I Ball So Hard

Doesn’t everyone need some ball fringe in their lives?

My friend Amy originally saw this project on The Purl Bee, and we decided we had to have one! So off to the store we went to gather supplies. I made some modifications to the method to make it easier for beginners (um, yeah me). Basically I messed it up a few times and discovered some tricks.

Supplies:

• 0.5-1 yd fabric (enough to cut a 16″ x 58″ piece, so it depends on the bolt width-I used 1 yd)
• 4 yds ball fringe trim
• Coordinating thread
• Iron
• Stitch witch (optional, but recommended…you don’t need a lot)

Kitty cube- optional.

After you wash and dry your fabric, cut out a piece of fabric 16″ x 58″.

With right sides together, sew a 1/2″ seam to join the ends. Iron the seam open and sew both sides of the seam down in place.

Notice that you do not have to be a great seamstress to get a nice finished product here! Just do your best!

Next get out your stitch witch. Working on the wrong side (look for that seam you just made, make sure all your hems/seams are on the same side!), fold over a good 1″  and iron in place. Use pieces of stitch witch to secure the hem every once in awhile- you don’t need to lay out the whole roll.

Once you have your 1″ hem in place, fold the fabric over again about 3/4″  covering the the first hem completely (note: a smidge of the first hem should be tucked under the fold and this is important!!) Do not use stitch witch this time, just iron in place.

So now you should have 2 big fatty hems ironed in place. But you’re not done ironing yet! The ball fring will be placed on the outermost edge and sandwiched inside the hem. So take the inner hem edge (i.e. not the fold, the open end) and fold it back on itself to create a hem half the size. I hope that makes sense. If you look at the picture above, the left edge of the hem will get folded to the right so it meets the outer edge. Do this on both edges of the cowl and iron in place (no stitch witch).

Now it’s time to grab your ball fringe. You’ll be placing it between your latest fold, on the outer edge.

If you need to, iron the hem again as you go. Pin the fringe in place every few inches. Now it’s time to sew! Using a zig zag stitch, sew the ball fringe in place, making sure to catch all layers of fabric. I’m not going to lie, this was a little difficult. This is where that stitch witched tucked under hem comes in handy. The first time I did this, my folds were popping out, and I couldn’t keep everything in place. So, trust me on the stitch witch and over-sized initial fold. Just go slowly, keeping the fringe in place as you go and pull out the pins.

When you’re done, you’ll have a versatile piece you can wear so many ways!

I hope you’ll try this project and tell me how it goes for you! Enjoy!