Monday, July 26, 2010

Smocking Secrets- REVEALED

My good friend, Bianca, is a professional seamstress.
So when she offered to teach me a little smocking,
how could I pass up the opportunity?  

I always thought smocking was some kind of magic.  
And, in some ways, it is!
{I swear it takes magic to have the patience needed to get the tension 
consistent in each stitch!}

But after a few practice sessions I see that there are a few basics that make smocking so much more comprehensible.

Lesson 1:  Smocking begins with a pleated piece of material that you can make by machine or buy at the store.
 
My material was pleated by machine and if you look closely you can see that the folds make a series of what can be referred to as the hills and valleys:

Lesson 2:  For basic designs, the needle wraps around the hills and comes up between the valleys


Lesson 3:  For the basic wave stitch, the needle always moves from right to left, wrapping the trailing thread around two hills and then passing up between them through the valley.


The trailing thread always stays either above or below the needle, depending on which way 
the wave is going.

Here's my first design:
{Yes, I know I need more practice in order 
to get that magic!}

For more basic videos about smocking check out here!
For easy-to-follow diagrams check out here!

And now I present you with some
of the most beautiful hand made smocking designs ever!



This is my baby's blessing handmade blessing dress:
Even the little roses and ribboned hand cuffs are handcrafted.

Thank you Bianca!!!

-CK

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9 comments:

Jocelyn Christensen said...

that IS beautiful smocking work...and by the way, who made that baby?? What a beauty she is!

Katie Olthoff said...

Holy cow! That is amazing! I could never do that!

andreamichelle said...

I had never heard of smocking, now I want to go try that.

Papgena Made It said...

absolutely gorgeous!
the dress and the model! ;)

Karen Mortensen said...

Beautiful. I love your baby's dress.

NicoleD said...

Beautiful! What a sweet friend to show you how to do this and thanks for sharing with us!

Anonymous said...

You did an awesome job, Carrie! Wish I was there to show you some tricks of the trade in person! Miss you!

Ms. Understood said...

CK, your baby is gorgeous!!!!! Looks like a doll. That dress is beautiful. Looks like you are well on your way to being a smocking expert.

Alyson -- Common Sense, Dancing said...

Thanks for stopping by my place earlier!

This post made me long for small babies again -- we had so many beautiful smocked things!

(But I will confess, the page loaded and I read the headline as "SMOKING secrets revealed" and I wondered what kind of site I was visiting! LOL!

:)
www.commonsense-dancing.com

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