Sewing With Nancy

Sewing gifts ranks as the number one reason why most of us sew. When my guest proposed the idea of a series on sewing gift-giving solutions, I knew it was the prefect topic. Welcome back Mary Mulari, who's ideas are clever, useful, and enjoyable to create. Mary, we're going to start off this second program with not necessarily fabric, as we now know it. That's right, Nancy. We're going to use something that's normally stored away in a drawer. A collection of vintage handkerchiefs is usually stored away and seldom seen. Choose several handkerchiefs, and with just a few sewing steps you'll have a table runner that's an attractive conversation piece. "Sew Gifts, Makes Memories" That's what's next on Sewing With Nancy. Sewing with Nancy, TV's longest-airing sewing and quilting program

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We're going to use them. and maybe we'd use it the other way. There you go. But you have two coordinating ties, which is really pretty easy to find, and the first step is to do some overlap. Here, I have the two ties pinned in place. That's important. We want to match the corner of one with the corner of another so there's a balance here, and then we need to trace the shape of the crossed ties. And we've done that here. And then, we'll cut this from fabric because we're going to use it as a pattern in two instances. On the wrong side, I would place, I would cut a piece of interfacing. Fusible. This is fusible interfacing that's lightweight, and I'm going to fuse this on. Now, if I cut it just a little too big, I trim it back, but that's the next step, to fuse on the interfacing. And, in our next sample, the interfacing is fused into place and then another pattern is cut. Or use that same pattern and cut from fabric for the pocket. This is 1/2" bigger all the way than the original. Sure, so you clipped the edges. This is not exact sewing. This can be roughly fit in there. And then, Mary, we're going to pin this quickly from the right side. And I've really liked sewing from the right side of the ties. I feel the stitching is more controlled and I would probably use clear thread. We like that monofilament thread and stitch all the layers together. The final step is to reattach the label or the loop so that when it's worn, as you saw Mary wear it earlier, it has the obi sash appearance and look and the comfort of it, as well. This unisex style apron is a speedy gift project sewn from ready made towels. All you need are two canvas-weight or vintage towels, grosgrain ribbon, and a little sewing savvy and you'll be able to stitch up a welcomed gift. This idea that Mary has designed is a great idea for a beginner sewer because you would have instant gratification of a completed project and something very useful. So, to show you the elements of this. There are two towels here. We have long grosgrain or you could use twill tape ties. And then a pocket for a bistro-style apron. And then, a kick pleat is on each side. So, easy elements and we'd like to show you how to work with this. Now, you can use vintage towels or new towels. I have a pair here, Nancy. They're not exactly the same, but I think they'd be a really nice complement if one was used as the main towel and the other is cut in half. And here we have two of the same towels purchased. You'll notice that not all towels are the same size. Certainly not. But we use the same concepts of one is kept whole... And one is cut in half. And we have serged edges here. And if you didn't have a serger, you could zigzag down the middle. But we also have pins at the top, 4" from the edge. I'll show you that because they're going to overlap 4". Let's get this at 4", and yes, indeed, they are at 4". So, we'd pin these down into place and get them parallel to each other. Okay, so far, so good. Easy to understand. Yes, I think so. And then we have this sample. And, Mary, your side you're going to work on the tie, and I'll work on the stitching. The tie is a 50-inch, well, it can be any length, but I like a nice, generous tie that will wrap back to the front. I'm going to insert that here because we're going to do some sewing down the side. I'm going to steal a pin from you. Okay. And then we'll form our pocket also. Okay, so you're going to stitch it on this side across. Right. All right. Which has happened on this side. That's all you have to do, the stitching for the ribbon. And then, you're going to stitch down 5". And then over 4". Mm-hmm. The length of the pocket is 8". Go over again to the side seam and if you want to enclose it, go up about 2" and then continue down. And then leave 8" for the kick pleat. That's it. So, with a little bit of sewing, two great looking towels or a way to recycle vintage towels that have some memories attached, you can create a gift and preserve memories, as well. Make a classy new cover for a notebook, recipe book, journal, or photo album. These notebook covers started out as laminated shopping bags. Adjustable upcycled book wraps are the perfect way to preserve good memories stored inside. Okay, so now we're using a shopping bag. We started with hankies, then we went to doilies, then ties, towels, and now, of course, the shopping bags. The shopping bags. Mary, if it is not tacked down, you're going to sew it. I think so. I think so. Now, the wraps, notebook wraps are really quite clever and durable and plastic or coated or laminate. They're adjustable. You can add a little flap if you'd like. This had used some of the names of the shopping bag on it. It was clever. And this is just a brighter one. It's really fun to sew on this fabric. It works well. We just need to do a little measuring to make this project. And we start off by measuring the length of the notebook, which is 10 1/2". 10 1/2". And we're going to add 2 1/2". So, that's 13. 13". So, 13" by... And then we measure around, and we're going to give ourselves a little leeway on this one, we're going to add 8" to the 16". So 24". Okay. So, 13" by 24". So we're allowing a little bit of give in this wrap for the book and we've here prepared this one so that we have a 4" wide, what will be the flap where we insert the notebooks. So, fold under 4", but maybe before you do that, why don't we turn under 1" at the hem? And 1" at the top. And it's topstitched. And then, we add one other piece. This is the length of the notebook, plus 1". So, we have some hems. And we're going to just stitch this in place at the top and bottom. It's loose otherwise in the middle. And I've cut this with a pinking blade. On this sample, Mary has the flap stitched down, has the pocket in place, and we're just about ready to put it in, but before we do that, I just want to show you that you could also use laminated fabric. So, this is by-the-yard fabric. Use the same technique. And to attach the fold back and the decorative, or excuse me, the adjustable flap to stitch on slick fabric, what we'd like to use is a Teflon foot. And here you can see I'm edge- stitching right along that area with the Teflon foot. And then we can do the magic of just inserting the cover. It goes easily here. And this folds back, this being the back flap, and is inserted into the adjustable area. And now we fold this up. And I gave you the wrong size, but there you