Sunbonnet How-to: Make Your Own Sunbonnet in Less than Two Hours

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STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

[1]Make a sandwich of the five BRIM pieces (stack the three muslin BRIMS together and top 'em first with one of the fancy-cloth pieces facing right side up and then with the other print fabric section turned right side down) and stitch through all layers along the BRIM's curved edge . . . trim away any excess fabric on the outside edge of the stitching . . and turn the creation "inside out" (which will be, in fact, right side out) so that the "pretty" sides of the two fancy fabric sections are exposed. Now make several parallel rows of stitches front to back at one-inch intervals all the way across the stacked material. This quilting stitch will not only hold the muslin padding in place when the cap is washed ... it will also give the BRIM enough body to make it stand out over your forehead when the finished bonnet is worn.

In the old days Grandma used to further stiffen the front of her sunbonnets by inserting some hand-cut cardboard "ribs" in between the rows of stitching on her head covering's BRIM. The idea was a good one . . . except that she then had to laboriously remove and reinsert the stiffeners each washday to keep them from getting soggy.

Thanks to modern technology, however, you can now go Grandma's original idea one better and do a little recycling at the same time. Now? Just cut some strips about 1/2-inch wide or a little wider and long enough to reach all the way from the front of your sunbonnet's BRIM to its rear . . . from a plastic one-gallon milk or bleach jug. Once they're inserted and sewn in place, you can leave the plastic stiffeners there forever.

[2] Stitch the edges of the DRAW, lengthwise, to the underside of the DUCK TAIL to form a tube for the DRAWSTRING. (Turn the raw edges of the fabric under before sewing to give the casing a finished look.) The DRAW should be lined up so that its center is just even with the imaginary line that joins the DUCK TAIL to the CROWN. And don't stitch the two ends of the DRAW at this time . . . just leave them open. (You might also wish to hem the rough edges of the DUCK TAIL at this point.)

Next take the DRAWSTRING material . . . fold its long edges in so that they meet in the center, and then fold the piece again in half lengthwise so it will be about 1/4-inch wide . . . and run a long stitch all the way down the length of the material to turn it into a thick "string". Stuff this string through the hollow space that was formed when you sewed the DRAW to the DUCK TAIL . . . and temporarily pin the DRAWSTRING in place.

[3] Now you're ready to sew the flat edge of the BRIM to the round edge of the CROWN. And if you haven't done a lot of sewing, you're in for a surprise here: It's impossible to make the two pieces fit together (since the curved edge of the CROWN is so long) . . . unless you "gather" the CROWN's cloth as you go. This means that you will sew about three times as much CROWN material as you do BRIM material . . . but if you do the job properly (bunch the excess CROWN fabric evenly along the BRIM's edge) your finished bonnet will have a nice "baggy" look. You'll find it much easier to bunch the "gathers" evenly, by the way, if you first sew a wide running stitch along the rounded edge of the CROWN material, pull up the gathers along this thread till the fabric fits the BRIM, adjust the folds evenly, and pin the two fabric pieces together just as you want them before machine stitching your seam.

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