WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW MRS. RALSTON Class Tl^ iO Book. li^ GopyrightN" COPYRIGHT DEPOSIK WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW Arabella in all her finery WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW By VIRGINIA RALSTON ILLUSTRATED NEW YORK MOFFAT, YARD AND COMPANY 1910 Copyright, 1910, by MOFFAT, YARD AND COMPANY NEW YORK All Rights Reserved Published, February, 1910 P CCI.A256'!5 LOVINGLY DEDICATED TO MY MOTHER WHO THINKS I DO NOT KNOW HOW TO SEW ! CONTENTS PAGE Introduction 3 Materials for the First Lesson 7 KuNNiNG Stitch ... 9 Basting Stitch 10 Stitching Stitch 13 Back Stitching 14 Making the Bean-Bag 16 Over-handing 18 Catch-stitch 21 Scissors and Tape Measure 23 Hemming Stitch 25 Making a Dusting Cloth 26 Making a Bib 29 A Petticoat for Arabella 33 Making a Placket 37 The Gathering Stitch 39 Stroking Gathers 41 Putting on the Band 43 Underbody 45 Drawers 51 Casing for Drawing String . » 57 Everyday Frock for Arabella . 60 Fly-fastening 62 Band Trimming 63 CONTENTS PAGE Making the Mantle , » = . » » . . . . 66 Fancy Flannel Sacque ......... 71 Blanket Stitch 73 Sewing on Buttons 75 Darning 77 Making Buttonholes 78 Patching 82 ILLUSTRATIONS PAGE Arabella in all her Finery Frontispiece The Proper Sitting Position 5 Threading the Needle 7 Running Stitch 9 Uneven Basting Stitch No. 1 10 Uneven Basting Stitch No. 2 11 Stitching Stitch No. 1 (right side) ..... 13 Stitching Stitch No. 2 (wrong side) ..... 13 Illustration op Knot 16 Illustrations to *' Over-handing " . . . . . .18 Catch-stitching (right side) 21 Catch-stitching (wrong side) 21 Catch-stitching (turning a corner) 22 Illustration op ''Hemming Stitches" .... 25 Illustration op Bib 29 Arabella has a Petticoat 31 Different Sewings for Petticoat . . . . . 33, 34 Making a Placket 37 Gathering on Canvas 39 Gathering on Muslin 39 Illustrations to "Band" . 43 Underbody 46 A True Bias 47 Sewing on Bias 47 ILLUSTRATIONS PAGE Panties for Arabella 49 Arabella Needs a Nightgown 53 Nightgown 55 Casing 57 Arabella is Measured for her New Frock ... 59 Every day Frock 60, 61 Fly-fastening 62 Arabella's Frock 65 Making the Mantlb 66 Arabella Likes her Warm Mantle 69 Fancy Flannel Sacque 71 Arabella Wears her New Sacque 72 Blanket Stitch 73 Blanket Stitch on Canvas 74 Using a Pin to Keep the Thread Loose .... 75 Darning Stitch on Canvas 77 Buttonhole Stitch 79 Buttonhole 79 Patching 82, 83 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW WHEN MOTHEK LETS US SEW ^^When we're big enough to sew, Why, then we're growing up, you know!" WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW INTRODUCTORY Think how nice it would be, when mother is busy with her sewing and mending, to sit beside her on a little low chair and help her with that big sewing basket over-flowing with work ! One could learn how to sew a button on brother Tom's shirt, mend a tear neatly in little sister's apron, thread mother's needles, put a new band on an outgrown petticoat and even make dainty little frills for big sister's shirtwaists. But the very best, I've kept 'til the last, for wouldn't you like to learn how to cut out, sew and make all your own doll baby's clothes'? To make real underclothes with real buttons and buttonholes that will button and unbutton^ Just to think of being able to dress and undress your little doll baby family as often as you like! One could even make little night gowns for them to sleep in and best of all, everything they wore would be made by your own busy little hands. First, we will have to find a little sewing room. This we would make in any sunny corner of the nursery or mother's sewing room, and if you will promise to keep it tidy, I'm sure she will say *'yes." Then we must find a little old chair and ask brother to get his tool box and 4 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW saw off several inches from the legs to make it the right height. For when you sit on your little chair to sew your feet should rest easily on the floor and not swing. The chair must be placed so that the light will fall from the side or over your shoulders from the back, and not directly in your eyes. Sit up straight and well back on your chair, for if you are able to take long, deep breaths your head will not ache and you will not tire so easily. There should be plenty of space to use your arms freely. This is important, children, and makes as much difference in your work as playing hide-and-go- seek in the country or in a city yard. Then you should have a little low table to stand in front or on one side for your workbasket. Then see if your hands are nice and clean, if not, run off and wash them, as dirty little fingers rust and soil the needle and makes it hard to push it in and out of the material. Now we are ready to learn how to sew. The proper sitting position WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW ^^The thread is in the needle, The thimble in its place, Mamma is busy teaching me To run, to hem and baste." WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 7 MATERIALS FOR THE FIRST LESSON Strip of single thread canvas, ten inches long by six inches wide. Tapestry needle, colored zephyr and a thimble of silver or aluminum. The thimble is worn on the second finger of the right hand. It should fit as firm and com- fortable as the 'tam cap on your head. The needle should be medium length with a long eye and blunt point. This kind of a needle is easy to thread and will not prick your fingers. THRC/MIMNO • THC -NCCPUC" To thread the needle hold it in your left hand between the thumb and forefinger. Take a piece of zephyr the length of your arm. Hold it in the right hand between the thumb and fore- finger, with a short end of half an inch extended beyond the end of the fingers. Pass this end through the eye of the needle. 