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Blue apron with rick rack detail

Rick rack, ric rac, or rickrack –  So many ways to say it, and even more ways to use it!

This timeless trim adds instant flair to garments, home decor and more. Dating back to the 1800s, when it was called waved braid, today’s rick rack is available in many colors and sizes.

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The notion has been a longtime favorite at Indygo Junction, inspiring several of our patterns including Rick Rack Apron, Tic-Tac-Tote and Yo-Yo Pincushions.

My muse, Mary Brooks Picken,  wrote about Rick Rac in a 1925 article, “Smart Effects from Novelty Trimmings with Little Effort.

“They come in glorious fast colors, too – yards and yards of rainbow, with a pot of gold at the end, filled with the golden minutes saved by the use of these lovely braids, she wrote. “Their possibilities are seemingly limitless, offering a challenge to the originality and creative genius of every woman who is interested in securing effective trimmings with a minimum of time and effort.”

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When used simply as a decorative accent, rick rack can spiff up a skirt, quilt or towel. To create a different look, overlap two or three strips of rick rack in contrasting colors or braid a pair of pieces and sew lengthwise where the scallops intertwine. You can also mimic a crocheted appearance by stacking rows or rick rack so that the bottom points on the top row just barely touch the top points on the bottom row and so forth.
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Slip a strip inside a hem or stitch between seams for the playful peekaboo found in our Rick Rack Apron.

To apply rick rack on a curve, as seen on the above vintage pillowcase, mark your line and baste rick rack along the line. From the wrong side of the fabric, bring the needle up through a top point close to the edge and put the needle in just outside the point you stitched through. Bring the needle up just inside the adjacent point on the bottom side. Repeat until all points are secure.

Now, I’d like to share my love of rick rack with you by giving you a chance to win a pack of Indygo Junction patterns that use Rick Rack! The pattern pack will include; Rick Rack Apron, Tic-Tac Tote, Yo-Yo Pincushions, Composition Covers, and Little Charmers patterns.  Comment below and tell me your favorite rick rack project, or what you would like to make with it. Contest will run through 1/28/2014.

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