I've bought aprons on eBay, and so if you don't donate them, you could possibly sell them, depending on how collectible they are. I also wore smocks at my life drawing classes so that I would not get charcoal/pastel/water color on my nice clothes. Lars

*sip* *sip* *crunch* *crunch* *crunch* (I just LOVE tea time!) But bad news! I tried on my smock, and the front is hanging very weird! It actually pooches waaaay forward, and it looks like I am 6 months pregnant. I have no idea why this is happening. It is very strange. I can smooth it down, and then if I kind of swing back and forth, the front of the smock literally grows! I can watch the fabric actually pull out in the front! I thought maybe the fabric just needed to be washed. So I washed and dried it. It still does it. All I can think is that: 1. when I put on the pockets, I somehow gathered the fabric between them so there is a permanent pooch/pouch? 2. I pulled the binding too much in some places (but where?), and that is making the front swell forward? It is truly bizarre. It didn't do this before I put the edging on. I don't know if it started after I put the pockets on. I guess the easiest thing to try is to remove a pocket. But is that doesn't work, then my dear smock will be relegated to apron status. No way, no how am I removing that endless bias tape! Shoot--I'll bet it is the !@#$%^& bias tape. Grrrrrrrrrrrrr. francy

Not by machine, but did you know they have a great smocking thing now to help do it by hand, taking the tedious measuring out of it? It is a grid of sticky squares and you cut it to the size of the material and stick it to your fabric. The dots are marked so all you have to do is sew it. I don't mind sitting and doing it in front of the tube in the evening at all. I saw it on YouTube, I'd think you could find it by going to You tube and searching in "smocking" (You might find the answer to your original question there too.) You tear the little squares off, one by one as you get to them. Isn't the smocking going to distort the dragonfly? I machine embroider, and I'm trying to think of a way to duplicate hand embroidery on smocking. I have not tried to embroider it first, but when I try on the finished smocking, it flattens it too much, imo. Donna

It would be easier to use Smocking Tape. Then hand tack to define the diamonds better. Or use Pencil Pleat tape and hand tack to form the diamond shape. You can use more than one row of the tape if you want longer smocking. The tape will also act as a stiffener for you. Usually you need 3x fullness for smocking, so not sure if the two panels will be enough to be able to close them. I think you might need one more panel if possible and add a half to each of the other two.