  Margaret held up the dainty new white dress she had been making for her doll. It was now all finished except the lace frills. “When we sew the lace around the collar and sleeves for trimming, your new dress will be ready for you to wear to the tea-party to-morrow,” said the little mother to her doll as she tried on her new dress. “Doesn’t she look sweet!” whispered all the little One-Eyed Fairies to each other, peeping out of the work-basket to look at the doll in her pretty white dress which they had just helped to sew. They were very fond of Margaret and her doll. “Sir Bodkin!” Margaret called to the King. “Here I am, My Lady,” he answered scrambling out of the work-basket and up to the top of the table. He leaned himself against the pincushion. “I think we’ll need a dainty Stitcher to sew these frills, don’t you?” his little mistress asked him. “Yes, and harness of fine white cotton thread,” answered his Majesty. He then called all the Stitchers out of the work-basket. They were up on the table-top in a twinkling, waiting for their King to choose those needed for the work. Two Stitchers were selected, one larger than the other. “One for gathering the lace and one for sewing it on,” explained Sir Bodkin. “Before you begin, take a plunge through Margaret took out her emery-bag and held it for the Stitchers to take several quick plunges. They waited in the pincushion while she went to wash her hands, to keep the lace clean as it was being sewed on the dress. The fine Stitcher was harnessed with white cotton thread number 80. The larger one was harnessed with the same thread doubled for gathering the lace. “Make his harness longer than the frill is to be when finished,” said the King. “How much lace shall I cut off for the collar and sleeves?” asked Margaret. “This is the rule for the length of a ruffle or a lace edging,” said Sir Bodkin and sang: Or sewing on lace, Measure once and a half ’Round the sewing on space.” “How shall I finish these ends?” Margaret asked when she had measured and cut a piece of lace for the collar. “Tiny Stitcher will hem them for you before you begin to gather,” said Sir Bodkin. It was no sooner said than done. “The lace for each sleeve is sewed together at the ends with a French seam,” said the King. “Oh, yes, I remember. Sew the ends together first on the right side, turn the seam, and then sew it on the wrong side so no raw edges will show, just like we did on the marble-bag,” Margaret cried. Gathering lace Sewing on lace “Mark with pins, the half and quarters of each of the three lace frills. Then mark the half and quarters of the collar and sleeve edges,” Sir Bodkin said and sang this song: “Mark the half and quarters of edge and of frill, And the gathers will then the space evenly fill.” “Now fasten your gathering-thread securely on the right side at one end of the top (or straight edge) of the collar lace,” said the King. When Margaret had done this and was ready to sew the tiny frill to the collar, Sir Bodkin finished the song: “Hold the gathers next to you When frill is sewed on, Then the ruffle will set well, And never look drawn.” “Draw up the gathering-thread to fit and wind it around a pin at the end in a figure eight. You are now ready for tiny Stitcher to overcast the lace on for you,” said the King. Tiny Stitcher fastened the thread at the right end of the collar frill top. Then over the edge he stepped and came back through dress and lace towards Margaret. She pulled the thread through and he stepped over the edge away from her and through again, always going from her right towards her left. Margaret guided him with her right hand and held the dress in her left. When the frill was sewed on all around the collar, the thread was fastened securely at the end and snipped “Now take a gathering-thread the proper length for each sleeve frill and fasten it at the seam. Then gather each lace frill in turn and pin the half and quarters of each to those of each sleeve edge and overcast just as you did before,” said Sir Bodkin. Margaret worked very carefully and soon snipped the threads, and put the little Stitchers in the pincushion to rest. She made some pretty blue satin ribbon bows to add to the little dress as a finishing touch, and sewed them on. “’Tis done at last,” she said, with a sigh of joy, slipping the lovely party-dress on over her doll’s curly hair. “You’ll be the sweetest doll at the tea-party, I know,” she said happily. “We thank our little friends very much, don’t we, dear?” Margaret said to her doll. |
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