8 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW • Do not bend your head over your work as this tires the shoulders and strains the eyes, but lift the work up so you can see it clearly and easily. Here is a list of the stitches we want to learn and try and remember by name : No. 1. — Running stitch. No. 2. — Basting stitch. No. 3. — Gathering stitch. No. 4. — Stitching stitch. No. 5. — Back-stitch. No. 6. — Hemming stitch. No. 7. — Over-handing. No. 8. — Catch-stitch. No. 9. — Blanket-stitch. WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 9 •'RUNNING STITCH' We are now ready to take the first stitch. Tlie running stitch is made in a straight line from right to left. Hold the work with the thumb and forefinger of the left hand, putting in the needle with the right hand. Take up two threads on the canvas. Draw out the needle, leaving a half-inch thread at the end and take another stitch over the first to hold the thread. Now pass over two threads and take up two more threads, and continue running and spacing the stitches evenly, drawing the thread upwards towards the right shoulder. Do not draw the thread tight, but let it lie easily on the canvas. The running stitch is used for light seams where there is little strain and for tucking. 10 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW BASTING STITCH Basting is a long stitch used to hold the material or seam in place until it is more securely sewn. It is exactly the same as the running stitch, except that it is longer, so it will be easier to learn these two stitches together. Make the basting stitch an inch below the run- ning stitch, using the running stitches as a guide to keep them straight. Let us use blue zephyr this time. Hold the needle in your hand easily, for when making a long stitch in sewing uneuen • • no.JL • • you will do better work with a ^'free" hand, in- stead of a hard, tight hand. The length of stitch in even basting depends upon the mate- rial. For our first lesson, let us make it twice the length of the running stitch. So take up four threads on the needle and pass over four, making them the same length on each side. To make uneven basting, take up two threads and pass over four. "■ -I II — r- » I ij J Jmj^ '>*fiir»1 I -i WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 11 • • nc7. j^ • Gathering stitches are made the same as run- ning, except that the thread is drawn up on the material. We will learn this stitch when we be- gin to make real doll babies' clothes. We must take these simpler stitches first and learn how to use them. In the beginning it will seem very hard to make your stitches even and in a straight line, but really it isn't a bit harder than learning jackstraws. 12 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW. '^Wlien I'm a grown-up woman, With my hair up on my head, I'll sit and sew 'til very late And never go to bed!" WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 13 ^'STITCHING STITCH ' Suppose we make something while learning this next new stitch — a bean bag or an iron holder, but first try it on the canvas sampler. Hold the material over the forefinger of the left ^rrrcHmii-srrrcH- n?: hand and use a piece of yellow zephyr this time. The stitching stitch is a stronger stitch than running. Take a short stitch backward on the right side of the material, then a stitch twice as long forward on the wrong side. Take the next stitch back, putting the needle in directly at the end of the last stitch, making the ends meet. An easy rule to remember is that you pass over one thread back, and two threads forward. Look at the wrong side of the stitch and you'll see that it looks quite different from the right side, almost like a twisted cord. 14 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW BACK-STITCHING Back-stitching is very mucli like stitching, ex- cept that a small space is left between the stitches. The needle is carried back only half way towards the end of the last stitch. [^ r ^ ss [^ k.1 ^ r - — — _ _ \ t 1 y — — — — - 1 r -=fH - -fi / i _ _ __ _ u -. Make one stitch back and three stitches for- ward, the back stitch on the right side, the for- ward stitch on the wrong side of the material. Make this stitch in green zephyr. WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 15 ii Oh! dear! A knot's a puzzle how to make! It looks just like a creepy little snake ! But what's the use of sewing tight If one hasn't started the seam just rights" 16 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW MAKING THE BEAN BAG To make the bean bag or iron holder we must have a piece of nnbleached muslin, a spool of No. 30 cotton and a No. 8 needle. Have mother cut a piece of material six inches wide by twelve inches long. Fold, and baste the edge of two sides together carefully a half inch from the raw edges. And now we must stop a moment be- fore beginning our stitching and learn how to make a ^^knot. " A knot is made by twisting the end of the thread and prevents the thread from slipping out of the material. It