go. There, you can see, covered and ready to use. You'll soon learn that guest and hand towels are easy choices for durable baby bibs. Mom, dad, grandma and caregiver will all appreciate having bibs on hand, so make several. Mary has given me these baby bibs when our youngest son, Tom, was born. Now it's being used for our grandchildren. They've been probably washed-- this isn't it, but-- a thousand times, and they're still workable. So, what a great idea. And you can see the different sizes from a guest to hand towel. You can get various sizes. You can personalize them. And if you didn't have hand towels, you could cut apart... This is a portion of a bath towel. And I really like the monogram, Nancy, because B works for anyone. It doesn't matter what the child's name is, but it's always "Baby." Girl or boy. You can get four of these out of a bath towel. Easily, yes. So the main element is the neckline, ribbing or knit fabric, but first we need the opening for the ribbing, and you have a template for that. Here on the towel, I have the pattern that's included in the reference material, and it's placed on the fold of the towel. So we folded the towel in half, meaning long edges. And what I'd like to recommend is what Mary does is out of a quilt template, cut out the pattern and you notice the notches at the top, bottom, and then, of course, in the middle. That is quarter-marking, automatically, the neckline. So, that's a great idea. So then we need to cut ribbing or in this case knit fabric, for the neck bands. This is 3 1/2" wide and I cut it to 13" but I always want to make sure it'll stretch to 17" so that it will be an adequate neck band for the baby. If you happen to have ribbing, you can cut it a little shorter. Yes, about an inch shorter. Okay. So, here we have stitching at just 1/4" seam allowance. And you stitched on a stabilizer. It's just so much easier to stitch. Sure. And then tear that away. And then we fold this in half. Here's the back seam that we just stitched. And then we have quarter marks here on the band. So, what I'm going to do is match the quarter marks to the cut out section of the towel. And then I'll show you how to stitch this together. Off-camera, I pinned the ribbing to the towel opening. If you remember that template had notches at the top, bottom, and sides. Well, they were built right in so I didn't have to fold the neckline of the towel. And then we pin marks or fabric marker marks at the quarters and they're pinned together. The stitch that I like to use for this, or that Mary recommends as well, is an overlock stitch. You could use a serger, but truthfully, I think it's easier to use your sewing machine for this stitch. So, it stitches and overlocks the stitch at once. We have a five width, millimeter width, and a length at 2.5". I've taken the cutout out of my cabinet so I can use the free arm of my sewing machine and just start to sew. And because it's stitching and overlocking at once, it takes a little time to sew. And you just stretch the ribbing to meet the fabric, or in this instance it's terrycloth towel, and sew. Not too hard to do at all. What I like about Mary's projects is that they are ideal for beginner sewers and you have great ideas when you're done or great projects, great gifts, when you're finished. So just keep matching and stretching the top layer. You always sew with the longer layer to the feed dogs. It just works so much better that way. So you get the idea. I've stitched one-quarter of this. And after you stitched the completed area, it works out best to do some topstitching. Since I've used these bibs, I know the wear and tear that they get. To topstitch along the terrycloth area will certainly help maintain the longevity of it. So, I'll just change this to a straight stitch, then from the right side, stitch... pressing, finger-pressing the seam allowance to the towel. And it would be a good idea to change the stitch. We'll try that once. Here we go. Change the stitch and sew. I think you've all done that before, use the wrong stitch. Well, I did it on television. So after you just stitch around the edge, then the last thing that you can do if you're working with a terrycloth towel that's been cut into fourths is to bind the edges. Mary has cut 1 1/2" wide strips of fabric, pinked the edges, and wrapped it around the edge and zigzag, and that's... the way to finish this great bib idea. Perhaps you're like me and smitten with the drama on Public Television, Downton Abbey. Well, today you're in for a treat. We're at the Paine Art Center with Laura Fiser, who's the curator, and, Laura, you and I are gonna show some fashions from evening wear during this "Nancy's Corner" segment. Yes. And these are some of my favorite costumes from the television series Downton Abbey. They are opulent and beautiful and really exquisite specimens of design from the 1910s and 1920s. Speaking of opulent, we're going to start with Mary Crawley's dress that's sunburst with her pictured, or featured, with her maid, Anna. Yes. And that's an important aspect of the exhibition as well. Not only do we have the upstairs costumes, but the downstairs as well. And in the dressing room at the Paine you see this beautiful evening gown worn in Season One by Mary Crawley, one of the Crawley daughters. And it shows how fashion was so elegant pre-World War I. The High Edwardian fashion with the beading and the net overlay and the influence of Orientalism and exoticism. You see a sort of asymmetrical bodice and hemline and exquisite starburst beading and fringe detail. And then, Anna, the maid, is-- even in those days... These are authentic for-the-period garments. Yes. The costume house, Cosprop, makes sure that they are supplying the costume designers of Downton Abbey with true-to-period pieces. So, even the downstairs staff, you get a sense of how refined that is with her lace detail on the apron. And these staff members were so proud to work for an aristocratic family, and it was a position of honor. Now we're going to see a Spanish influence of a dress worn by Mary Crawley again. A panel and pleating... Elegant! It is such a beautiful dress. One of my absolute favorite that she wears at the dinner with the Turkish diplomat. A little scandal there! A little infamous dress. But it's a deep burgundy and it was made by Cosprop from a vintage turn-of-the-century Spanish evening gown. And, they added incredible silk chiffon for the pleating of the little flutter sleeves and the detail across the bodice and then an incredible beaded gold lace overlay Lovely. to make it super elegant. We get to admire these fashions, and now you see the mother, Cora Crawley. And this has a panel down the front, and that was a vintage piece. Yes, so, when Cosprop is making costumes, sometimes, for one character they need more than 40 evening dresses a season. And so, for this dress for Cora they found an original beaded floral panel that you see down the front of this gown. They built a dress around that, staying true to the period and they added these great hip details and that net overlay. And they're called panniers and they were popular in the 17th and 18th century and then resurfaced after World War I to add a little bit of flounce to the hip. Something I wouldn't want to accentuate.

