Farmer's Smock

I was generously loaned a farmer’s smock dress by an antiques textiles dealer. The dress, dated about 1920, was retailed by Liberty & Co and was in a fine linen.  It would have been for the child of a fashionable aesthetic family.

I thought simple parcel paper perfectly represented linen and paper string, cut lengthways and rolled, made a perfect smocking stitch. As I cut the pattern I Iearned that every part of the garment was based on a rectangle shape – the sleeves, the collar, the main body.

Nothing was wasted. I already collected old seed packets and I added them for context and humour.