would never do to have the seem rip out in the bean bag because we hadn't fastened the thread, would if? To make the knot, hold the thread in the left hand and twist the thread around the forefinger of the right hand, holding it with the ^Lustration, thumb and rolling it off with o^-KNo-r. ^^^ middle finger, pressing the end of the thread through the loop around the finger. It sounds harder than it really is, as you will see when you try to make one two or three times. After you have made the knot we will begin to sew the bean bag. Just under the basting make a line of stitching. At one end of the bag is the fold of the material, so there are WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 17 two side seams to sew. Make a part of each seam with the stitching stitch and finisli with the back stitch for practice in learning the differ- ence between the two stitches. After you have finished the seam, fasten the thread securely by making several stitches, one of the other, bringing the thread out on the under side of the material, and cutting with the scissors. Never break a thread, as it is likely to pull out the sewing. Next baste down each edge of the opening, turning over a fold on each edge half an inch wide. The bag is now ready to be turned on the other side so that the raw edges will come on the inside. Eun your fingers along the seams to press smooth, and pull out the corners carefully. We must learn another stitch before we can finish the last seam or top of the bag. It is called *' over-handing.'' 18 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW ^H Hp s ■ 1 ■ ■ BBHII Mil 1 1 ■■■ ■■■■ If HHHI IIBiKI I !■■ ■■■■ ■I HHHI nur/4(^ f^ Nwp mnnp ■■ ■■■■I K^^^^^ss^s; IttHHI ■■■ 1 ■■■■ ■■ [■■mp^ Hlk'V'k'' ■■■ 1 ■■■■ ■I ■■■■■ HH litf'J ■■■ I ■■■■ ■■ ■■■■ Hfll 1 1 ■ **OVER-HANDING" Practice first on canvas sampler, using a brown zephyr thread. This stitch is used to join the two edges closely together on the right side of the material. First baste the two ends together to within a couple of inches of the end if you are making a bean bag, as we must leave a little opening to pour in the beans before closing up the entire seam. If you are making an iron holder, get mother to give you several pieces of flannel cut in squares to fit, to put inside before begin- ning to baste. To make the overhand- ing stitch sew from right to left, holding the ma- terial straight before you with the two edges to be overhanded between the thumb and forefinger. Put the material into the material between the two thicknesses, pointing it straight toward you. Take up enough to make a firm stitch, and make an- C ^. "# § WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 19 other stitch just a short distance beyond with- out crowding one on top of anotlier. In over- handing you do not need a knot at the end of the thread, begin by allowing a short end of the thread to lie along the edge of the material to the left, make two stitches, one over the other, and sew the end down under the stitches. 20 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW ^^Next comes the catch-stitch, children, Isn't that a funny name To give to something serious As if it were a game'?" 4 WHEK MOTHER LETS US SEW 21 CATCH-STITCH Catch-stitcliing is a loose, fancy stitch used to hold down edges that have no wear or tear on them such as the seams on flannel petticoats or •CATCe-i5TfTCft!nG in the trimming of hem or bands. It is pretty used as a trimming on dolls' wrappers and sacques. As in making the overhanding stitch, the needle must point directly toward you. This stitch is made from the left to the right " G b « » C a 6 » G p» Ij -^ r A ^- ^ 1 h ^>J V H V. \ \^ i \ .„ _ __ N ^ L ^ ^ _ ^ _ u 26 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW MAKING A DUSTING CLOTH Suppose you look in the scrap bag for a piece of checked gingham left over from one of your little aprons. This would be excellent on which to practice catch-stitching as the lines and squares of the plaid will make a guide for the stitching. Cut-in a large square and baste a hem half an inch wide on all four sides and be- gin to catch-stitch. Put the needle in the mate- rial and take a short stitch toward you, holding the cloth over the forefinger of the left hand and making the stitch in the same line as you wish to make the stitching run. Now take another stitch to the right and a little below the first stitch in the same manner with the thread over the needle. Try to turn the corner nicely. Take a stitch to the right and instead of point- ing the needle towards you, point it to the left or following the line of the hem. Now take an- other stitch from this one in the usual way to form a square with extended corners. Now we will try the hemming stitch, first on our sampler of canvas and then on a little piece of muslin. After we have learned this, we have only one more stitch, a pretty fancy one, and then we will begin to make real dolly clothes. The edge of the material, after it has been cut WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 27 or torn, is called the raw edge. To cover this edge before hemming the edge must be turned over twice, once to enclose the raw edges and once to turn the hem. This is called, *' turning the hem.'' In a narrow hem the second turn just covers the first turn. Wide hems must be carefully measured. To do this use a card notched at the depth the hem is to be made, run- ning it along as you turn over the edge as a guide to keep it straight. Practice turning hems of different width on a piece of paper. The hem must first be basted and then hemmed. 