Flashes, a how-to pictorial

[The F-H.C.A.G.]

So, I needed to make flashes for Sinbad's X-Marks tartan kilt, and decided, what better to do than painstakingly photograph every part of the process...yes, I am anal retentive

Part I: Some examples of flashes

I think there was a thread already on making basic grosgrain ribbon flashes, like these



But, when Panache got his Matt Newsome kilt, it came with all the scraps and I made some flashes to match. These are just sewn onto a piece of elastic, then velcro is sewn onto the ends. Rather crude, but then nothing shows under the kilt hose anyway.



These are Stillwater flashes-they have a stiffener (iron on fabric) and they wrap around the elastic.



And they are sewn together so they do not slide apart on the vecro



These are also Stillwaters, but they are not sewn together



More to come...

Be well,

[ccga3359]

Oh goodie! I think phot essays like this should be stickies in the DIY section, or in this case a velcro. Keep the pics comming for lesson #2.

[The F-H.C.A.G.]

Part 2: The assembly

First, collect all the necessaries: sewing machine at top, iron-on stiffening fabric and iron in the middle, tartan fabric scraps, some cut out stiffener, elastic, and velcro on the bottom (yes the elastic is white and the velcro is black, but who cares, it's all hidden under the kilt hose right?)



Next, find 4 pieces of tartan that are the same (although you could get creative and choose a different part of the sett for each flash, or have two complementary parts for each leg, or whatever you want-go crazy!)



Now, measure out some stiffener (I am using flashes I previously made for Sinbad, as a template). If the material you are using is fairly stiff anyway, or you don't mind a little "flip" to your flashes, you can skip this part.



Now line up the stiffener on the fabric



Iron it on



And cut away some excess



I told you I was going to photograph EVERY step!

More to come...

Be well,

[The F-H.C.A.G.]

Part 2 continued, further assembly

Iron the edges over the stiffener (the stuff I got is only single sided iron on, so the edges do not stick down)



So, I then needed to sew them down



I tried to iron on a second layer of the stiffening fabric, but it wouldn't stick to itself very well



And when I tried to fold it over the elastic



It just fell off



More...

Be well,

[The F-H.C.A.G.]

Part 2 continues

Fold the top over the elastic and sew it, making sure to leave enough room between your line of stitching and the elastic, that it can slide fairly easily. I sewed across, then turned around and sewed back again, to be sure it is good and strong.



Then, I slid it off the elastic and trimmed the bottom



Cut a little triangle out of the bottom, so it looks like a nice pretty ribbon edge. You could cut any sort of pattern you want here-this one is pretty standard, but another pattern that is fun, is to cut each part of the flashes, so that as a whole you get this pattern. Or do the opposite and get a spear point. Again, whatever you want-go crazy



Now this stuff is very important-Fray Check, so the bottom does not unravel. This stuff is basically nail polish I think (I remember using nail polish on my nylons in high school when I got a run, but I imagine most of you guys have not had that experience )



More...

Be well,

[The F-H.C.A.G.]

Part 2, final

Cut out patches of velcro-I used fairly small ones, because these flashes are for a 6 year old and are therefore fairly light and on fairly thin elastic. You may want to use wider and/or longer strips of velcro. Make sure you put the prepared flashes on the elastic BEFORE you sew on the velcro, because the velcro will tear at the fabric if you try to slide them over it.



Sew on the velcro. Velcro and elastic both seem to make my sewing machine have a bit of a breakdown (it's an old and cheap machine), but by playing with the thread tension and stitch length, I finally got it not to bunch up.



Sew across the flashes, so they don't slide apart, but don't include the elastic in this stitch, because when it stretches, it will gap



Here they are. You probably can't tell from this picture, but make sure that the hook part of the velcro faces out (true, it can still catch on the hose where you fold them over, but at least it won't irritate the calf, or catch on the hose against the leg). They look damp on the ends from the Fray Check, but that goes away as it dries.



One last post-pictures on the boy...

Be well,

[Fearnest]

SUPER detailed pics that will make it simple to replicate - muitos obrigados!

[ccga3359]

We now no longer have excuses for flubbing flashes. Thanks F-H.C.A.G.

[The F-H.C.A.G.]

Step 3: Put them on your son and go drink beer at the Devil's Canyon with a bunch of other X-Markers.

I chased the poor boy around with the camera all night and this is the best picture of the flashes I could get.



So there you have it, hope this was more than just tedious!

Be well,

[Chef]

Very nice. I might try this.