Read Ebook: The Little Girl's Sewing Book by Klickmann Flora Editor Cowham Hilda Illustrator Miller Hilda T Illustrator

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Ebook has 492 lines and 34901 words, and 10 pages

Editor: Flora Klickmann

Illustrator: Hilda G. Cowham Hilda T. Miller

The Little Girl's Sewing Book

THE LITTLE GIRL'S SEWING BOOK

EDITED BY FLORA KLICKMANN

A Word to the Grown-ups.

This book contains lessons in practically all the stitches used in plain needlework, as well as the more useful of the fancy stitches. Each article described and illustrated will be found to contain instructions for some definite branch of sewing; and though all the stitches required in making the article will not necessarily be illustrated in that chapter, they will appear in other chapters, and can easily be referred to, by aid of the comprehensive index.

Things you can make for Yourself.

A Handy Work Apron.

If you are going to set to work to make some of the pretty articles described in this little book, the little work apron shown in the picture on this page is just the very thing you will need to put on while you are sewing.

It has two deep pockets and two small ones, and you will be able to put the silks and cottons necessary, for whatever it is you are making, into these, so that they will be ready as you want to use them.

You will find it is so handy, too, to have a pocket to slip your scissors into after cutting your thread. You know what a nasty way they have of slipping off your lap on to the floor. And then, when you pick them up, it is quite likely that you get a little dust on your hands, and this gets on to your pretty work and makes it look soiled.

Then, when your sewing time is ended for the day, how convenient it is to be able to fold your work away in your little work apron, so that it is kept well protected from any stray specks of dust, and will be quite ready for you when next you want it.

So you see how this little apron is going to help you to keep your work nice and clean, and I am sure you will want to make yourself one as quickly as ever you can, so let us see how it is done.

You will only need 1 yard of material to make the apron, and this can be white or coloured as you prefer. A soft linen or sateen would make up well. For the featherstitching use coloured "Star Sylko" thread, as this will wash without the colour running.

To cut out the apron, first measure off 4 inches of the material, and cut across from selvedge to selvedge; this will form the band. The piece used for the apron itself is 32 inches long and 20 inches wide, and when you have cut this you will have a strip left for making the small pockets, which should each be 6 inches square. To make the points at the bottom of the pockets, fold each square right down the centre, measure 1 1/2 inches up the double cut edges, and cut off the corners on the cross to the edge of the centre fold.

Now take the piece you have cut for the apron, and turn a quarter-inch hem along both the sides and one of the ends of this strip, tack these along carefully, and hem neatly. We give directions for tacking and hemming on page 18.

To form the large double pocket, fold the hemmed end of the strip up 11 inches, and oversew the edges of the side hems together. Directions for oversewing are given on page 28. Now place a tacking line right down the centre of the pocket The small patch pockets should then be added. Turn a quarter-inch hem along the top of each of these, and a single narrow turning round the other edges. Hem one of these on to each side of the large pocket, placing them about 3 1/2 inches down from the top of the large pocket, and 3 inches in from the side edges of the apron.

Now take the band strip, tack a single turning round all edges and fold right along the centre. Gather the top of the apron, draw the gathers up tightly , and carefully stroke down each gathered stitch with your needle to make them set nicely. Now let out the gathers until the apron is 13 inches wide, place the gathered edge between the folded band, taking care that you get the centre of the band and the centre of the apron together, and hem along each side of the work. You will see that you have a little picture showing you exactly how this should be done.

The open edges of the ends of the band should be oversewn together.

First fold the end of the band, and cut your buttonhole through the fold and exactly in a line with a thread of the material; the buttonhole should be cut just large enough for you to put your button through easily. Before you commence to work the buttonholes make a line of running or "barring" stitches quite close to the edges, to hold them evenly together, as shown in the first part of the little diagram; the second part of the diagram shows another way of holding the edges together by working overcasting stitches over the hole, but this way is more often used when working on thicker materials. The third part of the diagram shows a finished buttonhole, and you will see that one end is worked round and the other square; the outside should be the round one, and the inner end the square one.

