Rose Taffeta Kingston Valance

Just in time for Valentine's Day, a sleek, shiny, slippery deep rose poly taffeta.
It looks the same from the right side and the wrong side, up or down, and the valance is self-lined; confusion reigned.




If you've ever made a Kingston valance, you know what I mean.  If you never have and want to know, just ask!
Graceful as Kingston valances are, it's astonishing how ungainly they are before they're done.  They seem to endure a prolonged adolescence, limbs askew, awkward contortions, before metamorphosing into a mature valance.
We make Kingstons with M'Fay's pattern- old school- and once you get the process locked into your head, it's not difficult, just cumbersome.  Really cumbersome and confusing! Luckily this had only 2 swag sections.
mbs askew, awkward contortions, before metamorphosing into something mature.
There have been many Kingstons I've had to sew twice because the first time around I sewed the swags to themselves, instead of to each other!
We tried to treat this fabric politely: reduced the bulk at the swag seams; pressed carefully on low temperature; hand-sewed the pleats.  The trim is sewn by machine- I know, I know- but really there wasn't much choice.  The fabric was so slippery that the layers kept bagging at the bottom seam, so an adhesive would only worsen the sagging.  It was almost impossible to even PIN this fabric, so trying to hand-sew the trim- with a NEEDLE!- was out of the question.  In the end, the stitching is not visible since there are no cascading jabots; and it keeps the layers under control.
And guess what, there are TWO of them aaarrrrgggghhhhhhh