The Ruffle Experiment.

Someone asked me if I would make some aprons for their girls. She wanted them to match one that she had been given as gift. (which I made also). She was hoping that I had more of the same fabric and yes I did. I asked how she felt about ruffles and was given the thumbs up. So using the aprons as a ruffle experiment, I started with this.

With an apron that she gave me and suggestions I found on the internet about adding ruffles I cut a pattern.

  The white you see, is the "base" of the apron and the strips will be the ruffles. The strips could be made any size. Always make sure that they are at least double in length to what you are adding them to, so you get full gathers. You can make them as wide as you want, but I wouldn't make them too narrow though.  They wouldn't want to lay flat and would stick out funny.

Next I hemmed everything and added the ties to the base.

These are made from some of fabric strips, folded in half, sewn, and then turned right side out and ironed.

Now we add the ruffles.

Each strip was hemmed and zig zagged to prevent fraying.

Then I hand stitched for the gathering of the fabric. No special reason why, I just wanted too.

Now the gathering took place.

Then I pinned this little beauty to the base, and sewed it in place.

I made sure that when I pinned it to the base, I pinned one end first, then pulled up the slack at the other end with my gathering thread and then pinned. Then I distributed the gathers evenly.

Next ruffle.

 The next ruffle is just covering the zig-zag edge of my last ruffle. I pinned it, and sewed it in place.

To finish up the edge I made another tube (like the ties) and gathered it.

Then I sewed it directly over the last edge to cover the last zig zagged edge.

Experiment Completed. 

Oh and they are 100% cotton, so easy wash and dry.

Now if I can get M'lynn to stop trying them on, I might be able to deliver them. :)