28 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW ^^I have a litle workbox that Grannie gave to me. It's pink and blue with ribbons, and lots inside to see. ^For my busy little seamstress,' said Grannie, low and sweet, ^And my dear, 'twill please me, if you keep it nice and neat!' " WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 29 MAKING A BIB Piece of linen. No. 8 Needle. No. 50 cotton. As a first trial with the scissors in real cutting out, we will make a bib for baby brother. You know that a bib is oblong shape, longer than it is^ wide, so ask mother to show you the length of the material so you will know in which direction roLb Illustration of bib to measure it off. Use linen or crash toweling. Take your tape measure and measure off for the length sixteen inches and twelve for the width. Fold lengthwise and mark off three and a half inches from the top on the fold and three inches across the edge and mark with notches. Cut a curved line for the neck from one notch to an- other. Finish each side with a narrow hem as well as the ends each side of the curved neckline. 30 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW Make the second turn of the hem just wide enough to cover the raw edges of the first turn. Make a hem at the lower edge twice the width of the side hems, measuring with the marker to get the right depth. Bind the edge of the neck with half-inch wide tape. First baste it on one side, using half the width of the tape, then fold over on the othej^ side and baste. Finish with running stitches. Sew straight through the double thickness of the tape. Arabella has a petticoat 32 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW '^Arabella needs some clothes, Frocks and hats, trimmed with bows. Shoes so tiny, and fine silk hose. From yellow curls to small wax toes." J WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 33 A PETTICOAT FOR ARABELLA Let us try a simple gathered petticoat, which is made from a straight breadth of material and gathered on a band. Ask mother to show you the length and breadth required for your dolly. First join the two ends of the material together half the length with __,., _ j^^ ■v>^ m a flat fell, which is called a seam. The other half must be opened to form the 1 1 , ci First sewmg of flat fell placket. Seams are ^ used to fasten one piece of material to another. In a flat fell both of the raw edges are hidden. To make a flat fell join the two raw edges to- gether, with the one edge about a quarter of an inch below the other. Baste an equal distance from the lower Taw edge and sew with a run- ning stitch with now and then a back stitch t o make the seam stronger. Pull out the basting Petticoat for Arabella thread when fin- 34 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW ished, open the two pieces of material out flat and turn the wide edge over the narrow one, first turning under the raw edge, then basting and hemming. Turn a hem at the lower edge of the material an inch wide, using a notched card as a guide to keep it even as you fold , ^ T . and baste. Finish b. Second sewmg . , i i With hemming stitches. Above the hem we will trim with tucks. Tucks are folds sewn in the mate- rial as a trimming. To make them straight and even use a card for a guide as in making a hem, measuring the first tuck from the top edge of the hem. As you measure crease the _ material for ^^^ the edge of -J. Tucks the tuck. Eun with basting stitching a ^^^^ quarter o f a n Illustrations of tucks inch below the c. Last sewing WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 35 creased edge. Sew with the running stitch un- der the line of basting. Use the first tuck as a guide in measuring the second, making an equal distance between. 36 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW ^*A placket hole! What can that be? Mother is busy showing me, To make a slit, bind, stitch and turn, And keep on trying, 'til I learn!" WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 37 MAKING A PLACKET A placket is an opening in clothes to give space so they can be slipped on easily. We must make a placket in Miss Dolly Arabella's ^HOl^DJNG- PLAIT-IN-^PLACEZ.- petticoat so it can be put on over her head and shoulders. The placket is made at the top of the back seam which we left open for this pur- pose. First make a narrow hem on the left side of the opening, turning it on the wrong side, and taking up just as much of the material as you 38 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW used in the flat fell. Now snip into the material on the right side at the end of the seam to turn the hem on this side, which should be twice the width of the one on the left side. After you have finished the hem, fold over the entire width of the hem over on the left side of the placket. This will make a plait in the petticoat just below the end of the placket. Sew over the narrow hem with a row* of stitches. WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 39 THE GATHERING STITCH The top edge of the petticoat must now be made ready to put on the band: First it must be gathered. The ^^ gathering" stitch is very much the same as the running stitch, except that GATkrlEKfOG- in gathering, the spaces between the stitches are twice