Project: Pocket square(s)

Late last year, I put together a small sewing work area and figured out how to hem pants over the course of a couple evenings. It took me several tries, but I finished up two pairs (both of which will make their debut once it warms up) before the area went into stasis as other projects rightfully pulled my attention away.

I'd been planning other things in the back of my head, though, and every since I read this post on Yankee Whisky Papa's always-informative and endlessly inventive site, I had it in my mind that I'd teach myself to sew hand-rolled edges and whip myself up some pocket squares. Heck, he'd even sent me a piece of lovely rayon crepe (among other pieces that I need to feature here) that was just asking to be turned into a square, and it had simply sat on my dresser for months.


I didn't want to ruin the lovely piece of fabric that YWP graciously sent my way, so I started out with something I could live with errors on, an old Brooks Brothers oxford with an un-salvageable hole and a blood stain (yes!). After cutting it into appropriately-sized pieces, I decided to go with some red contrast stitching, figuring it would force me to be more mindful of my mistakes and possibly even look a bit nicer if I managed to finish it without major issues.


As it turns out, doing hand-rolled edges is a little more difficult than I thought it would be. It probably doesn't help that I have the hands of an ogre, when thin, nimble digits would probably make for an easier time. And yet, despite the roll being a bit too thick and a little uneven to look truly professional, I'm pretty happy with how the first edge (which took nearly 45 minutes) turned out.

I will get faster, and I will finish this one and more. This one scissored oxford alone has enough material for 4 pieces, so I'll start with that and move forward. It probably won't hurt to have another quiet project I can work on here in the near future.