KEEPING AN EGG COSY

Dominion, Volume 30, Issue 153, 25 March 1937, Page 7

KEEPING AN EGG COSY

How To Make Cover Of Bright Felt

For The Breakfast Table

Handicraft Series No. 6—By Violet M. Williams

egg-cosy is a breakfast table necessity which gives great scope for the introduction of jolly designs and motifs. This cosy shows a little rabbit whose ears extend beyond the top of the cosy itself and enable it to be lifted by them from its place upon the egg.

rPHIS unusual cover is the work of little more than half an hour’s time only and will be ideal occupation for Easter leisure. Very little embroidery is required. The design is printed here full size and is ready to be traced.

The only materials required to make a set of these covers are pieces of felt in two colours and embroidery wools in black, white, green and red. The cosy itself is cut out in one shade of felt and the rabbit is cut out in the second colour.

The majority of embroidery shops stock brightly-coloured felt, or perhaps you have one or two old felt hats to cut up. The felt obtainable in the shops is usually of a 36in. width. One eighth of a yard is ample for a full set of six covers, the rabbits being made of scraps in other colours. Embroidery shops, which stock felt usually have'for sale small remnant packets, consisting of scraps of bright felt in ail shapes and sizes. They are ideal for shaping into the little rabbits to apply to the felt covers. A really striking set is made by carrying out all the cosies in the same shade and making each rabbit a different colour. For instance, all the cosies may be in bright green. Then let the rabbit decoration on the first cosy be in yellow, the second scarlet, the third blue, and the fourth orange. The effect is very charming. Or again, larger scraps of the felt remnants may be cut into the covers themselves, thus making each one a different colour. In this case the rabbits may all be in the same shade. For instance, a set consisting of green, red, yellow and blue covers may each have a nigger-brown rabbit applied to the front. The embroidery is carried out in the same colours throughout, so that a “linking” note is introduced. Making the Rabbits. IMIE first thing to do when making a set of these cosies is to make a pattern of the rabbit. As the design is printed here in its full size, this is a very simple matter. Place a piece of tissue paper over the printed motif and'carefully trace the rabbit through on to it. Make as many tracings as you require rabbits. Put. the tracings on to one side and cut. out. thejmsies. If you are making a set of three, cut out six shapes similar to the shape of the cosy shown in the illustration. Make each one about 23in. high and 3jiu. wide at the bottom. Put three of the felt shapes to one side, and prepare the other three for the rabbit decoration.

Place the tissue paper tracings on to the felt which is to be cut into rabbit shapes and tack each one down, sewing inside the outline. Now cut around the tissue paper shape, cutting through the felt, at the same time. The dotted line which separates the ears is to be slit. Next pin the cut-out rabbit, still sewn to the tissue paper, into position

on the felt half of the cover. Take the embroidery wool and work in the few stitches necessary to hold the motif down and at the same time to decorate it. Sew over the paper and tear this away when the work is finished.

'J’HE eyes are green french knots and the nose a red one. The whiskers are single white stitches which extend on to the cover itself. The rest of the work is in long, single stitches in black : one stitch to form each foot, one to divide the legs, two to show where they

begin and two to indicate the head. The illustration of the finished cosy shows each stitch quite clearly. Tear away the tissue paper and take the other half of the cosy. Join the two halves by placing their wrong sides together and sewing up the edges on the right side. Whip them with wool which either matches or’contrasts the felt of the cosy.

Before joining up the. two portions of the cover, press the decorated one on the wrong side under a damp cloth. The eyes and nose colours may be varied to make them conspicuous. But be guided by the colour of the rabbit. Do not work green eyes on a green rabbit, for instance, but give him black or yellow eyes.