the length of the stitch. This is called '^uneven gathering," and is the kind used in a petticoat. Gathering is used to give fullness and to draw the fullness into a smaller spaces. Use a strong thread for the gathering and sew in a straight line on the right side of the mate- rial to the placket at the end. First dividing the length of the material to be gathered into two parts and using a separate thread for each part, as a long Gathering on muslin 40 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW thread would be likely to break. Sew about a quarter of an inch from the raw edge, and it would help to keep the gathers in a straight line if you would first crease the material as in turn- ing the fold for a hem. WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 41 'STROKING GATHERS^ After you have finished draw up the gather- ing string to fit the size of the band and fasten at each end by twisting the thread around a pin. They are now ready to be stroked, which gives them a nice, flat appearance and makes them hang straight to the lower edge. Use a blunt pointed needle, hold the material in the left hand and work from left to right. Draw the blunt point of the needle in a straight line to the lower edge from each gathering stitch. 42 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW *^When I can measure, cut and sew, Won't that be a lot to know'? But I'm only a little girl, you see, So don't expect too much of me." WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 43 Gathers set on to band PUTTING ON THE BAND A band for a petticoat is a double fold of straight material cut lengthwise. It should be the correct size of the waist al- lowing for the turned- under edge and 1 a p- over ends. Pin the middle o f the gathered petticoat to the middle of one side of the band, holding the gathers toward you. Adjust the fullness of gathers into the width of the band, allowing at each end for the turned-under edge. Baste a quarter of an inch from the raw edge. Sew the gathers to the band with the stitching stitch, fastening the ends of the thread securely. Then turn over the gathers the other raw edge of the Band hemmed on to gathers band, folding un- 44 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW der as for the first turn of a hem, turning under at the same time the ends of the band. Baste directly over the other row of stitching and hem. After you have finished overhand the ends to- gether. WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 45 UNDERBODY To cut out an underwaist, fold the material lengthwise and lay the center front of the waist pattern on the fold, which will bring the lower edge, front and back, straight with the raw edge of the material. Pin the pattern and material together at the corners and near the edges to keep in flat and straight while cutting out. After you have finished, open the material and cut from the neck line to lower edge in center back. Piece of soft muslin. No. 8 needle. No. 50 white thread. As this underbody is in one piece, back and front, it is only necessary to join the under-arm seams. Sew these with a flat fell, as we used in seaming the petticoat. Fold narrow hems on each side of the back opening, and turn a wider hem at the lower edge, to which the buttons will be sewn, first basting and then hemming. To finish the neck and armholes neatly we must learn how to put on a bias binding. To cut bias bands we must first get a true bias on the material. A square of material must be cut in a slanting line from one corner to another. This gives you a bias line from which you can 46 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW Underbody WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 47 A true bias cut narrow bias strips for binding. Measure with a piece of paper all along the bias edge to keep the band the exact width as you cut. Then pin the band which you have cut to the bias edge and use as a guide to cut the next band. To sew this bias band around the neck or armhole, hold the garment toward you, and sew on the right side, basting the band just below the edge. Sew with a running stitch. After you have finished, pull out the basting thread. Now turn the bias band over the raw edge to the wrong side of the body. Crease the edge flat on the right side. Turn under the raw edge as if for a hem, the same depth as on the right side, baste and finish with hemming stitches. Turn under the ends and overhand. In bind- ing the sleeves, turn one side of the binding Sewing on bias binding with runninor stitch 48 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW over the other with a turned edge. This makes a firm, flat finish. After you have bound both the neck and armholes, we will use the bodkin to run a draw string into the binding at the back. Thread the bodkin with a very narrow tape long enough to reach all around the neck, allowing a couple of inches on each end, to tie up in a bow. Pass the bodkin under the bias fold on the right side at one end, and bring out at the other end. When you put the underbody on Arabella, you can draw up the string and ad- just the fullness at the front. In a little while, when the other undergarments are cut and finished, we will learn how to sew on buttons and make buttonholes, so this part of the work can all be done at one time. Panties for Arabella 50 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW ^^ Underwear scalloped and trimmed