Now you are ready to commence to work the buttonhole. Thread a sewing needle with white cotton , make a knot, and just to fasten your thread to your work put your needle in on the wrong side just below the running stitches, at the inner end of the buttonhole, picking up one thickness of material only, and bring it out on the right side of your work between the edges of the buttonhole.

Buttonholes are always worked on the right side of the work, and are worked from left to right. To make the first stitch , place the needle downwards through the buttonhole, and put it in just where you put it at first, only this time right through both thicknesses of material.

When you have your needle in this position, place your cotton round it exactly as the little illustration shows it placed, pull your needle out, and you will find that you have made a knotted stitch, which must be pulled up so that the knot comes right at the edge of the buttonhole; this completes one stitch, and you must work a row of these stitches right along, making the ends of the stitches even to a thread.

The round end is made in the same way that you do oversewing, and each stitch must be made the same length as the buttonhole stitches, and taken round to form a half-circle at the end of the hole; the lower part of the little illustration shows how the needle is placed for this.

Work the second side in the same way as the first, then for the square end take a couple of ordinary back stitches right over the entire width of the worked buttonhole , and work a row of buttonhole stitches across the end of the buttonhole, bringing the knots just over the bar of stitches you have just made across. This completes your buttonhole.

All that now remains to be done is the feather-stitching, and for the little girl who has not attempted this stitch before, we are giving an illustration showing exactly how it should be made.

This is worked from right to left. If you look carefully at the illustration you will see that the thread is always brought round to the front of the needle before making a stitch, and for the upper part a small stitch is taken downwards towards you, and for the lower part a stitch of the same length is taken turning upwards towards you. The feather-stitching should be worked just over the hemming line, and this will serve as a guide for keeping it straight; the bottom of the top stitch should come just above the hemming line, and the top of the lower stitch just below it. The illustration clearly shows where the feather-stitching should be added.

You run and hem from right to left, You buttonhole from left to right; Your needle should be rather fine, And never pull the thread too tight.

For Ribbons and Bows.

Isn't it just too tiresome when you want a particular bow to wear with a blouse, or a little lace collar that is just the right shape, and you look in vain through the drawer where you keep knick-knacks of this description. Then you know how the drawer gets all tumbled over, and you have finally to seize a bow that isn't a bit the one you wanted, and rush off, to save being late for school. Have you ever been in a fix like that? If you have, you know all about it, and it is all the more annoying when you know all the time that the bow is there somewhere.

Now what is really the trouble here? Why the fact of the matter is the drawer is too big, and the little bow loses itself among the other things in the drawer.

Now what you want is a little compartment where you can keep your bows or collars all to themselves. A cardboard box inside the drawer won't last any time. No; the better plan is to make yourself a really pretty box, that can stand on your dressing-table. You see the sweet one illustrated, don't you? Well, it will be a very simple matter for you to make one in the same way. The outside of this one is covered with a pretty flowered cretonne, of which pink and green are the principal colours, and it is lined with biscuit-coloured sateen. But you would, of course, make your box in the colours that will go best with your little bedroom. A flowered material is probably nicest for the outside, though plain material could be used. In any case, a deep cream is the best colour for the inside of the box.

To make a box the same size as the one here shown, you will want four pieces of thin cardboard 6 inches long by 5 1/2 inches wide for the lid and bottom, four pieces 6 inches by 3 inches for the sides, and four pieces 5 1/2 inches by 3 inches for the ends. Then you will want two pieces of cream sateen 7 inches by 6 1/2 inches, and two pieces of flowered cretonne the same size, two pieces of cream sateen and two pieces of cretonne 7 inches by 4 inches, and two pieces each of sateen and cretonne 6 1/2 inches by 4 inches.

