21 of Ashan, 718
Rharne
Pepper made a knot in the good, blue thread and carefully made the first stitch.. This was essentially the same as the basting stitch, except the spacing had to be an even one eighth of an inch and the lines couldn't meander at all. If the lines weren't straight, the pillow case's edges when done wouldn't iron smoothly. It was true that the cases would be decorated by being edged in ribbon or lace or the like, but Pepper wanted to be as careful as she knew how. Thankfully she wasn't expected to complete work very fast for some time yet.
One, and two, and three.. Pepper found herself counting each stitch. She had to make sure of the line too often to be comfortable but having to snip out everything and redo it all, like she had to a few trials earlier wasn't something she particularly wanted to repeat either. Miret had been sitting perched at the windowsill, looking outside. That trial, Pepper had thought to talk to Miret while practising her stitches, and that was why after a bit her concentration had wandered. Being made to snip out everything and having to redo it all after having to hear sharp words wasn't something she wanted to repeat. So for now she wouldn't be chatting to Miret while working.
It certainly felt like breaks had passed when Pepper finally finished. Mel inspected everything, then smiled at her
This isn't half bad. I can make out some choppiness but it's not bad for your first pillow case. She turned the case inside out to show Pepper how the running stitch had now become the outermost edge.
Now ya need to iron this flat, then put in the sample pillow. Figure out how much extra fabric is there. It ought to be roughly half an inch all three sides. Mel stood up, motioning for Pepper to follow.
See here, she pulled a finished pillow case from a stack on the shelves and unfolded it with a quick snap of the wrists.
The looser case is made snug by another line of fancier stitches in a contrasting colour. This allows us to adjust minor variations in the case, and also provides a place where we can attach extra decoration She had Pepper notice the light lace that edged the three closed sides and the two open edges of the case.
Lastly, we'd embroider a small design on one side of the case, say a sprig of flowers, or initials or the like.. She let Pepper examine the case, even allowing her to turn it inside out to figure out the design. Then folding the case and keeping it back she continued,
This is how we make the basic trousseau linens, of course the customers specify a lot of the design. The pillow you are making will be very similar.
Pepper nodded to show she understood. This explanation had been a big help in helping her visualise and understand the order of the steps she'd been shown earlier. The work was painstaking and delicate, but when the end result was so pretty, it was something to take pride in learning to do well. And if just a pillow case could signal beauty... she now understood how a beautifully made dress was also a work of art.
Mel handed her the pillow case she'd been working on back to her.
Now check the measurements and make the half inch borders. Once all the twelve cases in this order are done, I'll show you how to attach lace and embroider simple motifs.
Pepper smiled and took her work to the table. This was good work. She was glad to be assigned to Mel, who was great with explanations and the why of things. Humming Pepper went on with the rest of her work day.
