zipper to another edge or line, click on the other edge or line. The zipper is attached to the second edge or line.

Note

If you assign a zipper to two edges or lines that are different lengths, the zipper resizes to the shorter length.
If you want to assign a zipper to the edge of multiple pieces, you must either first stitch the pieces together or use the Manual Assignment option under Multi-Edge Zipper Assignment (see below). If the pieces are stitched, when you assign the zipper to the edge of one of the pieces, VStitcher automatically extends the zipper to the other pieces.
For more information, refer to Multi-Edge Zipper Assignment.

Multi-Edge Zipper Assignment

This feature allows you to manually control zipper assignment, so you can easily and accurately assign a zipper to more than one pattern piece edge.

For example, in the following image, assume you want to have one side of your zipper on edge A, and the other side on edges B, C, and D.

To assign the zipper:

If the Materials tab is not already open, on the Resources tabs, click Materials.
If not already open, click the Garment tab.
In the Edge Assignable section of Trims, click the zipper you want to use.
On the Main toolbar, click Assign. The Horizontal contextual menu displays the chosen zipper and the Manual Assignment option.
On the Horizontal contextual menu, select Manual Assignment.
In the 2D window, hover your mouse over the edge to which you want to assign the zipper. Following the example, this is edge A. Note the stitch direction that is displayed depends where on the edge you hover.
Click the edge to assign the zipper.

The Horizontal contextual menu displays like this:

The Zipper Assignment pane displays in the Context view.
On the Horizontal contextual menu (or the Zipper Assignment pane) click To.
In the 2D window, click in turn each of the edges where you want to assign the other side of the zipper. Following the example, and assuming the first stitch direction was down the screen, you click edge B, then C, then D.
On the Horizontal contextual menu (or the Zipper Assignment pane) click Done. The zipper is assigned to the multiple edges.
Note

At any time before clicking Done, you can:
- Click Clear to cancel the zipper assignment.
- Press Esc to have the zipper assigned only to the first edge selected.
The following image shows an example of manual assignment.

Tip

Instead of using Assign to start zipper assignment, you may drag the zipper to the 2D window and the first edge you want to assign it to.

Editing Zipper Assignment

You can edit zipper assignment by canceling an individual edge assignment or the whole zipper assignment.

To edit a zipper assignment:

On the Main toolbar, click Select.
In the 2D window, click the assigned zipper. Zipper details are displayed in the Context view.
Go to the Context view and hover over the right side of either of the boxes under Connected To. The edit icon is displayed.
Click . The zipper assignment details are displayed.
Do one of the following:
1. Go to the end of the line with the edge assignment you want to cancel, then click the X that is displayed.
2. Click Clear to cancel the complete zipper assignment.