with lace, Each seam and stitch, neatly in place — Nighties of muslin with ribbons blue, Petticoats ruffled and finely tucked, too. Panties and bodies all ready to wear, Now, hasn't my dolly more than her share." WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW ^^DRAWERS ' 51 To cut out the panties or drawers lay the material on the lengthwise fold of the material with the side on the straight fold, as you can see in the illustration. After cutting out one leg of Front of panties Back of panties the panties in this way, unpin the pattern and place it on the other end of the material. The curved seam which forms the leg of drawers should be joined first. Baste and then sew with a French seam. •r°U^ -or- MATERIAL N9 •5H«WINL./\/r^' ^^LJ^^X^GmEZ: ' Every day frock for Arabella First take your tape measure and measure Arabella down the front from the shoulder to just below the knees. This will give you the length of her dress when finished. Then allow for ahem. Fold the material lengthwise ; as the back and front of this dress is in one piece, the length of the material must be twice the length of measurement from shoulder to end of hem. After cutting the length of the material, WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 61 I. Detail of box plait. measure off the box plaits, and baste and sew with a running stitch. There are three box plaits, one at the direct center and one on each side. A box plait is measured oft* and made like a tuck, except that in this case the edge of the tuck is opened out flat over the line of sewing, and basted until the dress is finished when they can be pulled out. Make these box plaits to the waist line front and back. Now lay the pattern on the material with the center box plait folded directly in the center. Pin carefully and cut. Join the sides at notches for the under seam^ and baste. Sew with a French seam. Turn a wide hem around the lower edge of the skirt, baste and sew. Slit the material down the back under the center box plait, from the neck to waist line, for the placket open ing. To finish this opening we must make a ' ' fly- fastening." 2. Open 62 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW FLY-FASTENING In this kind of a placket the buttons and buttonholes are hidden. Cut two straight strips •ruV- PASTCNING • NOl -SHOWING- HOW -TO . MAKC- BAND 'r=>'^ -BUTTONS No^- SHEW- ING -ONE- "^'-^ BAND •OVER. • LAPPING • THE-OThEK- of material the length of the placket. The strips must be doubled and wide enough to hold the buttons on one and to make buttonholes on the other. When finished, one band lies di- rectly over the other. Baste and sew one strip to the under left side of the slit. Turn out the strip and fold it over the raw edges, turn under an edge and sew with running stitches. At the end, turn under the raw edges and overhand, slipping under the right side of the slit. This is the band on which we will sew the buttons. Now make a narrow hem on the other side of the placket. Then turn the raw edges of the other band, double it and baste the edges to- WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW '63 gether. Baste it to the under side of the box plait, keeping the edge of plait and band even. Sew with heniniing stitches. This is the band for the buttonholes. •BAND TRIMMING Use plain color material to make the bands which finish and trim the neck and edges of the sleeves. Cut these bands on the bias, and begin with the neck, sewing on as a binding, first on the wrong side. Begin to sew at the right side of the fly-fastening in back. Baste and then finish with running stitches. Drew the basting threads, turn the band over to the right side, enclosing the raw edges, baste, and sew flat with a running or back stitch. Hold the binding easily around the curve of the neck in the first sewing, to keep the lower edge easy fitting. To finish neatly in the back, cut the ends straight, turn under and sew. 64 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW ^Pins and needles and spools of thread, A pair of scissors and cashmere red, Out on my table neatly spread. ^Be good, dear Dolly,' I gayly said; ^Everything's ready to go ahead. Soon you'll have your mantle new, And please be very careful to Brush and fold when you put it away And I'll let you wear it every day.' " Arabella's frock 66 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW ^'MAKING THE MANTLE" Red cashmere. Eed silk lining. Red sewing silk No. A. No. 8 needle. Fold the material double and place the center front of pattern on the selvage edge. The back 'MAKING -THC -MANTLE: • CENTF^E-BACK- •RUNNING line of pattern should be straight on the fold of material. Pin to material. After cutting, open out material, turn and baste a hem at each side of the center front and around the lower edge. Place the hood pattern on double fold of the material, with the center back line at the fold. Cut the silk for the hood lining exactly the same WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 67 as the material. Now open out both the cash- mere and silk and baste and sew together with running stitches, half an inch inside the raw edges. Do not baste around the line of neck, as the hood must be gathered and attached to the cape. Turn the lining over the material, or ^^ inside out," which will hide the raw edges and make it look like a big bag with a hole at the top. Baste the seamed edges all around to keep the material and