“ Taking a long thread of a bright-coloured cotton, carefully follow out the design of the quilting, which, in my particular case, was a very elaborate scroll, tacking the stitches right through the quilt to the new piece of material. If the design is very complicated this needs patience; but nowadays eiderdowns are more often quilted in straight lines, with perhaps a diamond centre.
Always tack your pattern on the plain side of the material, as it is so much easier to stitch on the machine later on if there is no pattern to dazzle your eyes. ”

“ But we have all learnt the value of economy of recent years: and we have seen how the saving and thrift of individuals may mean the salvation of the State. It will be a long time before we can ever return to that condition of easy-going plenty that we knew before the war. In any case the cost of all commodities will remain higher in price. The woman who can utilize oddments and make things with her own hands is the woman who will be making money, as she will be supplying one of the most expensive items of modern times—personal labour. ”

“ While it is a comparatively simple matter for the woman who makes her own clothes to remodel a full skirt into a narrow design quite successfully, it is not so simple to adapt a narrow design to a wider pattern. ”

“ Her sewing-machine is a good friend to the busy woman who has most need to practise the art of preventive mending, for strength and speed are two of her chief demands.
It pays to understand one’s sewing-machine, and to treat it with tender care. Rough usage, or careless handling through ignorance of the rightful functions of the different delicate pieces may lead to dire disaster. ”

“ The favourite and most frequently seen among the stitches so used, are the French knot, stem stitch and feather stitch. It is with the idea of suggesting other stitches and arrangements, that these diagrams and illustrations are given, and with [62] attention to a very few simple directions, the most diffident worker may be sure of a good result.
One feature of decorative stitchery of this kind, is that it may also be constructional, that is, that where a hem is to be decorated, it need not first be stitched with the machine, the decoration does the work of the machine. ”

“ We do not despise the lavender-scented sweetness and tranquility—sometimes we even sigh for the qualities that can only come to perfection in days of unhurried calm—but we recognise the every-day usefulness of the modern needlewoman and applaud the sanity of her methods. ”

“ It is always the neck and wrist edges that show the first signs of wear on a knitted sports coat or jersey, and often a garment is discarded as done for just because these parts are shabby or out-of-date.
Have you ever thought of knitting an entirely fresh set of collar and cuffs to replace the soiled parts, or to be added to a collarless jersey or coat? The existing collar and cuffs can quite easily be cut away and the raw edges neatly buttonholed with wool before sewing on the new set. ”

“ Mending and altering are two branches of the great art of Needlecraft which no woman can afford to despise in these days of ready-made frocks and shop-bought costumes. Turnings may be insufficient, buttons sewn on with too scant stitches, hooks and eyes trembling to fall off, but these deficiencies very easily can be put to rights. ”

“ In making a little magyar overall, like that illustrated, for instance, the side seams and opening may be sewn with a machine, the hems and neck prepared as if for machining, and then the decoration applied. The home worker, whose husband has a rooted objection to having a sewing machine at work when he comes home in the evening, cuts out and machines part of her work during the day, and has only the pleasant part to do by hand in the evening, while she is free to talk, or listen to the day’s news. ”

“ Has the training in the schools fitted the girls for making and mending garments for themselves and others—remodelling old ones, and generally using the needle as a help towards comfort and economy in the home? ”

“ To prevent an embroidery flounce from ragging out before the petticoat itself is any the worse for wear, neatly hem the edge as soon as it threatens to fray or gets torn by an accidental mis-step, and add a bordering of Valenciennes or fine Torchon lace.
Buttons should receive careful attention when any ready-made garment is bought. The trimness of effect and the general prettiness of coat or costume may be entirely spoilt if one of a set of distinctive buttons is allowed to drop off and get lost. Therefore sew on all buttons at the time of your purchase. Stitch carefully with a strong thread ”

“ The cutting of the sleeves from one pattern is another bit of “practical politics” which arises when a garment such as this is being made. There is no reason why the pair should not be cut together, so long as the two right, or two wrong sides are placed together. The use of French chalk for marking out the pattern on the cloth was encouraged.
The making up of the frock afforded many opportunities for practice in neat, strong stitching, combined with beauty. Suitable cottons and needles were used, nothing finer than No. 40 cotton will stand the wear and tear of every-day life. ”

“ It takes so little material that in all probability you can get enough out of the silk lining of some discarded coat or underskirt. Then of course there are the old gloves. Cut out the silk, outer and lining, and the flannel, by the same pattern. Deal with the flannel first. Onto this stitch the pieces of glove—they merely want pinning in place first of all, and then run the machine round each fragment. Put them on as they will best cover the flannel, it doesn’t matter how irregular it all is, so long as the flannel is completely covered. It doesn’t look elegant, as you are doing it ”

“ This is a most effective way of finishing a hem, and has the advantage of being much quicker done than ordinary hemming. I feel sure that, once having tried this way, you will confess it is very much prettier than an ordinary hem.
Tops of tassels can be made to match buttons and bead chain in the exact manner that the sealing-wax beads are made themselves.
If a whole set, consisting of chain, buttons, tassel-tops, belt and shoe-buckles, are made to match, you have no idea how lovely they look; and also what a very “Parisian” look it gives to an otherwise plain and rather ordinary frock. ”

“ Provided you are fond of knitting and can work fairly quickly, you will find it a great economy to make your own woollen spencers.
If you are careful to select wool of good quality, you will be well rewarded for the time spent in making, as hand-knitted woollens can always be relied upon to show less shrinkage with constant washing than even the most reliable makes of all-wool woven underwear. ”

