The Stole Project

It's an exciting time in our family! Our son has been called by a church as their pastor, and he will be ordained in the coming weeks. Months ago, we started talking about me making a stole for him. Eventually, he'll need several - in all the colors of the liturgical calendar project I made - as they are worn by clergy in our denomination as a sign of ordination . But to start, we decided on a blue one, which would be for the season of Advent, the four weeks leading up to Christmas. And yes, we realize that the way the timing has gone, he won't be using this stole until the end of this year, but we needed to start somewhere!

My main resource for this first stole was a pattern and instructions by Paula Behrens. James @thequiltingrev had also been gracious in sharing with me about the stoles he'd made for himself. The exterior fabric we chose was Essex Speckle Yarn Dyed in Ocean, with a lining of Kona Regatta. I used Pellon 987F Fusible Fleece on the back of the Essex. I also machine-appliqued a Bethlehem star on one side of the front, backing first with Pellon SF101.

One of the other stoles my son had was a gift from his internship site, and we could tell there were small weights in the bottom corners. So I created a small pocket in each corner of the bottom linings, and inserted a penny in each, before stitching the width closed by hand. 

As a final touch, son asked if I'd stitch one of my A Quilter's Table/name labels onto the lining, so I placed that on the lining of the side opposite the star.

The stole finished 5.25" wide in front, tapering on the shoulders and back; and approximately 50" long on each side from the back neck seam.

This was a really enjoyable and satisfying project, and I anticipate it won't be the last stole I make. Now that I've made one, others shouldn't be daunting.