silk lining smooth and flat while sewing and finishing the neck of the hood and cape. Make a casing to draw up the hood. Sew two rows of running stitches one-half inch apart, sewing in the first row the depth of a hem from the edge, as you can see in the detail illustration of the hood. Eun a narrow red ribbon through this casing, with a bodkin. Do not draw up the ribbon until the neck of the hood is gathered and attached to the cape at the neck. Now sew a row of gathering stitches between the ends of casing stitches at the neck of the hood and draw up to the same size as the neck of the cape. Pin the center back of the hood to the center back of the cape. Baste the two raw edges evenly together and sew with back stitches, just below the basting thread. Finish the raw edges with a narrow bias binding or fold 68 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW of red silli. Sew first on tlie fight side with run- ning stitches, turn over the raw edges, and hem down on the wrong side. Turn under the ends neatly and overhand. At each side of the neck sew a piece of nar- row red ribbon, wliich may be tied in a bow to fasten the cape to keep Arabella warm. Arabella likes her warm mantle 70 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW ^^Now I'm making a flannel sacque, For my dolly shall nothing lack! For IVe learned to sew so well, That I can cut, baste and fell. And that's not all the sewing I know. Just wait and to you I'll show The buttonholes I've neatly worked, For not one lesson have I shirked!" WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 71 FANCY FLANNEL SACaUE ' Piece of white flannel. Skein of embroidery silk in pink or blue. Embroidery needle with large eye. Don't you think Arabella should have a little sacque to wear in the garden on cool mornings ^ ♦ PANcy- r L ANrsCL- 3 acoue: ^ • r^LD • °'^. : M ATE PJ AL • We will make one like the pattern in one piece. Place the pattern on the straight fold of the material and cut around the edges and make the two slits for the sleeve. Cut through the center front fold from the neck to lower edge. When you unpin the pattern from the flannel and open out the material you will have a perfect circle. To finish the raw edge of the flannel sacque, we must learn another stitch, called the Arabella wears her new saeque "lit I'll \ urn ^4 /A 4 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 73 BLANKET STITCH When you learn this stitch it will be very easy to then learn the buttonhole stitch, as they are very much alike. Try it first on the canvas with the tapestry peedle and zephyr thread. The blan- ket stitch is made from left to right. Do not knot the zephyr, but make T^T , ^ ... , r, 1 one or two short c. Blanket stitch on flannel . . . , i running stitches near the edge to hold the thread. Put the needle in the material and bring it out a quar- ter of an inch below for the edge, keeping the thread under the needle to form a loop. Put the needle in again on the line with the first stitch, bringing it out underneath and over the zephyr as before. In making this stitch on the flannel, hold the raw edge toward you, and point the needle toward you. Do not draw the thread tight, but let it lie easily along the edge to the right of the last stitch. Insert the needle on a straight line at the same height with the last stitch. Continue making the stitches at even spaces apart and at the same height. When 74 WHEN" MOTHER LETS US SEW turning a corner take several stitches in the same hole, spreading them around the edge in fan shape. To fasten the thread take the needle through to the wrong side and make a running stitch back of the last blanket stitch. In beginning with a new thread, make a running stitch on the wrong side and bring the needle through the loop of the last stitch, always keep- ing the needle in front of the thread. Continue this stitch around all the raw edges of the sacque, ex- cept at the neck. Finish the neck with a narrow binding of ribbon, leaving long enough ends to tie a bow in front. Sew narrow ribbons under the sleeves to the front and back pieces, half way between the opening, to hold the back and fronts together. The opening of the sleeves are joined with ribbons in the same way. The next step is to learn how to sew on buttons and make buttonholes, for Arabella's under- clothes and dress are ready to be finished. Blanket stitch on canvas WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 75 SEWING ON BUTTONS' Four-holed buttons. No. 7 or 8 needle. No. 50 cotton. Use a double thread to make it stronger. Buttons are always sewn to the double fold of the material so they will not pull out. Begin by making a stitch on the right side of the material, to be covered b y the button. Put the needle up through one hole and then down through Using a pin to keep the thread loose ^^^^ ^^j^ ^.