Bonnet with Frills Upon It, II

Another sweet bonnet!  I used a vintage pattern in my personal collection for this little charmer.  Swiss Nelona forms the crown, while a delicate floral lawn forms a scalloped and lace edged brim.

The ribbon streamers are first attached with a single loop of the ribbon.  On top, is a lace rosette centered with an etched mother-of-pearl button.

To form the lace rosette, I begin with a piece of French lace approximately 5" in length.  Part of this will be cut away, but I find it a little easier to hold and manipulate this length of lace. 

The cotton French laces most commonly used in heirloom sewing will have a header made of several threads.  By easing these out at one cut end of the lace and gently pulling, the lace can easily be gathered.

Continue gathering and curling the lace into a circle or rosette.  Using fine thread and needle, the ends of the lace may be stitched into a tiny seam.  I normally use a teeny tiny French seam in order to enclose all raw edges.

Fluff and arrange the gathers to help hide the seam.

Stitch to your bonnet, along with a sweet button. 

Viola!  Another wonderful attachment of bonnet streamers!

Bonnet with Frills Upon It!

  

  I love baby bonnets -- not only at Easter, but throughout the year!

They are one of my favorite baby gifts to make and give.  Even if the new arrival does not wear it  - which I can't image why not - it makes a precious nursery decoration or accessory for her teddy bear or doll!

One of my favorite parts of making a bonnet, is attaching the streamers.  It is one place that my creativity can run free.  It is a perfect place to try new techniques of ribbon or lace manipulation.

  Mother-of-pearl buttons, tiny seed pearls or hand embroidery add a special touch.

The bonnet above is made of white satin batiste, trimmed with French lace and smocked in pink.

The streamers, and the ribbon in the back casing, are pink silk satin ribbon.  This ribbon is my favorite for sweet bonnet streamers.  It is so very soft and holds a bow well, unlike some synthetic ribbons which are very slippery and come untied easily.

This is a fairly simple attachment of double loops, using one end of the streamer itself.  I secured it to the bonnet with a floral shaped mother-of-pearl button.  In the center of the button a small seed pearl is stitched to add just one more touch of sweetness!

Between now and Easter, I will share some of my other favorite bonnets and streamer attachments!

*In response to several inquiries, the smocking design used for this bonnet is included in the Old Fashioned Baby pattern, Smocked Baby Bonnet.  I apologize for omitting this information earlier!*

Blessings

I saw also that there was an ocean of darkness and death,

but an infinite ocean of light and love which flowed over the ocean of darkness.

                                                                                                                                                        ~George Fox~

Southern Reading

As indicated by my first blog entry, I love Charleston!

I also love many other things Southern!

This is a new online magazine due to debut on March 15.

Looks like a definite read for me!

You may read more about Southern Flourish here.

Sips and Stitches

I prefer tea.  Delicate china, accessorized with vintage sterling, makes me swoon.  Embroidery is a passion.  All of them together?  Nothing better!

This is the china of my childhood.  It reminds me of holidays, birthdays and my mother's delicious cooking.  The sterling spoon is from my grandmother's silver collection, and evokes even more fond memories of family gatherings.
As a nod to the approaching St. Paddy's Day, a charming Belleek China sugar and creamer.  It once was cherished and used by my dear mother-in-law.
Underneath it all, a tea tray cloth and matching napkin which I purchased several years ago on a shopping spree at a local antique mall.  I have no idea of its origin or history.  It simply made me smile, which almost always culminates in "Sold"!

The cheerful colors and sweet birds enchanted me from the first moment.  It was only upon closer observation, that I realized almost every stitch on the entire cloth and matching napkin was a chain stitch.

Chain stitch is one of the oldest and most basic of embroidery stitches.  It is the foundation for many other stitches.  Here it stands alone and creates beauty by itself.  French knots form the birds' eyes, and a sprinkling of satin stitches form flower centers.  Otherwise, the entire design is a series of teeny tiny chain stitches, stitched closely together as a filling stitch.  This type of chain stitch is sometimes referred to as point de chainette.

Turning the cloth to the reverse, we see a series of tiny straight stitches -- or, we would if my photography skills were top notch!  This is a sign that the embroidery was created with needle and thread, instead of the use of a tambour hook -- another means of incorporating chain stitch into a design as a filling stitch.  In tambour work, the stitches on the reverse would not show up as separate stitches.

The fabric of the tray cloth is a very fine ecru linen.  I love how the etching of the silver tray beneath shadows through, almost becoming a part of the design.

This is my entry in Show and Share Friday, hosted by Cindy of My Romantic Home.

Here is her entry:  an exquisite pin cushion in a delightful shade of blue!

Join Cindy and others here for Show and Share Friday!

Pink is Sweet!

Visit my dear friend Martha at her blog, Southern Matriarch, for a very sweet give away!
http://www.southernmatriarch.blogspot.com/

Speaking of Liberty of London

This email from the children's clothier Papo d'Anjo greeted me this morning, and I couldn't agree more!

For more inspiration, you may visit their website at http://www.papodanjo.com/ or follow their blog at http://www.papodanjo.wordpress.com/