To Piece Braid

Sometimes a braid must be pieced at a conspicuous point on the hat, when

careful handling will be found necessary. If the braid is composed of

several smaller braids sewed together, the ends should be ripped apart

for several inches and the strands cut in unequal lengths; also the

strands of the other end which is to be joined to it should be cut of

such length as to meet the corresponding ends and allow a lap of one

i ch. The ends cut in this way may be tucked under one at a time without

the joining being noticeable. If the braid is very wide it may seem best

when covering a frame to cut and join the ends of the row of braid. It

would then be better to make a straight joining in the back.



If a fancy braid is to be pieced, the ends are lapped diagonally and

sewed flat. If a fancy joining is part of the design, a simple one is to

lap the ends to look as though woven. This may be employed on a crown or

brim or both, and it then becomes a part of the design. Also the top of

the crown or any part of the hat may have a woven covering of braid, but

any such fancy method requires an additional amount of braid.



The top of the crown may be covered by laying the braid on straight from

front to back, allowing the ends to extend down on the side crown an

inch or more. The braid of the side crown should cover these ends. The

brim of a narrow hat is often covered with short lengths of braid

radiating from the headsize wire, the ends extending up on the crown

one inch. A fabric is often combined with braid for the sake of design,

or if there is an insufficient quantity of braid.