The first step is to cover the cardboard pieces. This must be done very neatly. You will notice that the pieces of material are an inch larger each way than the cardboard they are to cover. When you lay a piece of cardboard on a piece of material there should be 1/2 -inch of material all round, outside the cardboard, for turning over. Crease it over the edges of the cardboard all round, turning it in under again at the corners, as you see in the little picture. Start by taking a few stitches at the first corner, carry your needle on to the next corner, and again take a few firm stitches. When you have done all the corners, take a few long stitches from side to side, as you see in the illustration, to keep it secure.

You must now sew the covered pieces together. Take a cretonne-covered piece, place it against a sateen-covered piece of the same size, having the turned-in sides together, and oversew neatly all round. Do this with all the pieces. Now you have six neat little sections, each of which is cream one side and coloured on the other.

Your next task is to oversew five of these sections together to make a box. First sew the two side and two end pieces together, and then sew the bottom piece to all four, taking care that all the cream sides are inside and the coloured sides outside.

Before you sew the lid on, sew cord round all the edges with neat stitches, as you see in the picture. Green cord was used for this box, but you could use whatever colour goes best with your cretonne. Sew cord also round the edge of the lid.

All that now remains to be done is to fasten the lid to the box. This is done by oversewing on the inside the cord on one side of the box to that on the lid. You have now got not only a useful receptacle for your bows, etc., but a very pretty addition to your dressing-table. The size given is a very useful one, but you are not bound to make it this size if any other would suit your purpose better. For instance, if it is to hold handkerchiefs, a box that is square would be a better shape. But whatever size you decide on, see that each piece is cut and joined evenly, as this is most essential if the box is to be really a success.

Such an Advantage!

My scissors used to run away; My cotton lost itself; My needlebook would never stay Upon the mantel-shelf; My thimble always would forget To be where I could find it; My button-box was quite upset If no one stayed to mind it.

But now a work-bag I have made, I'm saved no end of worry; I find my cotton, tape and braid Without the slightest flurry.

F. K.

The Lambkin Bag.

This pretty bag is made just big enough to take a pair of little girl's shoes, and would be just the very thing for you to keep at school to put your slippers in when you change them to come home; or you might like to use it to carry your slippers in when you go out to tea.

Do you see the two frisky lambs gambolling on the grass, worked across the bottom of the bag? Don't you wish that you were like them, and didn't have to wear shoes that are always wearing out? This little bag was made of dark red sateen, and embroidered with white "Star Sylko" embroidery thread. The bag should be about 7 1/2 inches wide and 10 inches deep, when finished, and to allow for seams and a nice wide hem at the top, you will want to cut a strip of material 8 inches wide and 24 inches long.

It will be best to do your embroidery before you make up the bag, so that you can get at the work better. First fold your strip of material right across the centre, put a tacking line on this fold, and work your lambs just above this.

If you turn to page 30 you will see how to work the cross-stitch designs, by placing canvas over your material first, and you have the lambs all drawn out for you in this article. Also you will find a whole alphabet of initials for working in cross-stitch on another page.

When you have finished the embroidery, fold the strip of material in half, with the right side inside, and sew it together at each side with a run and back stitch, leaving about 4 inches open at each side at the top of the back. When you have joined the seams, you must oversew them along the edges on the wrong side as well, so that they will not fray.

Now turn down a 2-inch hem at the top, on both sides of the bag, turning in the side edges of the hems; you can tack down the sides of the hems, so as to keep the edges in, but don't sew them together just yet.

When you have hemmed the hems, you must put a row of running stitches along each hem, about half-an-inch above your hemming line, to make a runner, so that when you thread your ribbons through they will be held down at the bottom of the hem and not come right up to the top of the bag. Now you can oversew the ends of the hems together, leaving the little space between the running line and the hemming line open, so that you can thread your ribbon through. This part of the work must be done with fine sewing cotton the same colour as your material, as you do not want the stitches to show too much.

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