Why is a treadle important to the fashion industry?  Well, they are not as important as they had been in the past but they definitely have historical significance.

Treadles were once used extensively in creating textiles and clothing, powering spinning wheels, looms, and sewing machines.

A treadle is a mechanism operated with a pedal for converting reciprocating motion into rotating motion.

The treadle is the portion "below" the sewing machine in the image below.

Elias Howe and Isaac Singer popularized their use and they became a fixture in households worldwide.

Today the use of treadle textile machines is mostly relegated to hobbyists and historical re-enactors, but they remain in use in the developing world.

The word treadle is from Old English: tredan, "to tread".

Learn more about sewing machinery from the sewing machine defintion.

Vintage sewing machinery is sometimes used as home decor.  The treadle base can be used to make a table base, and other types of interesting furnature.