CHOOSING A PATTERN AND MATERIAL FOR A WHITE PETTICOAT Do you think you can send for the cotton material and for a pattern for a petticoat? What kind of cloth will you use? Perhaps you would prefer to make a slip instead of a skirt. =Who can remember the names of the best cotton materials for underwear?= What shall we choose for our petticoats or slips? Look at the pattern book and choose a simple petticoat. We shall learn to make one with a ruffle. It is very useful in summer to wear under thin dresses, although some girls may prefer to make a slip which combines petticoat and waist. What sizes shall we order? How much cloth will be required? We shall need three lengths of cloth for the skirt. Let us take our length measures for the skirt, allowing four inches extra for hem and finishing. Those who wish to make ruffles of the material will need one yard extra of same cloth or of lawn. Which will be less expensive, a ruffle of Hamburg embroidery edging or a ruffle of lawn decorated with a fancy stitch? Which will take longer to prepare? The girls of Pleasant Valley School decide on a pattern with five gores. What does that mean? Would you prefer some other? Why is the five-gored pattern a good one for the petticoat? [Illustration: FIG. 61.--A simple petticoat.] The girls choose cambric for their petticoats. Some decide to buy the lawn and to make the ruffle with a simple decoration. In calculating for the ruffle, allow 1½ times the width of the skirt. This is full enough. The depth of the ruffle is according to desire. It may be from 5 to 10 inches deep. Cut it across the warp. Can you tell why? Others may decide to make a simple ruffle of the same material with a decorated hem; a few may use the Hamburg ruffle. Which ruffle will you decide to use for your skirt or the bottom of your slip? EXERCISES AND PROBLEMS 1. Calculate how much material you will need for your petticoat without the ruffle. 2. Calculate the amount for the ruffle. 3. How will the patterns help you to make these calculations? LESSON 13 LEARNING TO MAKE THE PETTICOAT The girls of Pleasant Valley have had so much practice that the petticoat will not be a difficult task. Do you think you will find it easy too? Mollie Stark is delighted to make the petticoat, for she needs one to wear under the new dotted Swiss dress that mother made for her birthday. She saw in the "Pleasant Valley News" that there will be an unusual sale of Hamburg edgings; and she thinks she will go to town and see if it is something she can use. Miss James told the girls that Hamburg edging which is full of holes and in which the pattern is poor and poorly embroidered, is not worth buying. The edge is usually very weak and pulls out after one or two washings. The Hamburg edging called "blind embroidery" has no holes and is likely to be firmer. Let us study briefly how the petticoats are to be made: