• Button-Crafted Tote Bag
• Petals Ahead

Petals Ahead

By Chris Malone

Complete with a detachable garden flower, you’ll love creating perfect petals as a hem accent for this pleasing apron.

Finished Size

Adult small/medium

Finished Measurements

Length, including leaves: 22 inches
Width at waist: 17 inches

Materials

• 44/45-inch-wide lightweight woven fabric:
• 3/4 yard green-with-white print
• 1/4 yard each 4 coordinating white-with-green prints (A, B, C and D)
• 1/2 yard light- to medium weight nonwoven interfacing
• Scrap fleece or batting
• 1 1/8-inch shank button
• Permanent fabric adhesive
• Optional: pin back
• Basic sewing supplies and equipment

Cutting

From green-with-white print:

• Cut one 41 x 18-inch rectangle for skirt.
• Cut one 40 x 3 1/2-inch strip for hem facing.
• Cut two 6 x 6-inch squares for pocket.

From white-with-green print (A):

• Cut one 18 x 4 1/2-inch strip for waistband.

From white-with-green print (B):

• Cut two 5 1/2 x 30-inch strips for ties.

From white-with-green print (C):

• Cut one 4 x 21-inch strip for flower.

Note: White-with-green print (D) will be used to cut leaves.

Leaves

1. Use template to trace leaf 15 times on wrong side of half of white-with-green print (D), leaving 1/2 inch between each leaf.
2. Fold fabric in half with right sides together, with traced pattern on top. Pin to interfacing. Stitch on outer traced lines, leaving bottom edges open.
3. Cut out 1/8 inch from stitching. Trim interfacing close to seam and trim tips. Turn right side out. Press.
4. Use soluble marking pen to transfer vein lines to one side of each leaf. Stitch on lines with contrasting thread by beginning at leaf base and stitching up to the tip, then rotating and stitching down to the first V. Stitch each line twice as you return to the base (Figure 1).

Assembly

Use 1/2-inch seam allowance unless otherwise indicated. Sew right sides together.

1. Fold and press under 1/2 inch on both 41-inch sides of skirt. Repeat 1/2-inch fold for a 1-inch double hem. Press.
2. Unfold pressed side hems. Arrange 13 leaves across bottom of skirt with right sides together and raw edges even, leaving approximately 1/2 inch between leaves at their widest point with tips pointing to the top of the apron. (Figure 2). Position beginning and end leaf 1 1/2 inches from side hem. Machine-baste in place.
3. Fold and press a 1/2-inch hem along one long edge of the hem facing. Pin unpressed side of facing to skirt bottom, right sides together, with leaves between. Sew side and bottom edges. Trim corners and grade seams. Turn facing to right side and press. Turning the facing will also turn the side hems on the skirt another 1/2 inch; press.
4. Topstitch along bottom of skirt 1/4 inch from seam. Stitch facing hem close to fold. Stitch side hems.
5. Gather top edge of skirt to 17 inches. Sew skirt to waistband, right sides together, leaving seam allowances extended on waistband (Figure 3). Press under 1/2 inch on opposite long edge of waistband.
6. Fold each tie in half lengthwise, right sides together, and sew across long edge and one short end. Trim corners and turn right side out. Press. Pin raw ends of ties to ends of waistband (Figure 4). Machine-baste to hold.
7. Fold waistband in half, right sides together, and sew end seams (Figure 5). Trim corners. Turn right side out. Hand-stitch folded edge of waistband in place.
8. Sew pocket squares with right sides together, leaving a 2-inch opening on one side. Trim corners. Turn right side out. Fold in seam allowance on opening and press.
9. Baste pocket to apron 4 inches from waistband and 8 inches from side. Topstitch close to side and bottom edges.

Flower

1. Fold and press fabric strip in half lengthwise, with wrong sides together. Use soluble marking pen to mark five flower templates along the strip, starting and ending 1/2 inch from the short end, with the straight edge along the fold and leaving approximately 1/8 inch between stitching lines of each segment.
2. Using doubled thread, hand-stitch gathering stitches on pattern lines. When moving from one U to the next, go over the edge of the fabric fold and back into the pattern (Figure 6).
3. After each section is stitched, pull on the thread to gather the fabric into a petal. When all five petals are formed, knot the thread and then take a few stitches into the first petal to form a circular flower shape.
4. Glue a scrap of fleece or batting to the top of the shank button and trim around the edges. Cut a 2 1/4-inch-diameter circle from the skirt remnant and hand-sew gathering stitches around edge.
5. Place shank button fleece side down on wrong side of fabric circle and pull thread to gather fabric around the shank. Glue the covered button in the center of the flower.
6. Fold a small pleat in the base of a leaf and tack to hold. Repeat with a second leaf. Whipstitch or glue leaves to the back of the flower.
7. Sew a pin back to the back of the flower. Pin flower to apron pocket.

Source: Blanc Et Noir fabric collection from Quilting Treasures.

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