Handkerchief Angel Directions by Jeanne of Knitting Paradise

Handkerchief Angel Directions by Jeanne of Knitting Paradise

The directions consist of the text below and two attachments: a jpg of a diagram, and a photo of a lace angel to show a variation on the arms. Hopefully you will be able to do a print-out of the text and the diagram. All you really need for a pattern is a 2 1/4 inch circle for the head.
I suggest you cut a square of lightweight fabric to about the size of your handkerchief, and use this as a practice template. It will save you time in the long run and allow you to make mistakes. Also, because you will understand the lines for gathering, you will not have to put guide lines on your special hankie with pencil or fabric marker.
1 Iron your hankie into four quarters; the folds will mark the vertical and horizontal divisions.
Mark the waist for gathering at the horizontal fold. Mark the wing lines for gathering as shown in the diagram. Notice that the diagonal lines do not reach the waist line, but begin a distance above the waist line. I can’t give you an exact measurement, as every hankie is different. Just eyeball it.
2 With needle and thread, do these three gathers: waist, and two wing lines.
3 Bring the point of the large dot placement on the top edge of the hankie down to the large dot placement at the waist, using the front fold line as a guide. Secure with a few stitches.
4 Bring the wing gathering stitches to the gathered waist gathering stitches, and with neat overhand stitches, join the wing gathers to the waist gathers. This forms a tube, or sleeves, for the arms. There will be a bunch of fabric in front, because of the triangle shape of the bodice.
5 Manipulate the dress so you understand how the arms are formed, and what you will do with the bulk of fabric in the bosom area. You may need to use a few stitches to make this look good. You can also play with joining the skirt in front or in back, or just let it be a single layer.
6 To prepare arms, cut a pipe cleaner to a single length that would accommodate both arms and a bit extra to fold back for hands. (As you can see in the photo of the Christmas hankie angel, I made her arms too long!) Wrap the pipe cleaner in the same fabric that will be used for the face, using very narrow strips wound around the wire. Hint: Begin your wrapping along the arm portion, wrap to the ends of the hands, then continue wrapping back to the middle, along the arm, around the hand, and back to the middle. Secure with a few stitches. This avoids the problem of loose ends on the hands.

A note about the arms:
The advantage of using wire is that you can fold over the ends to make hands that can hold something, such as a star on a stick. An easier method is to thread narrow ribbon (use a safety pin) through the sleeve tube, and using the ribbon ends coming from the sleeves, tie a bow in front of the angel. (See photo of the lace angel, attached) The nice thing about these arms is that it is simple, fast, and the angel could hold a special object, such as a ring, that has sentimental meaning to go with the handkerchief. Or - the angel could hold a small gift!
7 Insert the arms, (wire or ribbon,) through the sleeve tube.
8 For the head use whatever little bit of plain fabric that you can find; knit is best, but woven will work. You can use a bit of nylon stocking (remember those?) pulled over the formed head shape to get a good skin color. Make a gathering stitch around the circle, and stuff it with whatever you have that will make a nice shape. Pull the thread tight, and try to make the closing neat.
9 To make the face, turn the ball so that the gathers are in back of the head, and the face is in front of you. On a horizontal line, half-way down the face circle, (the circumference line on the ball), experiment with eye placement by inserting two pins directly into the ball, where you think the eyes should be. Glass tipped pins, shaded with black marker, work best. Try different eye placements and widths, until you are satisfied. With a double threaded needle, bring the thread from the back of the head through the ball to the front and emerge at the point for one eye. Take a few tiny stitches, and bring the needle through to the back of the head. Make a knot and cut. Repeat for the second eye.
Note: don’t place the eyes too high - a common mistake. Eyes are more or less at the halfway mark on a human face. Well, angel face too!
10 Find and sew the mouth location, using the same technique as for the eyes.
11 Using whatever you can find, glue on hair, and a halo. Attach the head with a few stitches. If your angel will be hung, add a loop of thread or fine cord that comes from the base of the head, through the head and out the top of the head.
12 The most fun part is to rouge the cheeks of the doll. This will really make her face glow. I also like to put a bit of lace or tulle under the skirt as a petticoat.
Good luck with this project! Let me know if I need to clarify any detail, and PLEASE post pictures of your special handkerchief angel.
Jeanne / KP Jeannne

Head pattern is a 2 1/4 inch circle

Ribbons for arms, instead of wire

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