Little Hankies for Little Pockets

It's more challenging to keep up with posting and documenting my little projects than I thought it would be, but that's ok.

So, a little bit a go my preschooler, Little Girl, had a slightly runny nose and it was time to leave for school.  I asked her if she wanted a handkerchief, and she said "yes".  Now her big brother and Daddy carry handkerchiefs, but I found them to be a bit big and chunky for her little denim pockets (totally didn't think this through before asking the question, did I?).  Ok, panic time.  I ran into my fabric stash -- what to do?  All the quilting cotton seemed to rough for little noses, and the jersey was just too squishy.  Then I saw it: an old pillow case.  I cut a quick square, put it in her pocket, and had a very happy little one.

Of course, this coarsely cut little square wasn't a permanent solution, so later in the week I experimented with a few finishes.

First I cut the pillow case into 9" x 9" squares.  I have since learned to be more careful about staying on grain, but this was a learning exercise :)  Then I had to finish the edges, and I opted to try a few different ones out:

1. Bias binding

• I had some leftover fabric strips, so I cut them into 0.5" strips
• I folded those in half, and ironed them
• I sewed the raw edges to the edges of the handkerchief square (just like binding a quilt), taking care to miter the corners (because that's how I like it)
• When finished, I folded the edges over and topstitched

2. Decorative stitch

• Picked out a cute stitch on my machine (Janome MC6300), and narrowed it a bit

• Stitch: 59

• Width: 3.5

• Frayed the edges for a cute look (this is where being on grain would have made a difference in how even the fraying was/looked)

3. Zig-Zag

• Narrowed the width of the zigzag
• Width: 3.0

I would say that the decorative stitch was my favorite.  The narrow zigzag is probably next, but it was a bit challenging to pull off (maybe next time stitch before cutting the square).  And the bias binding is my least favorite, I think because of the bulk (may have been better if it was single instead of double bias tape -- ie: don't fold it in half).  Either way, Little Girl was happy, so I'm happy.  And, as a bonus, she's more willing to wear her jeans to school (I think they hold up to the playground better) because they have pockets for the hanky!