^^^^^^ opposite, carrying the thread across, then bring the needle up in the hole between the two through which the thread has already been passed and take it down through the opposite hole, making a cross. Put a pin across the top side of the button under the first stitches, and take a few more stitches over the pin. This is to keep the stitches a little loose, as buttons sewn on too tightly soon tear out, and are hard to button. "When enough stitches have been taken through the holes of the button to fasten it securely, pull the pin away from under the 76 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW stitches. Now bring tlie needle out on the under side of the button and pass the thread around several times to make a kind of stem, so that the buttonhole will slip more easily around the button. Fasten the thread on the wrong side in a slanting stitch. WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 77 DARNING ' Darning is used to strengthen worn places or to draw together torn edges of material. For a simple darn the running stitch is used. Each row of stitches should be made evenly, one after the other on the wrong side of the material. In making the second row of stitches, bring the stitch on the upper side of the material, directly opposite to the space in the first row where the stitch is made, on the under side of the material, with a small loop of thread at each end. Hold the place to be darned over the forefinger of the left hand. Make the rows of stitches close together so as to make the darn as strong as possible, making every other row of stitches on an even line. ntr™^! ^S^t Pl^ff r A^A^A^JL ^U^v^.r^"" 4*^4^4^41- *,1^4^4^'" A^A^A*^., 4*-} &-ti^ iJJf-AJ^A^^ _::::ni '^ . ::::-±..:.-: Darning stitch on canvas 78 WHEN" MOTHER LETS US SEW m MAKING BUTTONHOLES We are now ready to make the buttonholes. It is always better to make the buttonholes and sew on the buttons as each garment is finished, and this is how mother would work, but as you are only learning, I have left this until the last, so you would know how to sew very well indeed before beginning the buttonholes, which are not so easy for little inexperienced fingers. Buttonholes are little slits used to slip over the button to fasten the different parts of garments together. The edge is finished with a '^button- hole stitch" to make it strong and durable. Practice the stitch on the canvas with zephyr, and do not cut the slit as for a real buttonhole. Take a piece of zephyr half again as long as the usual thread, so that you will not have to use a new thread, as it would be hard to join it neatly in making a buttonhole. As we are working on canvas, mark the line for the slit in white cotton, with running stitches, an inch in length. Put the needle in at the lower right hand side of the guide thread, point- ing it toward you and work from the right to left. Bring it out four or five threads below, or just far enough to prevent the edge from ravel- ing. Before drawing the needle out take the WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 79 Buttonhole stitch thread from the right side of the needle and pass it under the point and around to the left side, Draw the needle out with the thread straight before you, so that the thread will purl at the edge. Make the next stitch close to the first, exactly the same depth and in the same way. When you reach the end of the thread, spread the stitches around in fan shape and work down the other side. When this is finished make the stitches straight across the right end as in the illustra- tion. In making the buttonholes in the doll's clothes, cut a slit a tiny bit longer than the width of the button. First fold the hem or placket over at its center, and cut care- fully through the exact length. Hold the mate- rial slanting across the forefinger of the left hand with the inside lower edge of the button- hole toward you. First outline the slit with long stitches, slipping the needle in at each end from one side to the other. This makes a heavy edge and strengthens the buttonhole. Then make long overcasting stitches around the edge, Buttonhole 80 WHEN MOTHEK LETS US SEW to hold the threads, taking care not to pull the thread too tightly. Then proceed with the but- tonhole stitches as on the canvas. WHEN MOTHEK LETS US SEW 81 Now we'll learn to make a patch, So the edges neatly match, For little girls they tear their clothes, And dolls might too, for all one knows ! 82 WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 1. Wrong side ^TATCHING" A patch is a piece of material sewn to clothes to mend holes and worn places. The patch should be of the same ma- terial as the garment to be mended, and so that it will be very neat when fin- ished, it should be put on with the weave running in the same direction as the part of the material to be patched, matching as closely as possible. A patch is usually square, whether the hole is square or round. Cut the patch at least half an inch larger all around than the hole. Baste it on the wrong side, making the stitches halfway between the edges of the patch and the edges of the hole. If the hole is ragged, trim the edges neatly in a square or cir- cle. First hem the garment to the patch, then hem the patch to the garment. 2. Right side Turn under a narrow WHEN MOTHER LETS US SEW 83 edge on the right side at the hole, basting and hemming, then turn a narrow edge on the patch, and baste and finish with hemming stitches. If it is square, snip into the material at each corner so the edges will turn under neatly with- o u t puckering. If round, snip in four places at equal distances apart. Then begin to sew the edges with hem- m i n g stitches, making them as fine and neat as possible, remembering that the stitches on the wrong side of the patch will show through on the right side of the garment. The patch is now finished and should be pressed with a hot iron to make the edges as flat as possible. 3. Bast and hem wrong side on One copy del. to Cat. Div. ^^ 3 mo DDD173^3t.4^