Milliner's Fold
Cut from a piece of velvet, satin, or any fabric which is to be used, a
bias strip one and one-half inches wide and of the desired length. This
must be on a true bias, which is found by placing the warp and woof
threads parallel. Any other bias is called a garment bias. Hold the
wrong side toward you and turn the bottom edge up on the wrong side
toward you and up to the center and baste close to the edge. The basting
t
read must be loose enough to permit the fold to be stretched. Leave
the basting in. Next fold the other raw edge down until the two edges
meet, but do not baste. Fold again, keeping this last fold one-quarter
of an inch or a little less from the other folded edge. Hold in place
and slipstitch down. Slip the needle through the edge of the fold and
take a long stitch, then, going down through to the other side, take a
short stitch. Come back through a little under the fold to hide the
stitch. Slip the needle along the edge of the fold as before, and
continue in this manner. The thread should be kept loose all the way to
permit the fold to be stretched slightly when used. The fold when
finished should not twist or look as if it had a stitch in it.
Another separate single fold may be added to this; it is then called a
French fold. The milliner's fold has many uses, such as finishing the
edge of hats, and the bottom of crowns, to cover the joining of the hat
to the brim. It is used sometimes around the top of a square crown and
is much used in mourning millinery, when it is made of crepe.