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Then, there are debutantes and the debutante ball! We have one vintage, and one garment made for the episode. Yes. These are worn at Rose's presentation or debutante ball at the end of Season Four. And they're dresses worn by Cora Crawley and then a friend of lady Rose. And you can see the difference between the vintage and the non-vintage. Cora's dress features an original crystal beaded bodice, which is just exquisite. And then you have a brand new dress made from documentation, true to the period, brand new, but that's how they would have looked in the 1920s. Another beaded flapper style dress. And the gray dress had some patina aging, natural, beautiful aging to it. And then, finally, we're going to look at the Dowager's evening gown. Yes, the Dowager's evening gown influenced by Japanese art. Impeccable beading down the front panel with flowers and swirls and shows how she's still, in the 1920s, is true to the Edwardian period with the high collar-- Buttoned up. and that defined waistline. Yes. Sure. And the jewelry that accentuates the beautiful design......is just so superb. Yes. And all of the jewelry is provided by Sophie Millard Jewelry of London. They provide jewelry for Downton Abbey. So, it accents the pieces beautiful. So, those of us who sew and quilt appreciate such great workmanship. And looking at these garments, we don't always get to see them as close up as you see now. And that's such a treat. Thank you, Laura. Yes. Thank you, Nancy. If you'd like to rewatch this segment, or any Sewing With Nancy segment online, go to

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and click on videos and you can watch your favorite shows and join us for social media platforms, as well. Thank you for joining us. Bye for now. Mary Mulari has written a fully-illustrated book that can be used to make the projects featured in this two-part series. The book is $14.99, plus shipping and handling. To order this book, call (800) 336 - 8373 or visit our website at SewingWithNancy.com/2913. Order item number MP45 "Sew Gifts, Make Memories." Credit card orders only. To pay by check or money order, call the number on the screen for details. Visit Nancy's website at

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