Gathers and pleats! Learn to smock fabric for shirt sleeves, cuffs, and necklines inspired by the traditional clothing of Romania, Ukraine, and Belarus in this two-part class online.

This is a skills-based workshop based on my travels and research with small exercises in hemming, gathering, pleating, and stitching patterns over pleats. You can create a cuff-style bracelet as pictured, finish a sleeve or design a gathered neckline on a traditional blouse in progress. Or start small with a much simpler border for beginners with fewer pleats!

Each class will begin with a slide talk on different forms of smocking. The first class will focus on Eastern European styles and the second will highlight the Portuguese and English traditions for comparison.

This class is open to all levels of experience.

Materials needed:

Cotton or linen fabric
Six-stranded cotton floss or you are welcome to work with silk thread if you like!
Embroidery or crewel needle to fit six strands, long darning needle
Pins
Thimble
Scissors
Optional: Quilter’s cutting board other pinnable surface for tiny pleats like the example piece. If you create wider pleats the work is easier and a pinning board isn’t necessary.
Gingham fabric for practice work (not Eastern European, of course, but nice for faster pleating)

The pdf will include a page of smocking dots for you to trace.

I will email a detailed materials list and preparation instructions after you register and the Zoom link and pdf on Thursday before we meet.

Class recordings will be available for one month afterward.

Images: 1. Some examples of our work for class. 2. Blouses spotted in Transylvania, Romania on tour last year. 3. Fragment of a man’s shirt from Belarus in the Museum of History and Culture of Belarus. 4. Romanian cuff. 5. smocking similar to out beginning exercise. 6. Ukrainian sorochkas from my 2016 visit in Lviv. 5. Another smocked cuff on a blouse from Transylvania, Romania.

DATES:

Saturday, May 11 AND 25, 10am - 12pm PST/ 1 - 3pm EST/ 7 - 9pm CET