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One of the satisfactions of sewing comes when all the elements fall into place without any colossal effort. After receiving two cuts of fabric from the Sew Beautiful offices, I knew immediately what I wanted to do with them. Wendy Schoen’s “Penny” pattern had long been a favorite of mine, and I envisioned a smocked version using the pink embroidered taffeta for the dress and its green coordinate for the Madeira borders. I enhanced the border edges with bright pink embroidery thread to lend a touch of contrast along the hem, neck and keyhole back. For a smocking design, I kept it simple, first backsmocking the insert in green floss and then working a single vine motif that mimicked the embroidery in the fabric. I smocked a green wave vine in an outline stitch from pleat to pleat across the front, and along the vine hand stitched large pink bullion loop posies with green French knot centers. I shaped each leaf using cables like stacked smocking. My finishing details include green covered piping at the yoke and waist seams, and green covered buttons to close the back. Kits for this dress are available from Martha Pullen Company (see Kit Information on page 84).
Modified for Smocking
IN THE ARTICLE
• Materials List
• Smocking Instructions
• Pattern Modifications
• Smocking Plate
MATERIALS
• Kits available
Pattern
• “Penny” by Wendy Schoen
Fabric
• Pink posies embroidered taffeta
• Green taffeta
• A 5-inch strip of Victorian batiste
(backing for smocking)
DMC Six-Strand Embroidery Cotton
• #471 - v lt avocado green
• #3806 - lt cyclmen pink
Notions
• 30 wt rayon embroidery thread for
pinstitch (pink)
• Baby cord for piping
• Three covered buttons
• Sulky® KK 2000™ Temporary
Spray Adhesive
• Fine-tipped lead pencil or
disappearing ink marking pen
MODIFICATION
The front bodice is simply redrafted to accommodate a smocked insert.
Here’s how:
1. Trace front bodice on tissue or pattern paper and set full bodice aside to use for lining. For sizes 2 and 3, place a mark 2-inches from bottom edge at side seam on traced bodice. For sizes 4-14, make the mark 2-1/2-inches from bottom edge.
2. Using a square or rectangle at center front line, draw a line straight across bodice from side mark to center front line (fig. 1).
3. Cut pattern in two pieces on this line. Add a 1/2-inch seam allowance to both cut edges (fig. 2). Reserve
bottom section for smocking guide and top section for bodice front.
4. Cut out dress from embroidered fabric and borders from solid fabric
PLEATING
1. Thread pleater with nine full-space needles.
2. Spray KK 2000™ on batiste strip and smooth it down on wrong side of taffeta smocking strip. Roll on a dowel and pleat two fabrics as one. NOTE: The batiste creates plump pleats that would otherwise go flat.
3. Pull up pleats so that they are neatly stacked next to one another, not crushed and not filled with gaps. Place lower bodice pattern piece on top and tie off pleats to fit pattern piece allowing a 1/4-inch seam on each side. Trim off any excess strip.
Backsmock all nine rows with two strands of green floss to match fabric.
Vine
1. Make a vine wave template on stiff construction or craft-weight paper and cut on wave. Place bottom tips of wave on Row 5; center. With a fine-tipped chalk pencil or disappearing ink marker, trace wave on pleating (fig. 3).
2. Begin one pleat left of center and stitch a down cable with four strands of green floss. Stitch 27 closely stacked trellis stitches up to Row 3 following curved marks closely; up cable at the top. NOTE: Stitches on either side of cable stitches are more like an outline stitch than a trellis stitch. This is what gives the waves a rounded look.
Leaves
1. Count 13 pleats from center and stack cables to form leaves using four strands of green floss as shown on graph. NOTE: The leaves are not mirror-imaged on the other side of the plate; each leaf is worked from the vine to the left.
2. Count 42 pleats from center and stitch next leaf from vine left.
3. Count 67 pleats from center and stitch another leaf. Work as many leaves as needed to finish one on each vine wave.
Posies
1. Stitch a five-bullion looped flower over each cable stitch with four strands of pink floss and a 25-wrapped bullion loop.
2. Add three French knots to each center using three strands of green floss and four wraps.
3. Couch each loop petal to smocking with two strands of pink floss.
PREPARE INSERT
1. When smocking is complete, place lower bodice pattern piece created previously over smocked insert, centering pattern to center looped posey. Top edge will remain straight and bottom edge will be cut to curve with shape of pattern. Place top
2. Zigzag just inside traced line and cut out on traced line. Cut top edge 1/2-inch from top row of backsmocking if necessary.
3. Remove guide threads.
MADEIRA METHOD
There are many methods and techniques for stitching shaped Madeira borders. I use a no-pin/no-slip method that has always produced perfect results. This method requires a strip of super lightweight fusible interfacing such as Dream Weave®, Touch of Gold®, or German Interfacing (as long as it is lightweight and fusible).
1. Cut strips of interfacing as wide as border. Trace scallop design on interfacing’s non-fusible or non-bumpy side. Do not cut out scallops. Do not
2. Pin fabric strip designated for border and interfacing strip with right side of fabric to fusible or bumpy side of interfacing. Do not press.
3. Stitch along scalloped lines following template traced on interfacing. Trim seam and notch and clip curves and points. Turn interfacing to wrong side of fabric and finger press, but do not press with iron. Fusible side of interfacing is now exposed on back side of border.
4. Pin border to base fabric, right side of border to wrong side of skirt, neck, etc... Stitch seam and trim, clipping if necessary.
5. Flip border to right side of garment. Carefully press and fuse border to garment. Fusible interfacing will hold Madeira border firmly in place for pinstitching.
6. Pinstitch edge. I used pink rayon embroidery thread to match pink in fabric.
Renee' Ferrell Spell, a Home Economics & Textiles major from Cary, North Carolina, is owner of a design-by-commission business called Lar Britt Designs, named for her two adult children (see listing in the Shopping Guide of this issue). She is a Martha Pullen Heirloom and Serger Licensed instructor and teaches at local shops in North Carolina specializing in preserving the art of heirloom sewing for future generations. She is a member of SAGA, the Elegant Stitcher’s of Cary and the Cary Rotary Club. She has contributed several articles to Sew Beautiful.