Abstract: French pleated draperies of any selected length are manufactured by serging panels of fabric together to provide a wide section of material. After hemming the bottom and serging a strip of buckram to the top of the section, the upper and lower edges of the section then are positioned on a pleat marking table. Ultraviolet markings then are made on the fabric to produce invisible marks at the locations of the centers of the pleats to be formed and also to indicate where fan folds should be formed at the bottom of the drapery. After a desired width of the section has been pleat marked, that width is cut from the section of material. After sewing the side hems, pleats are formed using a conventional pneumatic pleat forming machine by illuminating each ultraviolet sensitive pleat center mark with a center blade of the pleat forming machine and then forming that pleat. The pleat then is sewn by two pleat sewing machines.