This soft silk lined scarf is perfect for spring. The contrast between the earthy cotton and linen Lecien Mini Waffle and the hot pink silk is beautifully surprising. It took me only three hours to make from start to finish (and that included the time it took for me to take all the pictures for this entry!)
The finished scarf is 12"X 42" and it's hand washable. --Molly
Cut the silk and Mini Waffle fabrics each into 13" strips. Trim off the selvages. They should be exactly the same width but don't worry if they are not the same length, you will take care of that later. (I found it easier to cut the solid Mini Waffle Fabric with a rotary cutter and tear the slippery silk, which gave it a perfectly straight edge.)
Line up the silk, shiney side down, to one end of the Mini Waffle.
Make sure the sides line up perfectly and pin the two fabrics together along one short side and both of the long sides.
If one of the fabrics in longer than the other simply cut the longer one to meet the shorter one.
Pin all the newly shorn side and you'll be ready to sew.
Using a 1/2" seam sew all the way around the piece leaving a 3" opening at one end. Make sure to back stitch at the beginning and end of each seam.
Snip off all 4 corners.
Through the 3" opening pull the scarf right side out.
Make sure to poke your corners out until they are nice and pointy. (I usually use a knitting needle for this.)
Iron the whole thing flat. Pin the 3" opening together, with the raw edges inside.
Baste both sides together with curved safety pins placing one every few inches.
Slip stitch together the 3" opening. (If you need a slip stitch refresher click here.)
Start a corner. Thread your embroidery needle with a 20" length of Sashiko Thread. Tie a small knot at one end. Poke the needle in between the two layers of fabric and pull it out about 1/2" away.
Pull the thread fairly hard until the knot gets pulled into the middle of the two fabrics. Don't pull it so hard that you pull the knot out entirely.
Sew down the long length of the scarf using large running stitches, anywhere from 1/4"- 1" long. Don't pull your stitches tight. They should be relaxed and should not pucker the fabric. Take out the safety pins as you come to them.
Make sure to get through both layers. This does not have to be ultra even. The beauty comes from the variations.
When you come to the end of your piece of thread tie a little knot 1/2" from where you last came out. Stick your needle in between the fabric layers 1/2" from where you came out and give a little tug. The knot should disappear in between the layers like it did at the beginning of the row. Snip your thread end.
Quilt the rest of the scarf as follows. Sew each row in the opposite direction as the previous row. This will keep the scarf from puckering up a help it stay flat.
First quilt both edges and the middle.
Then in between these lines.
And once again in between the previous lines... You can keep doing this until it's even more quilted but this seemed like a good place to stop for me!
February 28, 2008