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                      PONCHOS 

    A poncho is a blanket with a neck hole in it.  This 
garment is very good for carrying in the car in case of a 
change in the weather, as it can be put on over anything 
else you are wearing, and it folds neatly when not in use.  
You can use it as a blanket when taking a nap, and spread it 
on the ground to sit on during parades.  If made of wool, it 
can be rolled up and used for a pillow. 
    When I was in a body cast with my arm stuck out so that 
I could not put on a shirt, my ingenious neighbor made 
several of my odd pieces of fabric into ponchos to serve as 
blouses, and also made one out of coating so that I could 
leave the house in cold weather. 

    There are a great many ways to deal with the hole in the 
blanket.  One way is to cut a scoop neck, boat neck, or any 
other neckline that is larger than the head, and then hem, 
bind, or face it.  This approach is suitable only for 
ornamental ponchos, as the large opening lets in wind and 
rain. 
    Another plan is to cut a round hole just large enough 
for the head to pass through -- this may be smaller in 
stretchy fabric, of course -- and then sew in a tube of 
knitted ribbing that will fit closely around the neck. 
    A whole family of plans:  cut a hole just big enough for 
the neck, slit it to let the head through, and apply any of 
the neck treatments you would use for a pull-over shirt or 
blouse.  (If the slit extends through the edge, you'll have 
to call the garment a cape.) 
    If the fabric is so narrow that the poncho has to be 
pieced, you can take advantage of the piecing seam to 
terminate the slit neatly, the way you'd use a yoke in a 
pullover shirt. 
    A rain poncho of coated nylon often has a hood sewn into 
the hole.  Seal the seams.  Such garments should also have 
grommets or loops in the corners, so that they can be used 
as tarps and emergency tents.  
    My favorite neck treatment for ponchos is to face the 
slit, then bind the neck opening with bias tape, and let the 
tape extend to tie in a bow.  One could end the binding at 
the slit, or face the entire hole, and close the slit with a 
button, hook, clasp, or snap.  One end of the tape can be 
formed into a loop to serve as a buttonhole. 

    A poncho may be rectangular, with the short edges 
hanging front and back, and the long edges running from 
front to back over the arms.  Or it may be square, with two 
corners hanging center front and back, and the other two 
corners forming sleeves.  Ornamental ponchos may be round, 
oval, or fanciful in shape. 
    
    In any case, the neck hole must be off center, for the 
same reason that a shirt or bodice is cut higher in the back 
than in front.  If you want the poncho to hang evenly all 
around, having one edge of the neck hole just touch a line 
that divides the poncho in half is about right.  If you plan 
to wear the poncho over a backpack, it should be quite a lot 
longer in back than in front.  Even without a backpack, you 
may want it longer in back, since fabric hanging down your 
back doesn't get in your way, but does protect you from the 
wind. 

    A poncho is a tempting surface for embroidery, appliqu‚, 
patchwork tie-dye, painting, etc.  Before designing, study 
how the poncho drapes so that you know how the folds will 
affect the decoration. 
                                     

_One way to make a square poncho for contingency use: _

    First, keep your eye out for a clearance on 100%-wool 
fabric.  Having found some cheap wool, wash it in the 
hottest-available water, in a crowded washer, with plenty of 
agitation, then tumble-dry it in a hot dryer.  This 
treatment will render it smaller, thicker, and rather fuzzy.  
You may want to buy enough wool to make bed blankets too; 
see "household linens" and "lap seams". 
    If you have to add other things to crowd the washer, be 
careful not to select anything that sheds lint.  Be aware 
that "dry-clean only" dyes bleed like a stuck pig. 

    Tear a square of the desired size.  Most likely, you 
will tear off a piece as long as the fabric is wide, and 
leave the selvages on the poncho.  Don't tear the fabric 
until after shrinking it, as an edge torn after felting 
won't ever match an edge torn before felting. 

    Since the fabric has been partly felted by the harsh 
cleaning, you don't need to finish the torn edges in any 
way, but you may choose to decorate them.  If you want 
fringe, sew it on -- it will be difficult or  impossible to 
ravel the edges to make a self fringe. 
    Bear in mind that the poncho will be more useful for 
sitting on etc. if the edges aren't lumpy.  

    Fold the square in half along a diagonal.  Fold again on 
the other diagonal.  Mark the folds with blackboard chalk.  
Open the fabric and mark a circle just tangent to the cross-
bar of the T, with the stem of the T running through its 
diameter, and out the other side to mark the center of the 
slit. 
    If reasonable, choose a facing material that doesn't 
require to be turned under at the edges.  Polyester double 
knit is good, as it has a stretch similar to the bias to 
which it will be sewn.  Let the long grain of knit run with 
the slit; cut woven fabric on the bias. 
    Draw the slash line on the facing, and draw the seam 
line with a smooth U curve at the bottom.  You may, if you 
like, make the stitching lines farther apart at the bottom 
of the slit to make the curve less sharp, but don't overdo 
unless you want a keyhole effect. 
    Baste the facing to the poncho, right sides together, 
with the slash line matched to the stem of the T and the 
edge of the facing inside the circle.  Re-draw the cutting 
line where it is concealed by the facing, so that you can 
see to cut the facing and poncho together. 
    Stitch along the stitching line, then cut the circle and 
slit, trimming the allowances in the curve if necessary.  
Wool is stretchy enough that you won't have to snip the 
seam, but the facing may require some judicious cuts.  Try 
to stretch and ravel instead, so as not to weaken the seam. 
    Turn the facing to the wrong side and hem it, then bind 
the neck with bias tape, leaving the ends of the tape long 
enough to tie in a bow. 

    Because of the extremely-sharp curve, turning the facing 
is apt to distort its shape, so if you turn an ornamental 
facing to the right side, or want to make the poncho 
reversible, cut the facing somewhat larger than 
desired, stitch and turn it, baste it into place, 
*then* cut it to the desired shape.  
    Since the wool won't ravel, instead of facing, you may 
appliqu‚ ribbon to each side of the slit to stabilize it, 
then sew a crosswise ribbon or a motif to the bottom of the 
slit to keep it from starting a tear.  Extend the side 
ribbons beyond the slit, concealed under the motif, to avoid 
having a definite place for a tear to start. 
    You can get other ideas for slit-finishing by studying 
patterns for long sleeves with buttoned cuffs. 

EOF