“ Having the working end of wool out at the top of hem, ready for the crochet hook (a coarse steel hook is best) , catch up a chain stitch with the hook and * bring the wool across the hook as for doing a stitch, insert the hook at the bottom of hem, catch wool on opposite side, the opposite way to lifting the thread as in crocheting, that is hooking the wool in a downward movement from right to left, draw loop through and up level with the top of line. ”

“ Mending a Collar.
Men’s collars are among those articles that one had come to regard as useless as soon as they are torn or worn, and therefore at the first sign of disrepair to be replaced by new ones. Yet collars nowadays are a far more expensive item than they were a few years back; a frequent supply of new collars means a considerable outlay. Before discarding the torn collar, therefore, it is well to see if it is not possible to repair it, and it nearly always is possible. ”

“ In beaded crochet a coloured mercerised cotton, fine enough to pass easily through the beads selected, is used with a crochet-hook corresponding in fineness to the thread. The beads are first put on the thread, using a fine sewing needle for the purpose, or waxing the thread end; the beads are then worked into the design with the usual d c.
In the needle-made variety, which we are illustrating in this issue, each bead is attached to the bead immediately below it, and to the one following it. A very fine sewing needle, with fine linen or glazed cotton thread, is necessary. ”

“ Almost any sort of material can be used for the bags, provided it is not too delicate in colour, as one does not want to have a quilt of this sort frequently going to the cleaners. Strong stuffs are best, such as cretonne, serge, stout print, sateen—anything in fact that will stand some wear.
Mix cotton clippings with wool clippings in each bag. Obviously the quilt will not need any lining, as the back will be fairly neat. If you like, you can finish the edge with a cord; but I myself always aim to get the outside bags all of one colour scheme ”

“ Children’s overalls and frocks, little boys’ tunics, and blouses for the elder girls, usually need some trimming or decoration, and it is often difficult to find just the right kind. This is especially the case with coloured garments, and those for which lace is unsuitable. Many people like a little embroidery, but it is not always easy to get an entirely suitable pattern. Some require more time than the home worker is able to give, and some are more elaborate than is desirable for the garment. ”

“ That useful branch of oldtime needlework, the patchwork quilt, has been revived, and this revival is due to the exigency of economy during war-time. The price of all kinds of materials being so very high, and the need for economy so great, have led to many useful devices, in order to maintain a reasonable amount of comfort during these trying times, and not the least of these is the patchwork quilt. ”

“ Preventive Mending.
Stockings, for instance. The toes and heels of children’s stockings may be neatly darned before they are worn [44] for the first time, for this purpose using crochet silk or mercerised thread, which is less bulky and clumsy than wool. Insist on frequent change of hosiery, and forbid the wearing of any stocking that shows even the tiniest hole. To prevent those long running ladders which are almost impossible to mend, sew a band of silk or cotton, or a border cut from an old stocking, round each hem of the new pair. ”

“ First cut off the legs just above the darns on the heel, then cut up the back seam and lay them open. Now lay your pattern on, and you will probably find that you can just cut the four pieces, bearing in mind that the stocking will stretch, so can be cut considerably narrower than ordinary material. When the seams are machined up (once stitching is quite sufficient) , and a hem, wide enough for elastic to be run in, made at the waist and bottom of the legs, you have as comfortable and cosy a garment as you could wish for. ”

“ To begin with, thread a needle (a bead needle or darner is best) with the end of your ball of silk, then pull out one little strand of beads and run the needle, darning fashion, into the thread on which the beads [102] themselves are strung. Pull your silk out of the needle, leaving a tiny piece over where the silk and cotton are entwined. Slip the beads along, and you will find they go easily over the joined silk, and so pass, as it were, en masse on to the knitting silk. ”

“ Men often assume a superior indifference to clothes, but there are certain things about which no indifference is visible, one being the collar band of their shirt. Collar-bands are cut in a scientific manner, and even experienced workers, knowing that they are not very easy to make, will probably be as thankful as less advanced [39] workers, to buy them shaped and stitched, ready for applying to the shirt. These collar-bands can be bought singly or in half dozens, and can be supplied opening at the front or back, according to the fastening of the shirt for which they are needed. ”

“ The “ready-mades,” whether visiting frocks, walking suits, or underwear, as was hinted in a previous paragraph, cry out loudly for preventive mending. For instance, sleeves should be stitched in by machine, for on ready-made clothes the machine stitching is not always carefully done, and a weak place in the sleeve seam will quickly give way under strain and start an ugly tear.
Embroidery with scalloped or pointed edging should be machined strongly all round the extreme edges, the machine needle patiently following the circuitous course of the pattern. ”

“ Thread a darning needle with a length of the same kind of thread and fasten the thread to the beginning of the heel at the right side. * Run the needle behind the next of the “raised” stitches on the sole at the base of that stitch, bring it back to the heel, and running it inwards through the first stitch where it was brought out bring it out through the next heel stitch and repeat from * up to the stitches on the needle which are connected to those on the thread in the same way, slipping off each stitch when joined. Work down the other side in the same way, fasten off the thread and cut it. ”

“ Embroidery Thread was used in pretty shades of violet and green, with one stitch of yellow in the centre of each open flower, each stitch being taken over two threads of the canvas. White silk was used to line the sachet, but if you have a bit of pale primrose or pale heliotrope, this would do equally well, and go beautifully with the colour of the violets. The edge is finished with a fine cord, and narrow violet ribbon is used to tie the sachet. ”

“ If you do not happen to have any fancy cretonne by you, there is no reason why plain coloured pieces should not be used. So long as they are carefully and tastefully blended, quite a pretty cloth or runner can be made. Oddments of casement cloth, linen, cotton poplin, print, can all be saved, and a real economy can be effected by this method of using them. ”