Antique Bonnet

I wanted to share with you this time one of the bonnets in my collection.  I have a number of antique items in my drawer and this weekend was going through them looking for inspiration.

As with most antique pieces there is always something on can draw on or learn a trick or two.

 

This delicate bonnet has seen better days but the embroidery is still in tact for the most part.
Believe it or not all the embroidery on the bonnet and the ruffle around the edges was done by hand on a very fine batiste. It looks like a fine Pearle cotton was used to make the embroidery bolder but strong at the same time. 
The main part of the bonnet has been embroidered to look like what we would call today an "embroidered edge" about 6 1/2 " wide with a picot edge. You can not really see the edge because of the ruffles.

Hopefully with enlargement you can see some of the details more clearly.

The picot edge is visible just above on the inside. The bonnet lining is attached with a somewhat waddy seam but the edges just peek out.

The ruffle is actually a hand embroidered galloon (embroidery with two finished edges) with scalloped edges that has been gathered onto the bonnet edge. The tiny hand gathering stitches are still there but the ruffle has been attached by very fine machine stitching - the only machine stitching I can find on the actual bonnet!

The circle back of the bonnet which you can make out here is composed of two pieces of the galloon whipped together. On the outside edges of the circle, the embroidery of the galloon has been folded over so it can be seen on the outside and probably to make it easier to set the circle into the bonnet. The lady who made this little bonnet obviously was creative in her use of what she had at hand. We can do the same with our sewing just like she did.

This circle and rest of the bonnet are lined with very loosely woven fabric. The same was used for the ties. These were machine stitched on the edges and the hem. But the lining was lovingly attached by hand and shows a lot of wear.

So what can we learn from this little bonnet? Be creative with what we have at hand. You can make or buy a wide edge and a piece of galloon to make a little bonnet of this sort. There are lots of patterns out there with a circle back and a CB seam or a horseshoe shaped back that would work for this type of bonnet. Keep the fabrics light and fine.

With all the incredible embroidery machines we have today, if you can not find the kind of materials you need to make this bonnet, if you have one of these machines you could certainly make a stab at creating your own! 

You could join two 1" embroidered edges together with a mock rolled seam to make a 'galloon' and then gather that to the bonnet edge. With some creative stitching you would never know and the 'galloon would be quite secure!

Hope you like my little bonnet and will try making something similar or at least be inspired by
some of these techniques.

So until next time, keep stitching.....