See a pin and pick it up, all the day you’ll have good luck. See a pin and let it lie, luck will surely pass you by.
Never give a present of scissors or the friendship will be cut. Scissors should always be sold, they should never be given.
It is bad luck to sew clothing while some one is wearing it unless the person in the clothes holds a thread in their mouth.
Always sew a pillow case on New Years Eve to hold all of your troubles.
Never leave sewing undone on New Years or it will stay that way for the next year.
Never sew on Sunday because you will have to rip out all of those stitches when you get to heaven. There is harm in sewing on Sunday if you do not use a thimble.
You will ‘cut off’ your fortune if you use scissors on New Year’s Day.
Dropping a pair of scissors is said to warn that a love is unfaithful.
A bride must sew a swan’s feather into her husbands pillow to ensure fidelity.
Don’t was clothes on New Year’s Day or someone in your family will pass away.
To upset a box of pins for tells a surprise as long as some of them are left in the box.
If you mend your apron or dress while you are wearing it someone will lie about you.
White sewing on a garment should you sew it to your dress by mistake, as many stitches as you take so many lies will be told about you.
If you break your needle while making a dress you will live to wear it out.
If you tear a hole in a new dress the first time wearing it you will have a new one before that one is worn out.
Never start a garment on Friday unless you can finish it the same day.
Breaking one blade of a pair of scissors is an omen of quarrels and discord. If both blades are broken at once a calamity is to be feared.
If you make a quilt or spread be sure to finish it or marriage will never come to you.
When you are sewing and your thread knots and tangles, someone is talking about you.
If you put your petticoat on wrong side out and wear it that way all day, you are alright. If you change it you will have bad luck.
While resting on the sidelines at the State Festival and National Convention I made notes on different styles and sewing ideas. I observed that many garments were decorated on the front but the back was left plain. When a dancer is in a square those people are looking at the front of the outfit. Everyone else in the hall sees the back. This was very evident in some of the prairie skirts. They had lace or embroidery on the front panel but were unadorned on the back. Men’s shirts also had this treatment with fancy front yokes and plain back yokes. To be a ‘well rounded dancer’ be sure to carry the design all the way around.
It is difficult for us to get a good view of how we look ‘all around’. Craning our necks too look over our shoulder in a mirror does not reflect a true picture. The best way is to take a picture. While wearing your complete dance ensemble, have a true friend take digital photos of you front back and both sides. All of the items that would be worn to a dance must be present to get the complete picture. The height of the shoe heels changes the posture of the wearer. The width of the petty coat changes the length of the skirt. Frame the picture so that the head is removed. Eyes are drawn to eyes. Advertisers on know this and that is why they pay top models so much to wear their clothes. If a face is in the picture you will look at the face and not able to look at the outfit objectively.
Enlarge the picture on a computer and analyze the ensemble. Start at at the top and work down. Neck line - should fit smoothly on the body with out gaping. Strap keepers sewn to the underside of the shoulder seams will help hold the neck line in place during active dancing. Sleeves - the best length for most of us mature types is elbow or three quarter. The underarm area should fit close to the arm pit for best range of motion. Bust darts -should point to the apex of the bust and end about one inch away. Waist line - don’t roll the waist band of a skirt. It will widen the waist and tends to come undone and cause the hem to be uneven. Cell phones, pagers, cameras, and purses attached to the belt widen the waist line. Belts add an extra layer to the waist but a contrasting belt can be a great accent piece. Try wearing a large buckle to the back. This balances the jewelry on the front. Hem line - should be parallel to the floor all the way around. The skirt should be only a half inch longer than a full slip or it will droop over the edge. Look at all the pictures and decide any changes. Then erase the pictures and and head for the dance.