Cap It with a Lappet

My repro lappet & my antique lappet

Remember that original lappet cap I found when antiquing last fall? I copied it for that letters program earlier this year, and I recently added the final ruffle. For the lappet lovers of the world (I know you're out there), here are some photos highlighting the construction process...

I started, naturally, by patterning the original cap. Normally I'm working from memory, vague notes from seeing an object at a museum or my Pinterest board for this process...and I discovered that it's so much easier with something tangible to work from.

I found linen scraps in my stash that I had cut from another project. Lucky for me, that flat felled seam was perfect for the center seam on the caul. 

 I used stroke gathers to make the poofy bit at the center, which adds a nice effect. 

Looking at the two lappets side by side...

I used two types of fabric, just like the original.

 The ruffles, side by side. 
I cut the ruffle linen on the selvedge to save time/sewing. The extant ruffle has a very fine hem.

A close-up of the whipped gathers, the stitch that attaches the ruffle to the caul, from the fashion fabric side.

 My cap inside out.

I made an extra one that's up on my Etsy shop. It doesn't have a ruffle because my whipped gathers need work...but more on the technique next time.