THE HOME DRESSMAKER

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 85, 4 January 1935, Page 4

THE HOME DRESSMAKER

XII. —Developing the Featherstitch Theme

(By

S.O.)

With the holidays still going on, the home dressmaker will find little time for any but the lightest forms of sewing, which can be .picked up and proceeded with at odd moments without affecting the harmony of the finished article. It is always a mistake to begin a garment of importance without being sure that the time lies straight ahead for carrying it to a successful conclusion. Your mood may change; the weather almost certainly will; and surroundings and conditions which saw the launching of a hopeful scheme may very easily be swept away and give place to uncongenial and discouraging circumstances. The little bits and pieces, however, have not the character to be influenced by circumstances. They are pleasant and easy to get on with, and one stage of their development presents as little difficulty as any Other. They have no complexes, and are friends of the moment. To develop the featherstitching theme which we considered last week would be an easy matter, and all sorts of amusing things could be ornamented with a combination of those and other simple stitches. Now that all

the lucky friends we have are booking their passages to England we might do worse than make them covers of organdie to tuck over the top of the clothes in their trunks. As, for this purpose, you will want all the width possible, it is better to tack down a narrow hem on a square of organdie, and hold it down with a row of single featherstitching. Across Ihe corners bands of fancy featherstitching might be worked. In the centre tack a square organdie bag filled with lavender, and round it, taking in the edges, make a border of featherstitching to match that across the corners. Embellish aprons of britway with ' wide bands of featherstitching worked in different colours, one along the top of the bib, another across the pocket, and a third at the hem. Finish little linen or hucaback hand-towels in the san® way. Make wide borders to linen cloths for out-of-doors meals with heavy thread on linen, in brightly contrasted colours. In fact, be versatile in your treatment and use of this adaptable embroidery stitch, and realise that its limitations depend on you, and that the possibility of its variety is infinite.