I am so close to the finish of this year's Halloween costumes. Kiddo declared that she wanted to be Little Red Riding Hood this year, and she wanted it to be a family costume. With everything shut down, I actually had time to make everything, and having just finished the fabric organization blitz, I can actually locate the fabrics, notions, and patterns to do it without shopping. I cheated a little, and bought the nightgown fabric from the Pink Depford sale a couple weeks ago, but otherwise, the entire set of costumes, from fabric to notions to thread to patterns, is all from my (sizable) stash. I'm doing my best to do all the sewing for the next few months from the amazing stuff I already own.
The only big thing left to do is to make a couple mob caps for Grandmother and the wolf. I didn't want Tiny to be trapped in a fur suit all day, so I designed her into the wolf after he dresses as Grandmother, dropping the fur moments down to cuffs on the sleeves and drawers and a hood with ears. Now the hood needs a cap, and so do I, so I can just pin up my hair and cover it. As long as I'm making it, I'll do a tutorial along the way.
1. Make the pattern. Measure your head loosely across the top from ear to ear, and add four or five inches for the ruffle. For me, it's eighteen inches. Fold your piece of paper (I use freezer paper from the grocery store) into quarters, then eighths. Use a ruler to mark half of your total (nine inches) out from the corner to make the arc. Cut it out, then unfold to admire your circle. (I particularly enjoy not measuring every plate and pizza pan in my house to get a close approximation.) Then mark a line two inches from your cut edge all the way around in a dark ink. Let your pattern dry.
2. Cut your fabric. I like to use a lightweight cotton/poly blend for mob caps, because it sits well on the head and doesn't have to be steamed or pressed as much. If you're making a stack of these (and let's face it--I'm always making a stack of stuff), fold your fabric so you can cut four or six layers at a time. pin the pattern to the fabric, and cut. Then, one at a time, put the cut fabric on top of the pattern so you can see your dark line, and lightly pencil mark your fabric for the casing.
3. Serge your edge with flat lace. I buy flat eyelet lace by the roll, so I happily use it to finish edges of a lot of things. Make sure your pencil mark remains on the inside of the cap, and that your lace will be right side out once it has been flipped down. The one big secret to successful sewing is putting right sides together to stitch. Line up your edges as you serge, and fold the ends under at the beginning and end. Overlap them. If you have a big lace, it will bowl up as it goes around the curve, but the gathering of the elastic in later steps should solve the issue. I recommend a lace no wider than one inch for this project. Swing over to your straight-stitch machine, and top stitch the cap so the lace lays out flat from the edge of the circle instead of being tucked in, and top stitch the ends together.
4. Pre-curve your bias. It's easy to ignore this step, but it will make your life a whole lot easier. Heat up your iron, and press your bias tape (I get the 3/4" kind) in a circle about the size of a dinner plate. Just keep pressing the bias into circles. It will stretch and shrink into the curve, and then you won't have to fight with it as you stitch it down. Plus, it's oddly soothing. Do this for bias binding necklines and armscyes and hat brims, too, and watch your quality improve. I wish I could tell you where to get this ironing board cover, but I got mine brand-new in the package (score!) at the thrift store. It's probably in the quilting section of the fabric store, but I can't check on that, as I am not supposed to be in the fabric store right now.
5. Stitch your bias tape onto the cap, and add elastic. Fold about half an inch of the end of the bias tape under and refold the edges. Line up the inner curve of the bias tape with the pencil mark and top stitch it very close to the edge. I usually eyeball it using my standard foot, but many people prefer using the edge stitching foot (sometimes called the blind hem foot, number five on your Bernina). When you get near the end, cut the tape and fold it under and refold the edges to have two folded edges next to each other. Stitch the other side of the bias to make a casing. Cut a piece of half-inch (3/8" or 1/4" if you had to use half-inch bias) elastic that goes around your head, hugging it a little, but not to the point of headache, plus one inch for overlap. Feed it through the bias tape casing, then either safety pin it to allow for adjustment (when it's going to now be fit to someone) or overlap the edges and stitch them together. Then swish the casing over the elastic to make the gathering even.
That's all there is to it. Now you can start being the hero of the Drama Club volunteers, once we get back to having Drama Club and volunteers. Use smaller circles for perching caps, and bigger circles for obnoxious floofy bits (I suggest lining those with organza for poof). Move the casing placement out for a smaller ruffle, and in for a bigger ruffle. These caps have been especially useful for maid scenes in musicals, when the ladies' ensemble need to all be maids, but have no time for wig changes. Attach a couple wig curls, and pop them on over their wig caps.
You now have the option of saying, "Oh, this? I just whipped it up this afternoon!" all casual and stuff.
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