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1840's winter bonnet
from an old quilt

This section is under construction - and so is the bonnet. I am adding pictures as I make the item. I bought an old cotton bedspread in poor condition. It is cotton, hand-quilted and has cotton batting (the quilting that goes between the top and boom layers of fabric - the meat in the sandwich). The top layer is sunny yellow and the under-side cream.
There are five steps to make this bonnet.
1. brim
right side The brim shape is copied from a fashion print. I used a protractor to get the correct angle at the corners that will frame the chin.	I cut out the shape first in paper and tried it on for size before cutting out in spare fabric. front / back 8" back neck edge 17" brim face edge 22" The fabric brim was amended to fit correctly and, only then, was cut out in quilted fabric.	centre back marked
The brim edges were wired underneath with stiff plastic tube, using double stitch.		I decided not to use millinary wire which might rust in the damp English weather.
after wiring with plastic tube	The more layers that are added to the brim edge the stiffer it becomes taking on its own curved shape.
trim edge with contrasting braids
The brim edge wire was covered by cotton tape: bias binding was not used at the time.	The tape colour matches the rest of the trim and so becomes invisible in use.	These days the edging tape is sewn on using a machine so the stitches show: in the past the tape was sewn on by hand with invisible hemming stitches. I prefer the look of hand sewing and in this instance the quilted fabric is too thick to fit under my machine's needle.
brim wire hidden by green tape	right side Each stitch goes through the quilting front to back and visa versa	underneath - bound brim edge
The brim was decorated before putting together with the back piece and curtain; working on each part separately is much easier.	brim underneath with green braid	braids must bend around corners
brim right side - green tape hidden by first row of chenille braid
add pic - second row of chenille braid add pic - brim on head
2. quilt back piece
star motif from quilt left-over piece	I drew a circle of 9"diameter on the back in pencil (using an embroidery hoop for speed). I later transferred the circle through to the front with tacking stitches in a contrasting colour. This will be the guide for the quilting stiches.	green fabric back piece for lining ( to match other items of this outfit)

right side - The original running stitch quilted design was re-sewn to give more definition	right side	underneath
underneath vermicelli quilting to further define star design		fairly tidy sewing
right side		checking back shape and quilting area: the brim and back are pinned together, matching centre-back markings. A final fitting check is made as modifications can easily be made at this stage. The back piece hem is pinned up.
add pics - hem line
pics - quilting completed
3. join back piece to brim
cover join
		After the brim and back piece are joined the sewing is covered with braid appropriate to the winter season. I used green velvety brocade ribbon and edged it with chenille fringe to match the bonnet brim and a mantle. then pleated into a loose box pleat
add lining
4. add curtain to cover the back of the neck so it does not sun-burned or gazed at.

5. add ribbon inside brim and other surface decoration, feathers or flowers
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