---Illusions & Lagniappe---: Petticoat Junction

I’m glad I had 8 weeks to do this because I’m down to 4 now & just getting into the hard part!

Before I can pattern the dress I need the undergarment. I’ve never had a quilted petticoat so I’m a little surprised at how HEAVY it turned out, but overall the effect is exactly what I wanted. I guess if you wear a blanket under your clothes it weighs what a blanket weighs (this took most of a twin bed comforter). It definitely pulls on the shoulders.

The fully lined petticoat is 2 layers of lightweight cotton and the skirt has an inner layer of cotton batting that stops just above the natural waist. I used the top of an old quilt for the inside and printer's cotton for the outside. The batting smooths out the hoop lines so the dress won’t show them. The hoop casings are on the inside layer & made of lightweight cotton waistband interfacing. I wrapped double fold bias tape over the bottom to give the edge extra stiffness. I didn’t have enough spring steel for 4 hoops so I made the bottom one out of some salvage nylon cable stiffener I’d been saving for a corset experiment. That stitching about 2" from the bottom is to keep the 3 layers of skirt lined up.

Inside casings

Hem casing

Time spent on the petticoat: 14 hours including pattern, cutting, fitting, sewing & a quick trip to JoAnn's for bias tape. That's more than I expected but I'm out of practice.

1/2" Spring steel is good for hoops. It comes in different weights & it can be cut with aviation shears or tin snippers. The ends are sharp & need to have the corners ground off. I dip them so they don't snag on the fabric. Tool dip is easy to use, cheaper than the stuff they sell "just for corsetry" & even comes in a spray version.