It's time for another smocking tutorial! One of my favorite smocking stitches is Surface Honeycomb. It is considered an advanced stitch because the thread passes through each pleat twice, but don't let that scare you; it is quite simple to stitch. In fact in some ways I think it is easier than the Wave Stitch if you are smocking across a row because the threads touch each other so it is immediately obvious if you make a mistake. Get into starting position and stitch an up cab

Today I am continuing on with our Smocking: The Basics series!. This is the 7th post in the series. So far we have covered everything from the history of smocking, to choosing a fabric. You will find all of the previous posts by clicking on the pink link above. Today we are tackling the topic of which pattern to use to make your first smocked garment. As I explained in the History of Smocking, Part 1, smocking originated as a way to control the fullness of the fabric in a gar

I am back with the next in our Smocking: The Basics series. Today we are going to discuss fabric selection. Many different fabrics may be smocked, but some are definitely easier than others, so the purpose of today’s post is to give you a sense of where to start. What is the easiest fabric to work with, both from a pleating and smocking perspective? I mention both a pleating and smocking perspective because the two are not the same thing. In general, a loosely woven fabric wi